F.RENAULT 3.5 FOURTH PLACE AND ROOKIE WIN FOR SIROTKIN AND I.S.R. IN AUSTRIA

The F.Renault 3.5 Sunday in Spielberg saw I.S.R. Racing get back to their usual striking form. The Czech team clinched an amazing 4th place finish with Sergey Sirotkin, making the most of both the car’s pace and a perfect strategy to recover from 10th place on the grid. Christopher Zanella, on the team’s other car, crossed the line in 14th place after starting from P17 .
In a very hot and sunny Red Bull Ring, ISR’s day started with a Qualifying session that left the team with mixed feelings. Sirotkin had the pace in the single sectors but didn’t find a clear lap to put them together, hence closing the session in P10. Zanella, meanwhile, struggled with low tyre temperatures and couldn’t do better than 9th row.
The race, anyway, was a completely different story as Sirotkin managed to make the most of his potential. He first gained one place with a slingshot getaway and then the team opted for a late pit-stop strategy in order to let him enjoy a clear track, as all his rivals decided to pit early. This allowed the Russian talent to unleash all his speed, and when he finally emerged from the pit-lane after his own stop he had already recovered to 5th place. He then managed an aggressive pass on Stevens for P4 and took the flag, bagging important points and a deserved succes in the special rookie classification.
Zanella’s race was more difficult, as the Swiss driver lost a lot of time fighting mid-pack on a track that doesn’t offer many overtaking chances. He still managed a slight recovery, passing from P17 to 14th place.

Sergey Sirotkin: Q1- P10; R1 – P4
“It was a really fun race, my car was really quick in the corners, and that allowed me to catch up with the drivers in front when I was lapping in clean air. The strategy worked fine and both my in and out laps were very good, and as a consequence we could make up a lot of places. I could have done even better but my engine temperature went a bit too high after the start, and so I had a bit less top speed on the straights. Anyway it’s a great result, and the rookie win adds further good taste to it”.

Christopher Zanella: Q1 – P17; R1 – P14
“Qualifying was the real issue today, because starting behind on such a track then you don’t have many chances to pass. We tried an early pit-stop strategy but everybody else did, so it had no effect at all. It’s a pity but it’s racing, now I just want to focus on the next round in Budapest”.