FIA ETCR Round 3 - Race SP - Jarama - The Hyundai Veloster N ETCR showed signs of improvement in the stifling heat and strong winds that swept the Jarama circuit. Jean-Karl Vernay was able to join in the fight, but without achieving the result he had hoped for.
The Frenchman and Norbert Michelisz both qualified for their second quarter-final in the Fast Group. The driver of the #69 managed to overtake Luca Filippi to take second place, which meant a position in the middle of the starting grid for the semi-final. A premonition?
All three cars started identically, and Vernay, in the middle, found himself literally sandwiched between the Romeo Ferraris. The contact was rough and he found himself in third position. Without letting go, “Jay-Kay” climbed back up and put pressure on Filippi who ended up crashing.
Fifth on the grid in the Super Final, he gained a place in the first lap and resisted perfectly to the cars behind him to keep his fourth position.
At the foot of the Super Final podium, Jean-Karl Vernay sees better days ahead: “The SPAIN race was perhaps my most difficult weekend of the season so far. This year, when you see the level of our competitors, the margin is so narrow that there is no room for error. I was able to bounce back from a difficult qualifying session and finish all the races. Towards the end of the weekend I was really starting to feel comfortable on the track and the car was great. My best moment was my manoeuvre on Spengler in the first corner of the Super Final. I got a good start and tried to be clever by passing him on the inside. It was a great pass. We are definitely making good progress.”
The FIA ETCR eTouring Car World Cup resumes with the Race BE at the Belgian circuit of Zolder on 9 and 10 July.
2022 FIA ETCR drivers’ standings after Round 03
1 – Mattias Ekström 280
2 – Adrien Tambay 274
3 – Mikel Azcona 203
4 – Maxime Martin 200
5 – Bruno Spengler 182
6 – Tom Blomqvist 180
7 – Jordi Gené 140
8 – Norbert Michelisz 137
9 – Giovanni Venturini 115
10 – Jean-Karl Vernay 111
11 – Kevin Ceccon 72
12 – Luca Filippi 58
