Mixed fortunes for iSport in season finale in Singapore

The GP2 Series 2012 season came to an end in Singapore this weekend, with the team gaining their first experience of the Marina Bay circuit.

High temperatures and humid weather had been predicted for the weekend, but Friday’s Free Practice saw a huge downpour before the start of the session, delaying the start. High temperature levels dried the track however, giving both drivers a great start. A failed rear light saw Palmer in the pits for a short period, but saw the driver take 5th on the return. A number of yellow flags followed, with the session ending with Palmer 16th and Ericsson 23rd.

Qualifying saw the first ever session in the dark but this time on a dry track. Ericsson was down the field in the opening laps, but improved his lap time after pitting, crossing the line 17th. Palmer showed superb pace in the first 10 minutes taking provisional pole, with the end result being a fantastic 4th place.

The Feature Race on Saturday however saw Palmer’s race come to an early end, after a gear box problem causing the driver to make an early retirement. Ericsson, who started on the grid 17th, made a spectacular recovery. After the first lap the driver was 13th, and after pitting on lap 11 remained 12th. Ericsson then went on to make his move on Coletti, Van der Garde and then Calado, moving up to 7th place where he remained for the chequered flag.

Sunday saw further disappointment for Palmer in the Sprint race, when he was edged into the barrier by Cecotto through turn 16, resulting in another early retirement. Ericsson, who started on the grid 2nd, was soon on the tail of leader Van der Garde, with the two creating a 6.2 second lead from Razia in 3rd. On lap 9 a safety car period was deployed and the race restarted after Binder spun, leaving the car stranded in the middle of the circuit. On the restart Razia was soon on the tail of Ericsson, however the iSport driver managed to increase the gap a couple of laps in, going on to cross the line 2nd giving the team another podium finish.

Marcus Ericsson back on the podium after finishing 2nd in Sunday’s Sprint Race in Singapore.

Paul Jackson – Team Principal

“A weekend of mixed fortunes, Jolyon set the pace in qualifying at the start and despite not getting a clear lap on his second set of tyres, he still ended up fourth. Marcus, however, didn't get a good lap and had to start 17th.

Then the fortunes turned in the races as Jolyon retired from a competitive fourth place with a gearbox failure while Marcus managed to come through the field to a great 7th place, giving him a front row start for the sprint race.

Marcus held second place throughout in an evenly matched contest with Van der Garde. Jolyon had more bad luck when he was pushed of the track and into the wall by Ceccoto, who served a drive through penalty for the offence.”

This weekend saw the 2012 GP2 Series season come to a conclusion, which saw iSport finish 6th in the Team Championship, and Marcus Ericsson 8th and Jolyon Palmer 11th in the Drivers Championship.

The team will now have a break until returning to Barcelona on 30 – 31 October for the post season test.

Source: iSport International