Alesi puts BWT HWA RACELAB in the points in FIA Formula 2

Giuliano Alesi (France) presented BWT HWA RACELAB with its first points in race one of the FIA Formula 2 Championship. He took full advantage of the team's clever race strategy at the season-opener in Spielberg, Austria, finishing sixth after an impressive fightback. Technical issues meant the team came away empty-handed from Sunday's sprint race.

  • 6th place and DNF for Giuliano Alesi, DNF and 18th place for Artem Markelov
  • Giuliano Alesi: "We must now take the positives from this weekend and continue to work hard."
  • Artem Markelov: "The strategy in race one on Saturday was excellent."
  • Thomas Strick: "We have a lot of work ahead of us over the coming days."

Spielberg, 5th July 2020 – The grid positions for Saturday's opening race of the season were far from ideal for BWT HWA RACELAB, after technical issues in qualifying meant Giuliano Alesi (France) and Artem Markelov (Russia) had to settle for 18th and 20th place. However, Giuliano made a blistering start on the 4.318-kilometre circuit, making up eight positions on the opening lap. The team opted for a late pit stop - a strategy that ultimately paid dividends. At the halfway point of the race, Giuliano and Artem led the field for BWT HWA RACELAB, until both drivers came in for fresh tyres and consequently dropped down the standings. While Markelov was forced to retire with a technical issue shortly after returning to the track, Alesi produced an impressive display after the subsequent safety car phase. Now on fresh, soft tyres, he left several rivals in his wake and eventually crossed the finish line in sixth place after one hour of racing. In doing so, the son of former Formula 1 driver Jean Alesi presented the team with its first points on its debut in the FIA Formula 2 Championship.

That result saw Giuliano start Sunday's sprint from third place. However, he was not to experience more success. His car came to a stop with engine damage on lap one.

Artem once again enjoyed no luck in the race. Damage to his front wing, following a collision, forced him back into the pits. He was unable to make up the time lost through the repairs, meaning the former Formula 2 runner-up had to settle for 18th place.

The FIA Formula 2 Championship continues with another two races in Spielberg on 11th and 12th July.

Quotes on the race weekend

Artem Markelov (25, Russia, car number 16), DNF and 18th place
"We started really well in free practice, but had a few issues with the set-up of the car in qualifying. That made it difficult to get a top result. The strategy in race one was excellent. We were consistently fighting our way through the field until I was stopped by a problem with the throttle. I made a poor start in race two, which cost me a number of positions. After the damage to my front wing, we decided to come into the pits and then to rejoin the race. Despite all that, we learned some important lessons with regard to how the car reacts to any changes we make. I hope I can put the information I have received from the team into practice, and am looking forward to next weekend."

Giuliano Alesi (20, France, car number 17), 6th place and DNF
"It was a weekend of highs and lows for us. We had technical issues in qualifying, but made up for that with a perfect pit stop strategy on Saturday. The pace was really good in the opening race. Unfortunately, race two came to a very quick end for me. I did not even manage one lap, as I was stopped in my tracks by a damaged engine. We must now take the positives out of the weekend and continue to work hard, in order to improve over the course of the season."

 Thomas Strick (Team Principal BWT HWA RACELAB)
“We are pleased with our first points in Formula 2 with BWT HWA RACELAB, but still have a lot of work ahead of us in the coming days. The key to scoring points on Saturday was the combination of an impressive drive, with an outstanding start, and a good team strategy. When everything comes together like that, you can pull off a fightback like the one we saw from Giuliano. However, we are not satisfied with the overall result of the weekend. We still have a lot to do, in order to iron out the issues that arose."

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Result of race one, Saturday 4th July:
1. Callum Ilott                             UNI-Virtuosi                              54:21.050
6. Giuliano Alesi                          BWT HWA RACELAB                  54:33.878
DNF Artem Markelov                  BWT HWA RACELAB                  DNF                                                

Result of race two, Sunday 5th July:
1.Felipe Drugovich                     MP Motorsport                          42:05.526
18. Artem Markelov                    BWT HWA RACELAB                  43:13.391
DNF Giuliano Alesi                      BWT HWA RACELAB                  DNF

 

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 entered Formula E as a new team in the 2018/19 season, adding a future-oriented string to HWA’s wealth of racetrack expertise. HWA RACELAB has also been competing in the FIA Formula 3 Championship since 2019 and will be appearing in the FIA Formula 2 Championship from 2020. 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
Media

Tel:           +49 (0) 7144 8717 – 215
E-mail:     a.hoersch@hwaag.com