First points and maiden pole position in Formula 3 for HWA RACELAB

: on 23 June 2019

HWA RACELAB has scored its first points at the team's second event in the FIA Formula 3 Championship. Bent Viscaal (Netherlands) and Jake Hughes (Great Britain) both picked up points in the two races at Circuit Paul Ricard (France), finishing fifth and seventh respectively. Hughes also secured the first pole position for the team from Affalterbach in qualifying.

5th and 20th place for Bent Viscaal, DNF and 7th for Jake Hughes, DNF and 19th for Keyvan Andres
Jake Hughes secures first pole position for HWA RACELAB
Jake Hughes produces stunning comeback from 25th to 7th on Sunday
Bent Viscaal: "I am really happy with the Saturday."
Jake Hughes: "I am pleased to be able to give something back to the team."
Keyvan Andres: "All in all, it was an okay race."
Thomas Strick: "The team has done an incredible job in recent weeks."

Le Castellet, 23rd June 2019 – The weekend at Circuit Paul Ricard began with a great success for HWA RACELAB. On Friday, Jake Hughes secured pole position in a thrilling qualifying. He produced a perfect lap at the end of the 30-minute session at the high-speed circuit near Le Castellet. The 25-year-old surpassed the times of his rivals at the very last minute to top the timings. In doing so, he not only presented the team with its maiden pole position at only its second event in the FIA Formula 3 Championship, but also the first four points. Bent Viscaal secured a good grid position in eighth place, while Keyvan Andres (Iran) started from 25th.

The following day, Jake made a perfect start to the race. He led the field for a long time, until he was eventually passed on lap nine. After that, he was embroiled in a thrilling battle for the podium positions. Jake took one risk too many on lap 15: He touched the rear of Marcus Armstrong's (PREMA Racing) car and skidded off the track, bringing a premature end to what had to that point been an impressive display.

Team-mate Bent Viscaal started the race from eighth and immediately made up three positions. He then dropped back to eighth place, before the 19-year-old found a consistent pace and produced some excellent laps. Fifth place and his first ten points in the FIA Formula 3 Championship were the well-deserved reward for his effort.

Unfortunately, Saturday's race was over in no time for Keyvan Andres (Iran). Software issues prevented him from starting the race.

Bent made another good start on Sunday. Starting from fourth on the grid, he flew out of the blocks again and climbed into third place. However, Bent was unable to hang on to this position as he came under great of pressure from his rivals behind him and his tyres started to wear quickly. Despite defending well on several occasions, he came off the track on lap 16 and dropped out of the points.

Team-mate Jake Hughes produced an impressive fightback to make it into the top ten. After the unfortunate crash the previous day, he drove like a man possessed. Starting from 25th, he had already rocketed into 16th by the end of lap three. Hughes lay 13th at the halfway point of the race. He was then running eleventh on the penultimate lap when he spotted a gap, attacked, and forced his way into eighth place. Not happy with reaching the points positions, a remarkable feat in itself, the Brit managed to climb into seventh place on the final lap.

Keyvan Andres started the race from 28th and found his rhythm over the course of the race. He showed a consistent pace and climbed through the field to finish 19th.

Quotes on the race weekend

Bent Viscaal (19, Netherlands, car number 10), 5th and 20th place
"I am really happy with the Saturday. Fifth place and my first points - what more can you ask for! Today, my race was ultimately over after eight laps. My tyres had no grip, which made it really difficult. However, we showed in qualifying and race one that we have the necessary pace. That is a big positive. We will now focus on Spielberg next week!"

Jake Hughes (25, Great Britain, car number 11), DNF and 7th place
"Today went really well. I made up ten places in the opening laps. I was right in the middle of a chain of cars using DRS, which allowed me to make quick progress. At some point, I actually realised that I might be able to score a few points today. I tried not to lose any time, as 20 laps are over before you know it. Then I found myself six or seven laps behind one car. However, I still had a chance to pick up points, and I took that chance. I am pleased to be able to give something back to the team after yesterday. Six points this weekend, that is great - even if it could have been more, but that was my own fault."

Keyvan Andres (19, Iran, car number 12), DNF and 19th place
"The software issues that prevented me from starting on Saturday were unfortunate. That meant that I was lacking experience and race kilometres on the track. It was not easy to start from right at the back again today, but I gradually found my rhythm and produced a good performance in the second half. All in all, today was an okay race."

Thomas Strick, Team Principal HWA RACELAB
"It is fantastic to have scored our first points at only our second event in the FIA Formula 3 Championship! The whole team deserves a lot of praise. They have done an incredible job in recent weeks. Our young drivers put on a great display of motor racing here: Fifth and seventh place, and a pole position – we are more than happy with that. I am particularly happy for Jake, who showed what a team player he is after his mistake yesterday. His fightback today was impressive. It is nice to be straight back in action in Spielberg next week. We are hungry for more. We would obviously also like to congratulate our partner BWT Arden on the victory in FIA Formula 2."

Result of race one, Saturday 22nd June:
1. Jehan Daruvala PREMA Racing 38:27.360
5. Bent Viscaal HWA RACELAB 38:46.668
DNF Jake Hughes HWA RACELAB DNF
DNF Keyvan Andres HWA RACELAB DNF

Result of race two, Sunday 23rd June:
1. Robert Shwartzman PREMA Racing 38:04.147
7. Jake Hughes HWA RACELAB          38:25.511
19. Keyvan Andres HWA RACELAB          38:38.956
20. Bent Viscaal HWA RACELAB          38:38.958

Preview
The next races in the FIA Formula 3 Championship will take place on 29th and 30th June at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg.

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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