Felix Rosenqvist has completed his first-ever test in junior single-seater series GP2 – the final rung on the ladder to Formula 1.
The test took place at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates), where Rosenqvist racked up a total of 81 laps across two days of running.
The Swedish 24-year-old drove for two different teams, first representing British outfit Status Grand Prix as the test kicked off on Wednesday, and then moving across to his regular Formula 3 squad Prema (Italy) on Thursday.
Rosenqvist quickly found his feet to go 13th fastest overall, and lead the rookie charts, on day one. On the second day, however, he suffered an off when the throttle stuck open at the beginning of the evening session, sending him into the barriers. While he managed to avoid what could have been a significant impact, the damage inflicted on the car still forced Rosenqvist to watch on from the sidelines for the remainder of the day.
“It’s been an interesting test, despite what happened today,” says Felix Rosenqvist. “The first day went very well, and I got to grips with the car quite quickly. Unfortunately, today wasn’t as productive. We had some technical problems, and we were fortunate that the car didn’t sustain more damage when the throttle stuck open. It was a shame that happened, because I still had two new sets of tyres to run and I think there was some good potential in the package. Still, it’s been a great experience getting to try out GP2 for the first time. Many thanks to Status Grand Prix and to Prema for giving me this opportunity.”
While the test continues on Friday, Rosenqvist will not be present, instead travelling on to Paris to attend the annual FIA prize giving gala and accept his accolades for winning this year’s Macau Grand Prix and FIA Formula 3 European Championship title.
For more information on GP2, please visit www.gp2series.com.
