GP2 stars christen Valencia track
The new Valencia street circuit, the scene of next month's European Grand Prix, was christened by racing cars for the first time on Friday as the track gears up to host the Formula One World Championship
After a delayed start to the free practice sessions, due to last-minute track preparations, cars for the GTS class of the International GT Open series took to the circuit.
The field included GP2 stars such as Giorgio Pantano, Mike Conway, Luca Filippi, Vitaly Petrov, Ho-Pin Tung, Jerome d'Ambrosio, Javier Villa and Pastor Maldonado in a variety of Dodge Viper, Aston Martin and Ferrari machinery.
After a session for the GTA class cars, which included GP2 racer Roldan Rodriguez, the Spanish Formula 3 cars took to the track. Among their number for the free practice sessions were GP2's Bruno Senna, Andi Zuber, Davide Valsecchi and Petrov.
As it was the first day for the new track, it was decided that all free practice would take place under yellow flags, so times weren't relevant. A second bout of free practice, after which the GP2 drivers are banned from F3 sessions, is followed by a full weekend race programme, with the GTS event, complete with its posse of GP2 aces, kicking off proceedings at 18.30 CET.
The race weekend is being monitored closely by the FIA to ensure the track is ready to host F1 cars in a month's time.
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