Racing Engineering’s 2017 Formula 2 season begins today

13/03/17 Racing Engineering’s 2017 Formula 2 season begins today.

The 2017 FIA Formula 2 Championship (formerly the GP2 Series) season gets underway today, Monday the 13th of March, with all the Formula 2 teams attending the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona for three days of testing. For this year Racing Engineering will be running Louis Delétraz and Gustav Malja, both men are new signings to the Spanish team which finished as runner-up in the 2016 GP2 Team Championship for the second year in succession.

For nineteen year old Louis, 2017 will be his first full season in Formula 2 and it is a great opportunity for the young Swiss driver to build on his success in the lower Formulae. He has already shown great promise in single-seaters after finished as an impressive runner-up in the 2016 Formula V8 3.5 series also winning the ‘Rookie of the Year’ title in the category after taking 13 wins in 18 races and in the previous year he won the 2015 Formula Renault 2.0 NEC title as well as being runner-up in the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup.

Twenty-one year old Gustav Malja already has Formula 2 experience having his first full season in the category in 2016 where he showed considerable potential after twice finishing on the podium with a second at Spa Francorchamps and a third at Monza. He has also been very competitive in previous seasons when he raced in the 2013 and 2014 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 2.0 NEC Championships and in 2015 when he competed in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series.

For Racing Engineering, one of the most consistently successful teams in Formula 2/GP2 history, these three days will be an important first step on the road to taking many even more race wins and challenging for both the 2017 Driver and the Team Championships.

©GP2

©GP2

©GP2

Circuit de Catalunya

Length of lap: 4.655 km

Tyres Wear: High

Brake Wear: Medium

Downforce: Medium

Throttle Average: 62%

Fastest turn: T9

Hardest breaking point: T1

Gear shifts per lap: 31

Top Speed: 300 km/h

Best Time in Pre-season Test 2016: 1:27.386.

1. The Circuit de Catalunya is located in Montmeló, a small town north-east of Barcelona.

2. The circuit features a mix of fast and slow corners, a long straight and a variety of elevation changes.

3. This circuit is a popular testing venue, aided by the usual pleasant winter weather.

4. It is 10 years now that GP2 has been coming to Barcelona for Winter testing, starting in 2006.

5. Last year Racing Engineering driver Norman Nato concluded the pre-season test sessions in Barcelona by setting the second best lap time of 1:27.630.

6. Turn 3 is the most demanding corner of the circuit, with a lateral force of more than 2.5G going through the tyres for a prolonged period of time.

7. Turn 4, named Repsol, is a right-hander, similar to Monza's Parabolica corner.

8. Corner 10, "la Caixa", is the slowest of the track.

9. The 1.047km main straight requires good peak power.

10. The most important sector of the lap is the final one, which features low speed corners.