Grubmuller leads first FR3.5 session
Walter Grubmuller set the pace in Friday's opening Formula Renault 3.5 collective test at the Hungaroring. The British Formula 3 runner-up set a best lap of 1m34.635s, to edge out ISR's Esteban Guerrieri by 0.14 seconds
Russian Anton Nebylitskiy (KMP) continued his recent run of improved form to finish third, four tenths off Grubmuller's benchmark.
P1 Motorsport's Grubmuller has shown flashes of form in his debut season of Formula Renault 3.5, but fourth place at Brno in June remains the Austrian's best result. A parallel programme in Auto GP has been temporarily put on hold after a heavy shunt at Imola.
"From the word go we've been quick, so I hope to carry this forward through the weekend into qualifying and the race," said Grubmuller. "Initially the circuit was a bit dusty, but on new tyres at the end it was good and we set the time. Even earlier on, when we used old tyres, we were right up there. It's good as I have never raced at the Hungaroring before, although I did do one test last year.
"I decided to skip the Spa Auto GP race last weekend. I broke my tub at Imola, and although we could have probably got out, I wanted to focus on World Series. I also find it difficult adjusting from one car to the other."
Championship leader Mikhail Aleshin (Carlin) ended the morning in fourth spot. The Russian's regular engineer Marcus Koch has been joined by Daniele Rossi, who enjoyed success at Carlin with Sebastian Vettel in 2007 and returns to the team after a spell in GP2 with Trident.
On the circuit at which he made his maiden Formula Renault 3.5 appearance in 2009, Fortec Motorsport's Jon Lancaster finished fifth fastest. The second ISR entry of Filip Salaquarda completed the top six.
Pos Driver Team Time Gap 1. Walter Grubmuller P1 1m34.635s 2. Esteban Guerrieri ISR 1m34.775s + 0.140s 3. Anton Nebylitskiy KMP 1m35.073s + 0.438s 4. Mikhail Aleshin Carlin 1m35.146s + 0.511s 5. Jon Lancaster Fortec 1m35.166s + 0.531s 6. Filip Salaquarda ISR 1m35.474s + 0.839s 7. Brendon Hartley Tech 1 1m35.652s + 1.017s 8. Nelson Panciatici Junior Lotus 1m35.687s + 1.052s 9. Nathanael Berthon Draco 1m35.716s + 1.081s 10. Daniel Ricciardo Tech 1 1m35.854s + 1.219s 11. Jan Charouz P1 1m35.967s + 1.332s 12. Sten Pentus Fortec 1m36.290s + 1.655s 13. Federico Leo Pons 1m36.384s + 1.749s 14. Stefano Coletti Comtec 1m36.487s + 1.852s 15. Jake Rosenzweig Carlin 1m36.488s + 1.853s 16. Keisuke Kunimoto Epsilon Euskadi 1m36.502s + 1.867s 17. Daniel Zampieri Pons 1m36.554s + 1.919s 18. Victor Garcia KMP 1m36.574s + 1.939s 19. Albert Costa Epsilon Euskadi 1m36.653s + 2.018s 20. Greg Mansell Comtec 1m36.712s + 2.077s 21. Daniil Move Junior Lotus 1m36.754s + 2.119s 22. Sergio Canamasas FHV Interwetten 1m36.827s + 2.192s 23. Bruno Mendez FHV Interwetten 1m37.305s + 2.670s 24. Julian Leal Draco 1m38.053s + 3.418s
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