Formula 3 race debut for HWA RACELAB in Barcelona

: on 12 May 2019

In the FIA Formula 3 Championship season-opener at the Circuit de Catalunya in Spain HWA RACELAB completes the first pair of Formula 3 races. Driver Bent Viscaal makes a good start in the new race series with two 13th-place finishes. His team-mate Jake Hughes has bad luck after a promising practice session. Keyvan Andres shows an improved performance in the second race and inspires hope for the future.

Two 13th-place finishes for Bent Viscaal, 17th position and a retirement through no fault of his own for Jake Hughes, 28th and 18th for Keyvan Andres
Strong practice performance from Jake Hughes
Bent Viscaal: “We are making great progress with the car.”
Jake Hughes: “We would have had the pace to reach the podium.”
Keyvan Andres: “Mixed feelings after this weekend.”
Thomas Strick: “We are right up there in terms of pace.”

Barcelona, 12th May 2019 – A momentous occasion for HWA RACELAB at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona: the team completed its very first Formula 3 races at the FIA Formula 3 Championship season-opener. The two 13th-place finishes for Bent Viscaal (Netherlands) represented a good result.

Bent had started Saturday’s 40-minute race from 16th position and recorded consistent lap times before crossing the line in 14th place. This result was revised to 13th after investigations by race control. In the second race on Sunday, Bent repeated his performance from the previous day, producing another solid performance to finish 13th once again.

Keyvan Andres (Iran) had to start from the pit lane on Saturday after a collision on the warm-up lap and was unable to improve on 28th place. However, Keyvan put on a strong performance in the second race on Sunday: he started 28th on the grid and moved up gradually to 21st. He then improved by a further three positions thanks to a fast final lap, finishing the race in 18th place.

Jake Hughes (Great Britain) endured an unhappy weekend. He had made a promising start with the fifth-best time in Friday’s practice session. However, problems with the DRS meant that he could only reach 29th in qualifying. A bold chasing performance on Saturday saw him move up to 17th place. On Sunday, a four-car collision at the first corner saw his race ended through no fault of his own. He slid off into the gravel trap and was unable to continue.

Reactions to the race weekend

Bent Viscaal (19, Netherlands, #10), two 13th places
“I am happy with the results, that was really good for the first-ever races in Formula 3 even though we still have some work to do. It was difficult to overtake in both races but it was fun. We are making great progress with the car and I am already looking forward to the next race.”

Jake Hughes (24, Great Britain, #11), 17th place and DNF
“It's a pity that the weekend went like that for me. We would have had really good pace; you saw that in the practice session and in the first race on Saturday. I think we would even have had the pace for a podium finish this weekend. But the DRS problems in qualifying pretty much meant that my weekend was over. It's difficult starting from 29th place. And then I had that unfortunate incident in today's race. I got hit from behind just after the start and didn't have a chance. That's annoying but we saw that we have a strong car and we can look ahead positively to the next race.”

Keyvan Andres (19, Iran, #12), 28th and 18th places
“I have mixed feelings after this weekend. Qualifying was tough and then I made a frustrating error on the formation lap which meant that my race was pretty much over. The second race went much better and I had fun out there on the track. In general, I am satisfied with today’s result. The pace was very good and I couldn’t have done much better from that starting position.”

Thomas Strick, Team Principal HWA RACELAB
“Firstly, we are happy with our Formula 3 race debut. We made the top 20 with two cars in both races and that's OK for the very first race. The lads did a good job. Of course, not everything went as we had hoped. But we are right up there in terms of pace. That was especially clear to see during Jake’s practice session and with his chasing performance in the first race. I feel sorry for him. Who knows what he could have achieved from a better grid position on Saturday? But we can't change that now. Essentially, we can be optimistic as we look forward to the second race weekend. We have a long break now, which we can use for analysis and detailed preparation.”

Result of 1st race on Saturday 11th May:

1. Robert Shwartzman PREMA Racing 37:42.312
13.Bent Viscaal HWA RACELAB 38:11.660
17. Jake Hughes HWA RACELAB 38:14.519
28.Keyvan Andres HWA RACELAB 39:09.724

Result of 2nd race on Sunday 12th May:

1. Jehan Daruvala PREMA Racing 40:29.021
13. Bent Viscaal HWA RACELAB 40:47.176
18. Keyvan Andres HWA RACELAB 40:53.477
DNF Jake Hughes HWA RACELAB DNF

Preview:
The next races in the FIA Formula 3 Championship will take place on 22nd and 23rd June at the Circuit Paul Ricard in Le Castellet.

About HWA AG
HWA AG is an independent, 360° engineering specialist in the fields of automobile racing and high-performance cars. Formed in 1998 by Hans Werner Aufrecht, the company is based in Affalterbach (Germany) and employs roughly 300 highly-qualified members of staff. HWA AG offers all its products and services under the motto ENGINEERING SPEED: The company’s objective is to develop the best possible, high-quality solutions, in order to get its partners and customers to their destination quicker. The portfolio of services ranges from designing all vehicle components to assembling complete cars, together with the relevant logistics, after-sales and support services.

About HWA RACELAB
HWA RACELAB is HWA AG’s operations team in motorsport. It brings together experienced specialists in high-quality race engineering and the associated services, in pursuit of success on the motorsport scene. HWA RACELAB will enter Formula E as a new team in the 2018/19 season, adding a future-oriented string to HWA’s wealth of racetrack expertise. Furthermore, HWA RACELAB will race in the new, international FIA Formula 3 championship in 2019. With eleven Drivers’ titles and over 180 race wins as a works team for Mercedes-AMG in the DTM, the company is one of the most successful players in international motorsport. HWA RACELAB also draws on the company’s other core areas of expertise, such as the development, assembly and running of GT cars for customer racing, as well as the assembly of Formula 3 race engines.

Annette Hörsch
Presse

tel: +49 (0) 7144 8717 – 215
email: a.hoersch@hwaag.com

Volker Glaser
Investor Relations

tel: + 49 (0) 7144 8717- 279
fax: + 49 (0) 7144 8718- 111
email: presse@hwaag.com

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