Svendsen-Cook storms back into title race

Chennai, 21 Dec 2013:  British driver Rupert Svendsen-Cook stormed back into the title fight with a dominant win in Race 4 of the MRF Challenge 2013 Round 3 at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain. Svendsen-Cook won the race ahead of Shinya Michimi and Sam Dejonghe as his main title rivals faltered. Championship leader Tio Ellinas was given a drive through penalty for a jump start while Arthur Pic had to retire after a collision with Renan Guerra. Earlier in the day Tio Ellinas beat Svendsen-Cook & Pic to win Race 3.

In Race 3, Rupert Svendsen-Cook started on pole position alongside Tio Ellinas. Svendsen-Cook had a clean start and went into the lead with Ellinas and Sam Dejonghe behind him. Arthur Pic starting in fourth position held on to his position in front of Brazilian driver Renan Guerra. Svendsen-Cook made a mistake on lap 3 allowing Ellinas to get a run on him and pass him on the main straight. On the same lap Pic made a move on Dejonghe to move into third place. While Ellinas started to slowly pull away, Pic started to close in on Svendsen-Cook with 5 laps to go. Pic made a move on Svendsen-Cook on the final lap but could not make it stick and ended up finishing in third place. Ellinas crossed the finish line to take his third win out of the last four races to increase his championship lead with Pic second and Svendsen-Cook third. Renan Guerra, who was in fourth place had to retire with a mechanical problem. Harry Tincknell finished in fourth place ahead of Sam Dejonghe and Shinya Michimi

Raj Bharath was once again the fastest of all the Indian drivers with a 11th place finish. Tarun Reddy ran as high as 13th place before finishing in 16th place while Vikash Anand retired from 15th position.

In Race 4, Shinya Michimi started on reverse-grid pole position alongside Sam Dejonghe. Both front row drivers started well holding their positions while Svendsen-Cook had one more of his trademark starts and jumped to third place from fifth on the grid. Ellinas moved into fourth place with Harry Tincknell and Arthur Pic behind him. Svendsen-Cook made a move on Dejonghe and got past him on lap 2 and then set his sights on Japanese driver Shinya Michimi. It took him another 2 laps but Svendsen-Cook got past Michimi to take the lead on lap 5. Behind him there was action all around with Ellinas getting past Dejonghe for third place. Tincknell, Pic and Guerra were involved in a close battle which ended with Guerra colliding with Pic forcing both drivers to retire on the spot. The drama continued when Ellinas was given a drive though penalty and was forced to come in to the pits to serve the penalty, putting him out of the points. With both Pic and Ellinas out of the points, Svendsen-Cook took advantage to cross the finish line in first in first place with Michimi second and Dejonghe third. Behind them Tincknell picked up another fourth place with Ryan Cullen and Camren Kaminsky in fifth and sixth places respectively. 

The Indian driver enjoyed their best finish to date with an 8th & 9th place for Vikash Anand and Raj Bharath. Both drover very well to move up the field and into the top 10. Tarun Reddy retired after a collision on lap 1.

Championship leader Tio Ellinas was excited after yet another double podium finish. He said, “In Race 3 I had a good start but Rupert had a better start. I managed to pass him in a couple of laps and after that it was just a matter of keeping him behind me. I am glad I was able to increase my lead after Race 3. In Race 4 I moved a little but did not jump the start. It is unfortunate that I got a drive through penalty but that’s how it goes. This is my first race off the podium but am glad that my championship lead is still intact.”

Race winner Rupert Svendsen-Cook was happy with a double podium finish and a small change in his luck. He commented, “I am happy to take a dominant win after yesterday’s Race 2 retirement. The car felt much better than the morning and I was sure that I would be in with a good chance. I have inched closer to the top two guys in the championship so can’t wait to get to India for the final round.”

MRF Challenge 2013 Calendar:

Round 1: October 25-27, 2013, New Delhi, Buddh International Circuit (Formula One Support Race)

Round 2: November 28-30, 2013, Bahrain, Bahrain International Circuit (World Endurance Championship Support Race)

Round 3: December 19-21, 2013, Bahrain, Bahrain International Circuit (Gulf Racing Festival)

Round 4: February 14-16, 2014, Chennai, Madras Motor Race Trust

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