Felix produced a remarkable drive to claim his second FA1 win of the weekend at Monza, using incredible race pace in Sunday’s 45-minute finale to complete a victory double for Team Sweden at the Italian Grand Prix venue.
In what can only be described as utter domination, Felix was able to run at up to two seconds (!) per lap faster than his opposition at various phases of the race as he recovered from an early spin, winning by a margin of more than 13 seconds as Nigel Melker (Team Netherlands) and Sebastian Balthasar (Team Germany) completed the podium.
To underpin matters further still, Felix threw in the fastest lap of the race as he stormed up the field following the unfortunate delay, his 1m37.754s an astonishing 0.8 seconds quicker than anyone else could manage.
The two wins at Monza mark the first-ever FA1 triumphs for Team Sweden, on a weekend that has seen Felix top every single session apart from a compromised showing in second qualifying when he looked set for pole position.
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- Monza FA1: Felix dominates at Monza to claim maiden Team Sweden FA1 win
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FELIX:
“That was a race to remember! I struggled at the start – as we often seem to be doing in FA1 – but I recovered some of the lost ground at the first chicane and was running second to Nigel in the opening stages. We were forced to change brake pads shortly before the race – the ones we used yesterday were worn out – and that had a big effect on the brake balance, which meant I suffered from a lot of rear locking. A few laps in, I locked up massively into the first chicane and spun, and I think I rejoined more or less last.
“From there, I knew I had to be perfect over the second half of the race. We were pretty far back, but the pace has obviously been very good throughout the weekend and giving up was never an option. By the time of the second pit stop, I had made up a lot of ground and managed to pass Nigel for the lead. Winning this race was a cool feeling, and the car has been such a pleasure to drive here at Monza. A great way to end the weekend!”
RESULTS