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Victory
escaped!
 Again,
Neel Jani was at the point of achieving a great result for Racing
Engineering. The team, as well as the driver feel with each race
that they are more and more competitive within this category. The
Red Bull backed Racing Engineering driver had a good start when
he overtook Piccione and jumped into 2nd position.
Neel ran 2nd until lap 16 when Bruni retired and Neel took over
the lead. During some 20 laps no one was able to overtake Racing
Engineering’s driver, although he started to suffer from brake
problems which kept him from driving in normal conditions. With
only 3 laps to go in the race, when the victory was already within
reach, Neel’s front left tyre punctured. This
allowed the other to pass Neel. In the end, and after a fabulous
race from the Swiss, his tyre exploded and he had to retire to the
pits. An almost secure victory changed at the bitter end.
The most important insight from this race meeting at the
Nürburgring and keeping in mind Racing Engineering’s lack
of experience on most of the tracks is the fact that the staff as
well
as the drivers are up with the best teams in this championship.
The results achieved in the past and given the speed of Borja
and the will to fight from Neel, together with a bit more luck,
should allow Racing Engineering to be fighting with the best by
the next event taking place in Magny Cours. Nevertheless the team
will be working on the analysis of the technical problems
involving engine, brakes and tyres.
Right after stopping his racecar in the pits, Neel Jani commented,
“The start was good. I could keep up with Bruni
and overtake Piccione. Unfortunately I quickly perceived some understeer
and brakes that locked up. It was really strange. The
problems got worse as the race continued and the other drivers were
able to put me under pressure. I am not sure if all this was
due to a punctured tyre or a problem with the brakes or both at
the same time. In the end, however, my right front tyre exploded
and that’s when the others could pass me. The worst is that
there were only 3 laps until the end of the race. It is incredible
how I haven’t had any easy race so far this season”.
Alfonso the Orleans-Borbon announced, “If in Monaco we thought
we had seen everything with Borja being out so close to
the finish, it’s clear now that we were wrong. Victory was
so close today and it’s tough to lose it due to something like
a
punctured tyre. The entire team has been working very hard this
weekend and Neel did a great job. But sadly they were not able
to get the reward for their efforts. I feel sorry for Neel as well
as for the mechanics and the engineers. But we have to be
optimistic. We are running with the best and no one doubts this
now. We’ll see how the next race goes”.
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