#Prema_team – PREMA Powerteam takes three wins, two podium lockouts in Formula Regional opener at Misano

PREMA Powerteam experienced an amazing weekend in the opening round of the Formula Regional European Championship at Misano.

Lining-up with four cars in torrid conditions at the Adriatic venue, the team scored three wins and delivered a double podium lockout in race 2 and 3. To add even more value to the results, the fact that the three wins were taken by three different drivers, and all four were featured on the podium.

Qualifying started well with Arthur Leclerc sweeping three pole positions. At the start of race 1, he and Gianluca Petecof were involved in a contact initiated by another car. The Monegasque was forced to retire, while the Brazilian put up a stellar recovery to P4. Danish racer Oliver Rasmussen dominated to take the first win of the season, his first in single seaters, while British female racer Jamie Chadwick ended up in P3 to highlight a positive debut.

Race 2 was more predictable with Leclerc sailing to win from pole in front of Petecof, while Rasmussen completed the podium with another great run. In race 3, Petecof made a perfect start and led all laps edging Leclerc and Rasmussen.

Once again, the regular and rookie podiums were an all-Prema affair wrapping up an almost perfect weekend.

#6
OLIVER RASMUSSEN

“I’m pretty satisfied on a global view. The weekend started with my first win in single-seaters which was pretty awesome. I think we got some good points but just didn’t have the right pace in race 2 and 3, and we will have to look into that if we want to aim for the championship. Great job by the team, we exit the weekend in the lead tied with Gianluca. Thank you to my crew, Jonathan, Alessandro and Ivan for the great run!”
Qualifying 1: P4
Qualifying 2: P4
Starting Grid Race 1: P4
Starting Grid Race 2: P3
Starting Grid Race 3: P4
Fastest lap: 1’30″620
Fastest lap: 1’30″025
Race 1: P1
Race 2: P3
Race 3: P3

#10
GIANLUCA PETECOF

“It was a great weekend. It didn’t start the way we wanted, missing a little bit in qualifying. In race 1 we deserved to be on the podium and in the end, we weren’t, but after that, the other two races were very positive. The last race was great, although a little difficult to manage but in the end, we got away with a win and the championship lead. That’s positive and we’ll keep fighting.”
Qualifying 1: P2
Qualifying 2: P3
Starting Grid Race 1: P2
Starting Grid Race 2: P2
Starting Grid Race 3: P2
Fastest lap: 1’30″329
Fastest lap: 1’29″905
Race 1: P4
Race 2: P2
Race 3: P1

#14
ARTHUR LECLERC

“I’m really happy about the pace, we proved that we can be really fast. Now I think the main thing to work on is the starts, it will be a key aspect as we saw in race 2 and then in race 3 when it put me in trouble. That’s why I ended up P2 and struggled to manage the tires. We know that we have the speed though, and it’s positive for the next races.”
Qualifying 1: P1
Qualifying 2: P1
Starting Grid Race 1: P1
Starting Grid Race 2: P1
Starting Grid Race 3: P1
Fastest lap: 1’30″269
Fastest lap: 1’29″789
Race 1: DNF
Race 2: P1
Race 3: P2

#55
JAMIE CHADWICK

“We got a really good start to the weekend. It kind of exceeded our expectations a little bit with the podium. I got a little bit lucky but I’m really happy to get that step in the first race. The rest of the weekend was a little bit mixed, up and down, we struggled with a couple of things but I’m just happy to get the first weekend underway and get three solid results.”
Qualifying 1: P7
Qualifying 2: P7
Starting Grid Race 1: P7
Starting Grid Race 2: P7
Starting Grid Race 3: P7
Fastest lap: 1’30″930
Fastest lap: 1’30″522
Race 1: P3
Race 2: P8
Race 3: P6