It was a long awaited return to the top step for Jimmy Eriksson, after suffering a recent run of misfortune this season he went on to claim his first win of this year in the GP3 Series.
However, the making of this victory was not entirely straightforward. The Swede had qualified a lowly 17th place for the Feature Race, due to the complex qualifying session that started out wet and progressively dried throughout.
Eriksson managed to fight his way through the field, and, after a close battle with teammate Matt Parry found himself in eighth place which handed him the reverse grid pole position.
Having defended his pole position start in the Sprint Race, Eriksson had done enough to gradually increase his advantage over firstly, Jann Mardenborough and then Esteban Ocon. Due to his pace out front Eriksson went much of the race unchallenged and brought his Koiranen GP car home in first place, his victory since the Italian Feature Race last season. Ironically, Eriksson almost won in Monza this season but a technical problem whilst leading on the final lap brought an end to that.
“This is a really, really great feeling,” commented Eriksson.
“We’ve had a tough season so far, so we needed this. I made a good start, but there is a long run to the first corner at this circuit and I knew it would be close. I managed to defend my lead, though, and after that it was actually quite comfortable. We had the pace, just like at Monza. The hardest part this weekend, and the key to victory, was making enough progress in Race 1. That was crucial and I’m really happy with that race. It’s nice being back on top and I now look forward to a positive end to the season.”
