'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Tio Ellinas took the championship lead of the MRF Challenge 2013 with a brilliant win and second place at Round 3 in Bahrain.
December 20, 2013: Cypriot driver Tio Ellinas took the championship lead of the MRF Challenge 2013 with a brilliant win and second place at Round 3 in Bahrain. British driver Rupert Svendsen-Cook won Race 1 before being punted out of the lead of Race 2, severely damaging his title prospects. Tio Ellinas finished in second place while Arthur Pic finished in third place in Race 1. Ellinas won Race 2 ahead of Arthur Pic and Sam Dejonghe.
In Race 1, Tio Ellinas started on pole position ahead of Rupert Svendsen-Cook and Sam Dejonghe with the top 4 drivers separated by less than three-tenths of a second. Ellinas had a good start and was side-by-side with Svendsen-Cook as they went into the first corner. Svendsen-Cook had the inside for the turn 2 and went ahead with Ellinas right behind him. Dejonghe held on to third place with Championship leader Arthur Pic struggling to hold off Japanese driver Shinya Michimi for fourth place. Ellinas started to put pressure on Svendsen-Cook but was never close enough to make a move. Behind them Pic passed Dejonghe and started to catch the front two drivers. With five laps to go Svendsen-Cook, Ellinas and Pic were close to each other. Pic passed Ellinas into turn 4 only for the Cypriot driver to get him back on the back straight. This allowed Svendsen-Cook to pull away and register his third win of the season. Ellinas held on to second position with Pic finishing in third place. Brazilian driver Renan Guerra finished in an impressive fourth place ahead of Dejonghe and Michimi, who will start on pole for Race 2.
Raj Bharath, who had earlier qualified in 8th position, was the highest Indian finisher with 12th place. Vikash Anand was running in 11th place before being given a drive-thru penalty for jumping the start. 16-year old Indian Tarun Reddy, who made his debut in the season, had a tough qualifying session and started in 19th place. He did well to move up to 14th place before finally finishing in 15th place.
In Race 2, Shinya Michimi started on reverse-grid pole position alongside Sam Dejonghe. Svendsen-Cook, who started in sixth position, made another great start to move up to second in to the first corner behind Michimi. Pic, who started in fourth position, lost out at the lead and ended up seventh at the end of the first corner. Michimi led with Svendsen-Cook and Ellinas right behind. On lap 5 Svendsen-Cook got past Michimi and went into the lead with Ellinas right behind them as well. On the following lap Michimi tried to re-pass Svendsen-Cook into the second corner but ended up hitting his left rear tyre instead. Svendsen-Cook retired on the spot with Michimi continuing, albeit losing the lead to Ellinas. Michimi was later given a 30-second penalty for his part in the collision. Pic managed to fight his way upto second place after being seventh in lap 1.
Further back Raj Bharath was once again the fastest of the Indian drivers and finished in 10th place. He was close to challenging Laura Tillett for 9th place before the race was red-flagged. Tarun Reddy had a great start from 15th on the grid and moved up to 12th position before being knocked out by American driver Carmen Kaminsky. Vikash Anand finished in 14th place. The race was red-flagged on lap 13 after a collision between Salman Rashid Al-Khalifa and Carmen Jorda.
Championship leader Tio Ellinas was excited after yet another double podium finish. He said, “In Race 1 I lost out to Rupert at the start and even though I managed to close in on him I just could not get past. It was a good battle with Rupert and Arthur and I am happy to finish on the podium. Race 2 was a lot tougher and I managed to get a good start and move up into the third position. I was right behind Michimi and Rupert when they touched and I was lucky to get ahead of them both. Overall a good day for me and it feels good to be in the lead of the championship as well.”
Race winner Rupert Svendsen-Cook was happy to win his third race but frustrated to been taken out after leading the race. He commented, “It was a mixed day of racing for me. Race 1 was just perfect after getting into the lead. I managed to hold Tio off and take the win. Race 2 I probably had the best start of my career moving from 6th to 2nd into the first corner. I then passed Michimi but on the following lap he just hit me into turn 2. I am not sure what he was thinking but there was no way he could have overtaken me there. Anyway tomorrow I start on pole for Race 3 for let’s hope I can have a good race.”
Arthur Pic did not have the pace for the win today but was glad to salvage valuable points. He said “I have struggled to find the right balance today so could not push for the win. Race 1 I was close to both Tio and Rupert but could not get past. In Race 2 I had a good start but got pushed out. After that it was important to get back to the front. I overtook Guerra and Dejonghe and moved into third when Rupert retired. At the end of the day I am happy to get some valuable points from today’s races.”
MRF Challenge 2013 Calendar:
Round 1: October 25-27, 2013, New Delhi, Buddh International Circuit (Formula One Support Race)
Round 2: November 28-30, 2013, Bahrain, Bahrain International Circuit (World Endurance Championship Support Race)
Round 3: December 19-21, 2013, Bahrain, Bahrain International Circuit (Gulf Racing Festival)
Round 4: February 14-16, 2014, Chennai, Madras Motor Race Trust
