Twice on the podium with a third win this season!

An exciting weekend we had on Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, with Dilano debuting in FRECA as our fourth driver, and Franco trying to again dominate the field after last weekend on the Red Bull Ring.

Qualifying session 1

In this 20 minutes, session Dilano immediately started to get a feeling in his new car for the weekend, as we welcome him to the FRECA championship this weekend in cloudy conditions.

It is Franco who got his 3^rd pole position in a row after dominating on the red bull ring two weeks ago! Dilano managed to get a well-deserved 19^th place out of 34 drivers in his first qualifying session in the FRECA. Kas finished 14^th and Oliver 22^nd.

Race 1

The first race for Dilano started with losing 1 spot at the start to Oliver who moved up to 18th. Meanwhile, Franco lost his position in the first corner but, he took it back the corner after in a good fight with home driver Vidales. Kas dropped to 17th on the opening lap but fought his way past Guanti for 16^th place.

The first half of the race remained peaceful with little overtakes. Vidales puts pressure on Franco, but Franco is able to control the race very well. Further in the back Kas, Oliver and Dilano are unable to gain places and remain on 16^th, 19^th, and 20^th position trying to create chances to overtake.

Franco and Vidales, clearly faster than the rest of the field with Boya in 3^rd, are driving in sunny conditions to the podium. After 30 minutes of racing, it’s Franco who, once again, takes the win with another dominant race for us.

Kas moved up to 15^th, Dilano remained on 20^th, and Oliver moved down to 23^rd in the last laps.

VALENCIA(ESP) SEP 24-26 2021 – Round 8 of the Formula Regional By Alpine at Circuit Ricardo Tormo Valencia Franco Colapinto #43, MP motorsport. © 2021 Eric Alonso / Dutch Photo Agency.

Qualifying session 2

The second qualifying session was on Sunday, early in the morning in sunny conditions, but the drivers found it difficult to find heat in the tires. In the end, it was Franco who just missed pole by two-tenths of a second behind Belov, as a red flag finished the session a bit earlier than usual. Franco was starting from the front row on the second spot. Behind him, in 16^th place, Kas will try and fight his way forward as will Oliver and Dilano from 31^st and 32^nd place respectively. Their last fast laps got deleted due to track limits, with the stewards being very strict on the track limits.

Race 2

The second race of the weekend started with Franco holding off Saucy to remain in 2^nd position. Kas lost a position driving in 17^th at the end of lap 1. Dilano got a whopping 5 positions making moves in various corners driving on 27^th after lap 1, with Oliver close behind him. Kas manages to take back 2 places in the first half of the race, driving on the 15^th position with 15 minutes to go. With 10 minutes left, Kas managed to get another place, Dilano and Oliver are still driving at 27^th and 28^th, while Franco tries to close the gap to Belov who is still leading the race.

The safety car comes out, as Dilano made contact with Garfias, and both drivers, unfortunately, had to retire. Ending a good first weekend for Dilano showing some skill with good overtakes and a qualifying session. Franco is trying to overtake Belov in the first few corners after the safety car came in, but he was not able to manage to take the lead and finishes the race in the 2^nd position, with another podium for the team. Kas finishes 14^th, also being unable to take another place in the last few laps, and Oliver finishes the race in 29^th position.

All in all another successful weekend for our FRECA team, with a win and a 2^nd place finish for Franco, showing the potential of the cars. Up next: Mugello in two weeks.