Simon Trummer slipstreams to fastest time in second GP3 practice at Monza
Simon Trummer took advantage of a tow from team-mate Mitch Evans to set the fastest time in the second GP3 free practice session at Monza
The MW Arden driver produced a surprise lap to take top spot with 12 seconds left on the clock. He continued to slipstream Evans on a second effort, but was following too close by the end of the lap which cost him time in the final corner.
Trummer's late improvement pushed Tom Dillmann (Addax) back to second after the Frenchman had sat at the head of the field for most of the session. Behind him, Adrian Quaife-Hobbs took third for Manor despite crashing out after just 14 minutes.
The Briton's session came to an end when he was clipped by Lewis Williamson as he was letting the MW Arden driver through into the Parabolica. Williamson misjudged where Quaife-Hobbs was as he tried to retake the racing line before turning into the corner, and his left rear wheel made contact with the Manor driver's right front, sending them both into the gravel.
The incident, which was partly caused by confusion in traffic, will be investigated by the stewards.
The other surprise of the session was title contenders and ART Grand Prix team-mates Valtteri Bottas and James Calado opting not to take to the track at all.
The pair, who are separated by five points at the top of the standings heading into this weekend's title deciding races, watched on with their mechanics from the Ferrari Formula 1 team's pitwall, electing to save tyres for later in the weekend.
"We were happy with what we did this morning, and it seems that there is quite a big advantage to new tyres here so we thought it was better to save them," Calado explained.
"Also, the track temperature was much higher than it will be for qualifying tomorrow and we didn't want to get distracted by making set-up changes to suit the hotter conditions."
Pos Driver Team Time Gap 1. Simon Trummer MW Arden 1m45.103s 2. Tom Dillmann Addax 1m45.134s + 0.031s 3. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs Manor 1m45.142s + 0.039s 4. Mitch Evans MW Arden 1m45.245s + 0.142s 5. Gabby Chaves Addax 1m45.282s + 0.179s 6. Richie Stanaway ART 1m45.379s + 0.276s 7. Conor Daly Carlin 1m45.387s + 0.284s 8. Tamas Pal Kiss Tech 1 1m45.415s + 0.312s 9. Nigel Melker RSC Mucke 1m45.447s + 0.344s 10. Lewis Williamson MW Arden 1m45.467s + 0.364s 11. Alexander Sims Status 1m45.638s + 0.535s 12. Vittorio Ghirelli Addax 1m45.658s + 0.555s 13. Antonio Felix da Costa Status 1m45.663s + 0.560s 14. Nico Muller Jenzer 1m45.727s + 0.624s 15. Aaro Vainio Tech 1 1m45.802s + 0.699s 16. Zoel Amberg Atech CRS 1m45.804s + 0.701s 17. Matias Laine Manor 1m45.867s + 0.764s 18. Rio Haryanto Manor 1m45.912s + 0.809s 19. Michael Christensen RSC Mucke 1m46.032s + 0.929s 20. Nick Yelloly Atech CRS 1m46.051s + 0.948s 21. Ivan Lukashevich Status 1m46.098s + 0.995s 22. Marlon Stockinger Atech CRS 1m46.314s + 1.211s 23. Callum MacLeod Carlin 1m46.353s + 1.250s 24. Leonardo Cordeiro Carlin 1m46.446s + 1.343s 25. Maxim Zimin Jenzer 1m46.792s + 1.689s 26. Thomas Hylkema Tech 1 1m46.872s + 1.769s 27. Daniel Mancinelli RSC Mucke 1m46.991s + 1.888s 28. Christophe Hurni Jenzer 1m47.709s + 2.606s 29. Valtteri Bottas ART 30. James Calado ART
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