After facing troubles with his car, the pilot started in the last position this Sunday and even led the race
This weekend, the Curitiba International Autotrack, in Pinhais-PR, hosted the pilots and teams from F3 Brazil for the seventh double round of the season. The pilot from Minas Gerais, Sérgio Sette Câmara (Banco Mercantil do Brasil | CEMIG | TAESA | MBR | Tear Têxtil | Lalubema | Patrus Transportes | Milplan) experienced several mechanical problems. However, with his determination and grit he made a recovery race this Sunday where he even led the race and finished with the fastest lap.
Serginho’s weekend began on Friday, with the first free practice session. With a car that had some problems of brakes and intermittent faults in the engine the pilot sought to readjust himself to the “paranaense” track. With the time of 1m13s401 he recorded the second best mark; however, quite unsatisfied with the performance of his car.
On Saturday morning, after a session interrupted by three red flags and the car still failing, he gave only four fast laps in the practice session, leaving him without a chance to promote a significant improvement in his equipment.
The taking of times was held next. After a good warm up the tires and, with the time of 1m12s432, he secured the second place on the grid of the first battery. With everything ready, the Cesário F3 team tuned Serginho’s car for the race. But, after the equipment’s checking lap, the car failed again. The engine did not remained in operation and, despite all the efforts, Sette Câmara did not even manage to align his car on the grid, abandoning the race without even having entered it.
In a great effort by the team, car was practically all dismantled until, finally, the team found part of the electric cable ruptured, which was causing the flaws. Then, with all redone, the car number 7 followed to the grid for the second race. As the grid follows the starting order from the first race, Câmara was forced to start from the last grid position.
After a good start the pilot began his recovery. With a rapid pace he surpassed, one by one, his competitors. In impressive six laps Sette Câmara had surpassed 13 competitors and was already appearing in the second position. Thirsty for victory, in the next lap the pilot from Belo Horizonte recorded the fastest lap of the race. On the 16th lap, after studying the opponent, Serginho surpassed the leader, but ended up receiving the X in the high speed “S”. He followed on the heels of the competitor, went down the line of boxes on top closed to the first position, who positioned himself on the inside of the track. Sette Camara then took the outside of the track and, in the first leg of the “S” at the end of the line managed to reassume the leadership at this time, however, ended up being struck on the side of his car by this opponent, and as a result his car took off, broke several parts and thus had to abandon the race.
“If we look at my performance here in Curitiba the results were very bad. But, from my point of view, it was very fruitful. We came from a start with car troubles, I recovered in the taking of times session, I couldn’t even start in the first race and, in today’s race I started as last and got to the first position. Learning was good and I am sure that, in Goiânia, at the end of the Championship, we’ll fight again for the victory”, commented the pilot.