In Paul Ricard, France, began the 2016 season of the competition
This weekend the Paul Ricard Racetrack, in France, hosted the European F3 Championship teams and pilots for the disputes of the first triple round of the season. Competing for the German team Motopark Academy, the 17-year Brazilian pilot Sergio Sette Câmara (Red Bull / Petrobrás /Cemig / Mercantil do Brasil), had a troubled participation; however, he scored his first 10 points of the season.
Different from the other races, the Paul Ricard round started on Thursday, when the last collective tests were carried out before the start of the races. Serginho, with the Red Bull’s car, did a good job and ended the day on fifth position; however, at 83 thousandths behind the fastest pilot.
Excited, he left then to the official programming of the first round of the year. Two free practice on Friday and also the taking of time that defined the starting positions for Saturday and Sunday. As the team had already found a good setting on Thursday, it used Friday practice to do race simulations and even to test the change in some details. With everything ready, Sette Câmara went to the taking of time and established the seventh time for the first race, in a session marked by a wet track that was drying up according to the laps. For the second and third races he achieved the tenth position.
The expectation was great enough for the first race of the year but, unfortunately, it was pretty frustrated right on the first turn. After a good start, Sette Câmara positioned himself well for the first turn and was already within it when suddenly he was seriously hit and felt to the last position of the platoon. Away from the group and with the car a little bit broken, he still remained on the track and finished in the 16th position.
The best and most exciting race of the round was the second one. Starting from the fifth row, Serginho still on the first lap jumped to eighth position and then to the seventh one. Under a lot of pressure, the pilot did a fairly rational race and always thinking about the points. At four laps to the end, the safety car entered the track and, for three laps, it remained with his platoon lined up behind it . With only one lap to the checkered flag, it then left the track and the race was restarted under high adrenaline. Serginho, positioned himself very well and, with his own effort, got in just a spin win three positions and crossed the finish line in the fifth place, marking his first ten points in the championship.
The last race of the round was played in the early Sunday morning. Once again the blue car No. 9 left on the fifth row. After the starting, still on the line of the pit boxes, once again Sette Câmara was hardly hit. His car took off, but luckily it felt down without damaging the suspension and, as a result, the pilot followed in the race, even though he dropped to 18th place. Serginho imposed a stunning pace and, after five laps completed, he already occupied the 13th position. From then on, however, with more worn tires, his car was no longer featured the same performance and, as a result, he continued without much reaction force and completed the race only on the 19th position.
“Unfortunately all our expectation for this first race of the year did not materialize as expected. The big secret is to start the further possible. The grid has a lot of beginners and the tension at the starting causes accidents. I was a victim in two occasions and, in the race I was able to drive well, I could show my potential and finish fifth. Each race is very important for the Championship, but we still have 27 races under dispute. We shall go to Hungary two weekends from today and, I am sure, we can be more competitive”, commented the 17-year old resigned pilot.