Monza GP3: Jake Dennis leads Arden 1-2 at Monza to claim first win
Jake Dennis claimed his first GP3 victory in an Arden one-two in the Monza opener
Though championship leader Charles Leclerc had claimed pole, he was surprised to do so as he felt ART was not at its best this weekend and said after qualifying he would focus on protecting his title bid.
He achieved that aim despite finishing only fourth, as championship rivals Alexander Albon and Antonio Fuoco were sixth and eighth.
Dennis grabbed the lead from Leclerc with a dive into the first chicane in the early stages, with team-mate Jack Aitken also demoting the Ferrari Formula 1 junior next time around.
Leclerc was more determined in defence when Fuoco then attacked him, with the pair banging wheels in an incident race control briefly investigated before deciding no action was required.
Fuoco lost pace in the second half of the race and fell back, though he will start on reverse-grid pole on Sunday.
Jake Hughes charged through from eighth on the grid, after his penalty for colliding with Matt Parry at Spa, to claim third from Leclerc and then challenge Aitken in the closing laps.
Leclerc resisted pressure from team-mate Nirei Fukuzumi for fourth.
Albon had initially lost ground, banging wheels with fellow ART man Nyck de Vries at one point, before salvaging sixth - passing Fuoco around the outside in a tyre-smoking move into the Roggia chicane. De Vries followed him through.
Matt Parry battled up from 17th on the grid to ninth, while Arden got all three of its drivers in the points as Tatiana Calderon took 10th.
Parry's Koiranen team-mates Matevos Isaakyan and Ralph Boschung could have been in the mix for points and reverse grid pole too had Boschung not run into Isaakyan, damaging the Russian's rear wing and earning himself a penalty.
Third-row starter Kevin Jorg struggled off the line and then caused a brief safety car when his DAMS machine cut out on track, though he got going again almost immediately.
RESULTS - 22 LAPS:
Pos | Driver | Team | Gap |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Jake Dennis | Arden International | 38m06.844s |
2 | Jack Aitken | Arden International | 1.987s |
3 | Jake Hughes | DAMS | 2.532s |
4 | Charles Leclerc | ART Grand Prix | 7.139s |
5 | Nirei Fukuzumi | ART Grand Prix | 7.561s |
6 | Alexander Albon | ART Grand Prix | 8.171s |
7 | Nyck de Vries | ART Grand Prix | 8.343s |
8 | Antonio Fuoco | Trident | 16.207s |
9 | Matt Parry | Koiranen GP | 16.607s |
10 | Tatiana Calderon | Arden International | 17.003s |
11 | Alex Palou | Campos Racing | 19.202s |
12 | Sandy Stuvik | Trident | 20.444s |
13 | Steijn Schothorst | Campos Racing | 22.179s |
14 | Arjun Maini | Jenzer Motorsport | 25.076s |
15 | Akash Nandy | Jenzer Motorsport | 27.804s |
16 | Artur Janosz | Trident | 30.365s |
17 | Konstantin Tereschenko | Campos Racing | 32.963s |
18 | Ralph Boschung | Koiranen GP | 34.813s |
19 | Santino Ferrucci | DAMS | 1 Lap |
- | Kevin Jorg | DAMS | Retirement |
- | Matevos Isaakyan | Koiranen GP | Retirement |
- | Giuliano Alesi | Trident | Not started |
RACE TWO STARTING GRID
Pos | Driver | Team |
---|---|---|
1 | Antonio Fuoco | Trident |
2 | Nyck de Vries | ART Grand Prix |
3 | Alexander Albon | ART Grand Prix |
4 | Nirei Fukuzumi | ART Grand Prix |
5 | Charles Leclerc | ART Grand Prix |
6 | Jake Hughes | DAMS |
7 | Jack Aitken | Arden International |
8 | Jake Dennis | Arden International |
9 | Matt Parry | Koiranen GP |
10 | Tatiana Calderon | Arden International |
11 | Alex Palou | Campos Racing |
12 | Sandy Stuvik | Trident |
13 | Steijn Schothorst | Campos Racing |
14 | Arjun Maini | Jenzer Motorsport |
15 | Akash Nandy | Jenzer Motorsport |
16 | Artur Janosz | Trident |
17 | Konstantin Tereschenko | Campos Racing |
18 | Ralph Boschung | Koiranen GP |
19 | Santino Ferrucci | DAMS |
20 | Kevin Jorg | DAMS |
21 | Matevos Isaakyan | Koiranen GP |
22 | Giuliano Alesi | Trident |
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