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Jehan Daruvala of Sahara Force India Academy has clinched a podium in the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup (NEC) series at the Hockenheim Circuit in Germany. He finished third in the first race, while his positions were 14th and 11th in the second and third outings respectively.
The former Indian, Asian and British Karting champion also added another 'Best Rookie' trophy on Sunday.
Daruvala, who recently turned 17, is having a very successful maiden season in Formula cars. He entered the series in the sixth position of championship rankings. He moved down to eight and ninth positions during the two practice sessions, before he found the correct set-up in qualifying.
The talented racer said, “Practice was difficult as we were significantly off the pace of the leaders. The team and Oliver put in a lot of effort in changing the set up for qualifying. I was happy with the qualifying pace and had a lot of confidence going into Race One. I had a poor start but managed to get back to third. From there we had good pace and I was happy to finish on the podium. I would like to thank the team and Oliver, as they did a great job. Race Two and Three were not my best. My qualifying and race pace have improved consistently throughout the year. I will need to work on my starts to ensure that I get off the grid well, once the lights go out.”
The youngster from Mumbai qualified third for Race One, sixth for Race Two and second for Race Three.
Race One proved to be the most productive for Jehan. An unsatisfactory start from third on the grid saw him immediately lose a position. By the end of lap One, he had lunged down the inside of Kevin Jorg from two cars lengths’ behind, inspite of locking up is tyres. He regained his position and finished at third, after Louis Deletraz and Ukyo Sasahara.
Race Two was forced to start behind the safety car due to the heavy rainfall. It was Daruvala's first proper race in cars in wet conditions. However, it was unfortunate as a warning light showed up on his dashboard and he had to retire from 14th position due to an electrical problem.
In Race Three, Jehan started second on the grid, but a jump-the-start leading to a drive-through penalty pushed him to 18th and he did very well to finish 11th in the race which was also won by Deletraz.
Daruvala completed his debut in the Formula racing season with three podiums in addition to five Best Rookie trophies to finish fifth overall and second in the Rookie class, but was the highest placed driver racing in their first season of Formula cars.
