How the latest crop of British F1 hopefuls are getting on this year
Thursday 13 August 2015 10:13, UK
How the latest crop of British F1 hopefuls are getting on in their GP2, GP3 and Formula Renault 3.5 campaigns in 2015.
Age: 22
Born: 10 August 1992
Current championship: Formula Renualt 3.5
Team: Fortec
Current position: First
2015 wins: Four (Motorland Aragon, Spa, Hungaroring, Red Bull Ring)
Oliver says: "The season has gone pretty well for me so far with wins at every track except Monaco, so I can't really complain. At the halfway point I'm leading the championship by 26 points and feel I've done a decent job up to now.
"My only regrets are that, as yet, I've not hooked up a complete weekend and got that elusive double win, and that first-corner incident with my team-mate at Monaco.
"I was always going to be at a disadvantage with having to qualify in the slower group there. So starting second, which I did, was the best I could hope for. But what happened was hard to take even if I did have a good race back through. So not winning there was probably my biggest disappointment.
"Looking ahead to the rest of the season, we've got Silverstone, Nurburgring and Jerez – all of which I like and am looking forward to. Le Mans is the only one I've never driven round and don't know much about – so that one should be interesting.
"The good thing for me is that, if anything, we seem to be getting stronger and stronger as a team. So hopefully we can be the dominant force for the remainder of the season as well. The important thing is to maintain our focus, keep up the hard work and hope we steer clear of misfortune."
Age: 21
Born: 17 September 1993
Current championship: GP2
Team: DAMS
Current position: Fifth
2015 wins: Two (Spain and Hungary)
Alex says: "This is my first year in the GP2 Series and I’m really enjoying it so far. There have been lots of highs, and I can’t believe we are halfway through the season already.
"I’m currently fifth in the championship and I’ve had a couple of good wins in both Hungary and Barcelona. I came into the series hoping to win and this is still a possibility, I just need to concentrate on gaining points at the remaining five races.
"Working with DAMS has been great, they have worked so hard to ensure myself and the car are ready for each race. I’ve also enjoyed some incredible experiences with Williams this year, for who I am development driver, testing their F1 car in Barcelona. They are very supportive and have been keeping a close eye on my GP2 races.
"But at the moment I’m fully focused on the remaining GP2 races and hoping to win the championship."
Age: 25
Born: 24 July 1990
Current championship: Formula Renualt 3.5
Team: DAMS
Current position: Fourth
2015 best result: Second (Monaco and Red Bull Ring)
Dean says: "My first season in Renault World Series has been positive overall. Firstly, to be with DAMS as a Red Bull Junior driver has given me a great platform to learn about the car and series.
"I have managed to get on the podium in many of races in the first part of the season, which has been great. The highlight has to be the second place in Monaco, which was amazing having never been there and just the fact it's Monaco. The results have meant I'm the leading rookie driver which is great.
"Podium finishes have been especially nice in such an experienced field with some drivers in their second or third seasons in 3.5, which can be a huge advantage. I had limited testing before the start of the season which did put me on the back foot a little, but we are getting there now regrading car set-up etc.
"We now need to look at getting my first victory of this year. Winning is what I have always done and as a Red Bull driver there is a level of expectation which is driving me on too. The key will be keeping focused and working with the team to get my first win and more after that. The second part of my seasons always seem to produce my best results, just like last year in GP3. With the next round being at Silverstone maybe this could be a great place to do it."
Age: 19
Born: 30 November 1995
Current championship: GP3
Team: Status GP
Current position: 13th
2015 best result: Fifth (Austria)
Seb says: "With it being my first year in GP3, it's been a steep learning curve. Qualifying has been my main weak-point so far. But I'm now knocking on the door of the top 10 each time, and every race I've been improving my position. We will now use the break to make changes to the car to suit my qualifying style now I have got the confidence with it.
"Our race pace has been good, proved by my first top-five finish in Austria. Now all we need to do is not start out of position relative to our race pace, and I'm confident I can be fighting at the sharp end at Spa and the rest of the season!
"I'm enjoying the journey so far. The atmosphere at the F1 events has been immense and the fans are amazing. Obviously the results have not been as I have liked, but there always peaks and troughs with racing. We just need to set the foundations to start really performing and hopefully aim for a top-10 championship position, and hit it really hard next year too!"
Age: 24
Born: 3 December 1990
Current championship: GP2
Team: Hilmer Motorsport
Current position: 15th
2015 best result: Fifth (Great Britain)
Nick says: "2015 has been a very tough season for me so far, after securing a deal to drive in LMP2 that unfortunately fell through due to funding and left me with nothing.
"I was very fortunate that through my connection with the Force India F1 team I got the call from Hilmer Motorsport to do the last test in GP2 in Bahrain, and everything snowballed from there. We missed the first round as a team but have showed great promise and pace considering our lack of testing and preparation prior to the season starting.
"I also got given the opportunity to test in Formula 1 with Force India at Barcelona earlier this year, which was a dream come true and something I had been working towards since I started racing at 15-years-old. Both Hilmer Motorsport and Force India have been a huge help in keeping me on track as well as the addition of my new sponsor Baylis & Harding. Without these guys I would have struggled a huge amount, so I am very grateful.
"Looking forward to Spa and the rest of the season after the summer break, I really can't wait to get going again and put all what we have learnt so far into practice. We learn and improve each time out so the next race can't come soon enough, the GP2 car will be awesome up Eau Rouge!"
Age: 23
Born: 9 September 1991
Current championship: GP3
Team: Carlin
Current position: Ninth
2015 best result: Third (Spain)
Jann says: "Going into 2015 after last year I had more expectations than last season. The experience I had last year has been very valuable.
"This year’s tyres have changed slightly but our pre-season testing was fantastic and Carlin as a team were strong in the tests. This showed in the Barcelona race weekend. To get a podium on the first weekend back racing was a mega start and an immediate improvement in results.
"That trend continued at Red Bull Ring with a strong result. From race two at the Red Bull Ring to the Hungaroring, though, we’ve been pointless, whether that’s been down to collisions out of my control or because as a team we’ve underperformed a bit.
"I still go into the summer break ahead of the next race at Spa 100 per cent focused on extracting the best performance possible I can and the team, of course, have the same approach too.
"The championship isn’t out of the reach yet. Looking at last year’s GP3 season the second half saw a big fight back from a few drivers who looked to be in a similar position in the points as I am.
"For now I’m taking a few days off to recharge and reflect, then back to the workshop to develop weak areas and to plot our fight back in the remaining 10 races now thanks to the addition of Bahrain!"
Age: 21
Born: 26 February 1994
Current championship: GP2
Team: Racing Engineering
Current position: 10th
2015 best result: Fourth (Bahrain)
Jordan says: "I came into the year thinking it was going to be a really steep learning curve so I worked really hard over the winter to make sure I was fit enough, I was mentally ready, and also worked very hard with the team to suck up all the information they could give me – essentially be a sponge. I think that stood me in really good stead going to Bahrain and I got fourth at the first round and that was a really big relief and I thought, ‘I can do this, I haven’t bitten off more than I can chew’.
"But then there has been other things which have got in the way – Monaco, for example, was looking very strong, but then the Virtual Safety Car came out and hampered us. So there have been strong things to take away, but there have also been the rookie mistakes that I was trying to avoid. So really it is about just ironing those mistakes out.
"My role with Manor F1 has been limited as I focus on GP2, but I am going out to the US and Mexican GPs with them which should be really good to get behind the scenes with the team on a race weekend.
"As for the rest of the GP2 year, I’d like to win some races, but this year is more about making progress and learning. I’d like to get some more good results, a couple of podiums and a couple of wins would be a nice tick in the box, but I am happy with how I am progressing ahead of next season which will be my title campaign year."
