Bacheta and Venturini, come rain or shine!
The competitors in the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 took advantage of different track conditions during today’s collective testing at Magny-Cours. Interwetten’s Luciano Bacheta gave the best performance of the morning session on a wet track. The conditions had improved for the afternoon, and it was the turn of Epsilon Euskadi’s Giovanni Venturini to shine.
The first to take to the track this Friday morning, the drivers in the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 were greeted by wet conditions. All drivers were out on wet tyres for this first session of collective testing.
With the weather forecast predicting better conditions for the rest of the weekend, the drivers chose to spend a lot of the session in their team garages. The times improved steadily and Luciano Bacheta made a splash in the less than perfect conditions. The British driver took control not long into the session, setting flying lap after flying lap. His lead was nevertheless challenged over the course of a few minutes by Korainen Bros Motorsport’s Miki Weckstrom. With a lap time of 1'50"165, the Finn hit the top of the time sheet.
Undaunted, Bacheta was clearly at ease with the conditions and the Magny-Cours circuit, immediately reclaiming the fastest lap. With a time of 1’49”760, he led Miki Weckstrom, Tech 1 Racing’s Aaro Vainio, Epsilon Euskadi’s Alex Riberas and Tech 1 Racing’s Arthur Pic.
By the time the afternoon session came around, the track had dried out completely. Epsilon Euskadi’s Miguel Otegui, and Arthur Pic were the first to cross the 1’40 barrier. With a fast lap clocked at 1’39”778, the Spaniard led the Frenchman. In contrast to the morning session, the drivers stayed out much longer, driving several laps.
Behind the two leaders, Giovanni Venturini, Luciano Bacheta and Cram Competition’s André Negrao took it turns to hold third place. The three drivers nevertheless found themselves outshone by Alex Riberas. The Spanish driver crept into third place, just as Arthur Pic dislodged Miguel Otegui from first place with a lap time of 1’39”590. Shortly after, the session was interrupted by the Red flag, as Tech 1 Racing’s Hugo Valente crashed out. The drivers would return to the track for a few laps, but this time it was the turn of Miki Weckstrom to upset the rhythm of the session, as he too crashed out.
On fresh tyres, the drivers set out for one last flying lap, which really shook up the current order. Giovanni Venturini set the final fastest lap of the day in 1’38”903 to lead Korainen Bros Motorsport’s Jukka Honkavuori and Miguel Otegui.
Quote, unquote:
Giovanni Venturini : “Ever since the start of the season, my car has had really bad oversteer. In the second race at Brno, we tried a new setup. Today we confirmed that we're heading in the right direction. Setting the fastest time today has done a lot for my confidence.”
Luciano Bacheta : “In the rain, it was going really well, and I had a good car in the dry too. I know I was quick, all I need tomorrow is a qualifying session without traffic or yellow flags. I need to win a race this weekend.”
Arthur Pic : “We worked hard and we were fast. I didn’t put on fresh tyres, so it’s great to have finished fifth. We have a few minor issues to work out with the car, but it’s looking good.”
Official Renault Sport Press Release