GP3 testing: Honda junior Fukuzumi leads all-ART top three
Honda protege Nirei Fukuzumi topped both sessions on day one of post-season GP3 testing at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, as ART took a 1-2-3 in the afternoon
Fukuzumi's best time of the day came late on, setting a benchmark of 1m55.479s, to again finish ahead of team-mate-for-the-week Jack Aitken.
Aitken - who raced for Arden this year - closed in the second session to within three tenths of his fellow ART driver, with Formula 3 convert George Russell ensuring the team a top-three sweep in the afternoon.
Russell, who is expected to join the Mercedes Formula 1 junior programme, pipped Trident's Arjun Maini to the position after Maini had finished ahead for third in the morning's running.
Fifth went the way of the improving American Santino Ferrucci, who proved to be the fastest DAMS driver in both sessions after taking seventh earlier in the day.
Trident's Alessio Lorandi was another driver who found more time in the afternoon, going sixth fastest, after finishing ninth and two places behind Ferrucci in the morning.
Raoul Hyman was the second fastest DAMS man, making a marked improvement from the morning's 12th place to the seventh fastest time in the afternoon.
Giuliano Alesi was eighth, pipping Steijn Schothorst and Ryan Tveter to the position, but had started the day with fifth behind Fukuzumi, Aitken, Maini and Russell.
The morning's running was more disrupted with two red flags, caused when Maini stopped on track early on and then later for debris.
MORNING TIMES:
Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Nirei Fukuzumi | ART Grand Prix | 1m55.853s | - | 24 |
2 | Jack Aitken | ART Grand Prix | 1m56.408s | 0.555s | 23 |
3 | Arjun Maini | Trident | 1m56.460s | 0.607s | 22 |
4 | George Russell | ART Grand Prix | 1m56.522s | 0.669s | 24 |
5 | Giuliano Alesi | Trident | 1m56.550s | 0.697s | 21 |
6 | Niko Kari | Arden International | 1m56.588s | 0.735s | 33 |
7 | Santino Ferrucci | DAMS | 1m56.726s | 0.873s | 15 |
8 | Steijn Schothorst | DAMS | 1m56.793s | 0.940s | 22 |
9 | Alessio Lorandi | Jenzer Motorsport | 1m56.841s | 0.988s | 21 |
10 | Ryan Tveter | Trident | 1m57.048s | 1.195s | 24 |
11 | Matheus Leist | Arden International | 1m57.279s | 1.426s | 27 |
12 | Raoul Hyman | DAMS | 1m57.281s | 1.428s | 28 |
13 | Pedro Cardoso | Trident | 1m57.392s | 1.539s | 24 |
14 | Bruno Baptista | Jenzer Motorsport | 1m57.550s | 1.697s | 26 |
15 | Leonardo Pulcini | Campos Racing | 1m57.610s | 1.757s | 26 |
16 | Max Defourny | ART Grand Prix | 1m57.629s | 1.776s | 23 |
17 | Dorian Boccolacci | Arden International | 1m57.749s | 1.896s | 28 |
18 | Patricio O'Ward | Koiranen GP | 1m58.063s | 2.210s | 14 |
19 | Marcos Siebert | Jenzer Motorsport | 1m58.473s | 2.620s | 29 |
20 | Julien Falchero | Campos Racing | 1m58.481s | 2.628s | 25 |
21 | Robert Shwartzman | Koiranen GP | 1m59.283s | 3.430s | 22 |
22 | Tarun Reddy | Koiranen GP | 1m59.520s | 3.667s | 15 |
23 | Petru Florescu | Campos Racing | 2m01.085s | 5.232s | 27 |
AFTERNOON TIMES:
Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Nirei Fukuzumi | ART Grand Prix | 1m55.479s | - | 35 |
2 | Jack Aitken | ART Grand Prix | 1m55.712s | 0.233s | 33 |
3 | George Russell | ART Grand Prix | 1m55.732s | 0.253s | 33 |
4 | Arjun Maini | Trident | 1m56.062s | 0.583s | 25 |
5 | Santino Ferrucci | DAMS | 1m56.108s | 0.629s | 21 |
6 | Alessio Lorandi | Jenzer Motorsport | 1m56.123s | 0.644s | 25 |
7 | Raoul Hyman | DAMS | 1m56.253s | 0.774s | 26 |
8 | Giuliano Alesi | Trident | 1m56.491s | 1.012s | 19 |
9 | Steijn Schothorst | DAMS | 1m56.558s | 1.079s | 27 |
10 | Ryan Tveter | Trident | 1m56.582s | 1.103s | 26 |
11 | Leonardo Pulcini | Campos Racing | 1m56.659s | 1.180s | 19 |
12 | Dorian Boccolacci | Arden International | 1m56.756s | 1.277s | 26 |
13 | Patricio O'Ward | Koiranen GP | 1m56.757s | 1.278s | 22 |
14 | Matheus Leist | Arden International | 1m56.839s | 1.360s | 25 |
15 | Max Defourny | ART Grand Prix | 1m56.892s | 1.413s | 33 |
16 | Bruno Baptista | Jenzer Motorsport | 1m57.016s | 1.537s | 23 |
17 | Pedro Cardoso | Trident | 1m57.112s | 1.633s | 29 |
18 | Marcos Siebert | Jenzer Motorsport | 1m57.164s | 1.685s | 27 |
19 | Robert Shwartzman | Koiranen GP | 1m57.346s | 1.867s | 22 |
20 | Julien Falchero | Campos Racing | 1m57.355s | 1.876s | 22 |
21 | Tarun Reddy | Koiranen GP | 1m57.766s | 2.287s | 28 |
22 | Petru Florescu | Campos Racing | 1m59.387s | 3.908s | 30 |
23 | Niko Kari | Arden International | 2m00.824s | 5.345s | 19 |
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments