Another podium finish after an exciting first race at Pau

Published on 10 May 2014 by Stefan Meens

During his first ever weekend with a single seater racer on a road course, Max Verstappen has taken a terrific third place in the opening race of the event. After an epic battle in the streets of Pau with Lucas Auer, the 16-year-old Dutchman took a deserved P3 in the third round of the FIA Formula 3 European Championship. The podium gives Max and the Van Amersfoort Racing team confidence ahead of the remaining qualifying sessions and races in southern France as Max showed great speed throughout the weekend.

As the lights go out, Max has a good start from third. He is able to put his car alongside Auer's but the Austrian successfully defends his second place as the field goes up the hill. As the race leaders are at the half way point of the first lap, the race is cautioned. Alexander Toril has launched his car over the back of Mitch Gilbert into Pont Oscar and takes off for a scary aerial crash. After two laps behind the safety car, the race is restarted and the leading trio of Ocon, Auer and Max drive away from the rest of the pack.

Max: “My start was solid and after the safety car I was very close to Auer.” The fight for second place gives leader Ocon a change to establish a comfortable lead but the real action takes place behind him.
On the seventh lap, Auer locks up into the Lycee hairpin, and Max places his Van Amersfoort F3 racer down the inside. The Austrian has to put two wheels on the pavement into the following left-hand sweeper to retain his second place.

“Auer out-braked himself at the hairpin so I was able to squeeze alongside of him. However, overtaking was just impossible because he had the inside line for the next corner. I therefore deliberately dropped back because we would've both gone into the barriers”, says Max regarding the manoeuvre that pushed the heart rate of many in the grand stands and paddock to alarming heights.

The top three remains unchanged throughout the entire race. A second safety car, caused by Michele Beretta parking his car on the inside pavement at Parc Beaumont, does however bring the pack back together with all gaps abolished. Nevertheless, in the remaining laps of the race, Max is unable to find a gap to challenge Auer for second position and the race ends with Ocon taking the victory ahead of Auer and Max.

“There just wasn’t another opportunity appearing, so I decided to take it easy as there was no threat from behind. It's better to finish and bag the points than to take risks and throw it all away”, explains Max.
In the closing stages of the race, Max establishes, once again, a considerable gap on fourth placed Jake Dennis and comfortably takes his third podium of the year after a second place at Silverstone and a win at Hockenheim. As soon as the Dutchman hops out of the car, his focus shifts towards the rest of the weekend. “Later today we go out for the second qualifying session. I'm going to try to beat Ocon because it's really important to be as high on the grid as possible for the remaining two races."

The full schedule for the FIA F3 European Championship round at Pau can be found here.
To follow Max at Pau you can make use of the official Euro F3 live timing and stream:
Live timing is available at: http://live-itschrono.com/live-gp-pau/live.html
Live stream (races only) available at: http://www.fiaf3europe.com/livestream.html

Furthermore, via Twitter and Facebook we will keep you updated throughout the weekend followed by a full report on Verstappen.nl at the end of the day’s action. 

FIA Formula 3 European Championship Round 3 - Pau – Day 2, Saturday May 10: 
Results race 1