Nico Muller Puts GP3 Newcomers Trident On Top As Testing Begins

In at Trident for one day only, Muller showed the GP3 newcomer's potential - Photo Credit: Alastair Staley/GP3 Media Service

Trident Racing made a good start to their preparations for their debut GP3 Series campaign as Nico Muller posted the fastest time on the opening day of pre-season testing at Estoril.

The Swiss driver, who has finished in the top four overall in both previous GP3 Series seasons for the Jenzer team, is with the Italian outfit in Portugal to use his experience to help them to get up to speed with the car following their takeover of the Addax team's entry.

During the morning it was pre-season favourite Mitch Evans who laid down a rather ominous marker – the MW Arden driver going 0.449 seconds quicker than fellow second-year driver Aaro Vainio of Lotus GP despite only doing seven laps. Tio Ellinas was third for Marussia Manor, ahead of Matias Laine – who has switched from Manor to Arden for the coming season.

Tamas Pal Kiss was fifth for Atech CRS, just ahead of Alexander Sims – present to help out old team Status Grand Prix. Teammate Marlon Stockinger was next up, ahead of 15-year-old GP3 debutant Matheo Tuscher. Muller was ninth, ahead of another man making his debut in the car – South American F3 champion Fabiano Machado of Marussia Manor.

Another driver helping out a former team was local ace Antonio Felix da Costa, 11^th fastest in the morning with Carlin. He edged out Conor Daly, running with Lotus, and Status' Micki Weckstrom. Next up were Daniel Abt and David Fumanelli of Lotus and Arden respectively, ahead of Formula Abarth champion Patric Niederhauser and the British Carlin duo of William Buller and Alex Brundle. 16-year-olds Robert Visoiu and Dmitry Suranovich were 19^th and 20^th respectively, with the Trident duo of Antonio Spavone and Vicky Piria sandwiching 22^nd placed American Ethan Ringel. Tech 1 newcomers Robert Cregan and Yuki Shiraishi rounded out the 25 runners.

Lotus GP's trio of Vainio, Daly and Abt controlled the first half of the afternoon session, before Felix da Costa and Evans both moved ahead in the final hour. Muller then took top spot in the final 15 minutes, to record the fastest time of the day. Evans and Felix da Costa completed the top three, ahead of Vainio, Daly and Laine. Ellinas was seventh, Pal Kiss eighth, Fumanelli ninth and the impressive Tuscher tenth.

Sims took eleventh, with Visoiu pipping Abt for 12^th – the latter having dropped down the rankings in the closing stages. Machado took 14^th ahead of the Status pairing of Stockinger and Weckstrom, with Buller, Suranovich, Spavone and Brundle completing the top 20. The quartet of Piria, Ringel, Cregan and Shiraishi took the next four places, while Niederhauser only managed one lap.

For the second day of the test, the quickest and slowest drivers of today will swap places, with Muller heading to Tech 1 and Shiraishi moving in the opposite direction. At Status, Spain's Nil Montserrat will make his GP3 debut in place of Sims.

Morning session

Afternoon Session