Photo: Jono Lester leads Nathanael Berthon (France) and Raffaele Marciello (Italy)The second round of the 2012 Toyota Racing Series began promisingly for ETEC Motorsport, with British driver Josh Hill finishing the opening race at the Timaru International Motor Raceway in third place.
Heading into the round, 21-year old Hill – son of 1996 Formula One World Champion Damon – sat fourth in the points standings. A spin in Sunday’s opening race, however, was followed by Hill being bumped into a spin in the third race by Dutch driver Hannes van Asseldonk.
Hill now looks to get his championship chase back on track with his first visit to the 3.5km Taupo Motorsport Park next weekend, which doubles as a ‘home away from home’ for local driver Jono Lester.
Lester’s eighth, fourth and fourth placings at Timaru shot the Auckland-based 22-year old up to fifth equal in the points standings with van Asseldonk, having begun the weekend a lowly 12th after a tough opening round at Teretonga Park in Invercargill.
Lester also leaves Timaru leading the TRS Rookie Standings with French team mate Victor Sendin close behind in third.
Sendin’s consistency again paid dividends and the 16-year old Tony Kart factory driver, whose only previous formula car experience prior to the Toyota Racing Series is a week’s worth of Formula Renault testing in his homeland, credits his 8th overall in the points so far as a success.
The round presented its fair share of challenges to Indian driver Shahaan Engineer, who was admittedly unhappy with his performance after spinning out of contention in the reverse top six final race.
Malaysia’s Melvin Moh heads into Taupo with newfound confidence, after a lingering fuel delivery issue was rectified late on Saturday night, resulting in strong 11th and 7th placings in the second and third races respectively.
Moh expects a strong showing at at next weekend’s third round, having previously tested at Taupo during his Team Petronas coaching course throughout 2009, under the guidance of team mate Jono Lester and his father Richard.
“Timaru again challenged the team and the weather had its say on Sunday,” explained Team Principal Trevor Sheumack.
“It was a tough run for Josh [Hill] today, but our other four rookie drivers are all improving which is really pleasing for ETEC Motorsport as we head to our more favoured North Island circuits.”
Testing resumes for the Toyota Racing Series at the Taupo Motorsport Park on Thursday with three 30-minute sessions, before Official Practice on Friday; and a qualifying session and three races over the weekend.
See also
- Lester leads TRS rookie standings after round two
- Young Kiwi drivers blitz big international field
