James Wharton left the south of France with plenty to be pleased about. From Free Practice to the final race of the meeting, the young Australian from the Ferrari Driver Academy was one of the best performers on the Circuit Paul Ricard. Two podium finishes underlined his speed at this prestigious venue, which hosted the fifth of seven races in the FIA-certified Italian F4 Championship. But the Prema Racing driver also knows that he could have done better in the Championship had he not missed the start and suffered a technical problem in Race 3 a few bends from the finish, when he was leading the race!
Used by Formula 1 for several years and not always easy to get to grips with because of its specific characteristics, James Wharton had perfectly assimilated the long 5.8km circuit at Paul Ricard. At Le Castellet, the Australian set some excellent times right from the start of Free Practice. In the first Qualifying session on Saturday morning, James finished 3rd out of a total of 37 cars entered. "On my fastest lap, the time recorded in the second sector was not as good as the one I set on the two previous laps," regretted James. "That probably cost me pole position. In Race 1, I got off to a good start and was very close to moving up to 2nd, but I also had to defend my position against my team-mate behind me. After that, several of us were driving at a similar pace. I ended up holding on to 3rd place without being able to move up the order. From then on, I concentrated on managing the wear and tear on my tyres.”
The Motorsport Australia-backed driver had once again demonstrated his speed in the second session. He set two excellent times in a row and held pole position for a few minutes, before being forced to give it up by a tiny margin of... 6 thousandths. What a disappointment! But what followed in Race 2 was even more frustrating. Known for always being quick off the mark when the lights went out, James made a small mistake and completely missed his start. Initially relegated beyond 20th position, he chose to retire a little later to save his tyres, as he had lost all chance of scoring points.
In the afternoon, the heat was still very much in evidence on the Paul Ricard circuit. James Wharton was on pole position for Race 3, having set the fastest second lap in Qualifying. From the very first lap, he engaged in a superb duel with his main rival of the meeting. After an exchange of positions, he completed the first lap in the lead and quickly extended his lead. A few laps later, the field regrouped due to an incident which resulted in the safety car coming out. "I managed the restart well and was once again in perfect control of the race when an injection problem caused me to lose power just a few corners from the finish. I couldn't stop the driver chasing me from overtaking me and I saved 2nd place at the last minute. I was clearly unlucky, but this type of problem is also part of motor sport. You have to accept it and come back even stronger in the following races."
"I certainly finished on the podium twice by finishing 3rd and 2nd during the weekend, but I also lost a good opportunity to further reduce the gap with the drivers positioned ahead of me in the provisional Championship standings," admitted the All Road Management driver. "There are still two races left, at Mugello from 29th September to 1st October and then at Vallelunga from 13th to 15th October, and I'm going to do everything I can to get the best possible result and finish the Championship on a high."
In the meantime, James Wharton will be able to fine-tune his physical condition and spend a few days in Australia with his family.
The Motorsport Australia-backed driver had once again demonstrated his speed in the second session. He set two excellent times in a row and held pole position for a few minutes, before being forced to give it up by a tiny margin of... 6 thousandths. What a disappointment! But what followed in Race 2 was even more frustrating. Known for always being quick off the mark when the lights went out, James made a small mistake and completely missed his start. Initially relegated beyond 20th position, he chose to retire a little later to save his tyres, as he had lost all chance of scoring points.
In the afternoon, the heat was still very much in evidence on the Paul Ricard circuit. James Wharton was on pole position for Race 3, having set the fastest second lap in Qualifying. From the very first lap, he engaged in a superb duel with his main rival of the meeting. After an exchange of positions, he completed the first lap in the lead and quickly extended his lead. A few laps later, the field regrouped due to an incident which resulted in the safety car coming out. "I managed the restart well and was once again in perfect control of the race when an injection problem caused me to lose power just a few corners from the finish. I couldn't stop the driver chasing me from overtaking me and I saved 2nd place at the last minute. I was clearly unlucky, but this type of problem is also part of motor sport. You have to accept it and come back even stronger in the following races."
"I certainly finished on the podium twice by finishing 3rd and 2nd during the weekend, but I also lost a good opportunity to further reduce the gap with the drivers positioned ahead of me in the provisional Championship standings," admitted the All Road Management driver. "There are still two races left, at Mugello from 29th September to 1st October and then at Vallelunga from 13th to 15th October, and I'm going to do everything I can to get the best possible result and finish the Championship on a high."
In the meantime, James Wharton will be able to fine-tune his physical condition and spend a few days in Australia with his family.