Tom Dillmann left Silverstone with a 32 point cushion in the championship after a second fourth place finish on Sunday, even after an early clash with Aurélien Panis that saw the Frenchman drop down to eighth.
Panis was handed a penalty for the first lap incident that ironically promoted AVF driver Dillmann to fourth at the chequered flag, with Dillmann’s team doing well during the mandatory to help him jump some places, including on Matthieu Vaxiviere and Louis Deletraz.
“[The day] started badly with a bad quali, and then the race was tough on the first lap,” said Dillmann to The Checkered Flag on Sunday. “I ran wide by Panis and dropped to eighth but the guys did a good call at the pit stop and did a really fast pit stop, so I jumped two cars in the pit lane.
“I had a couple of fast laps and could jump another two guys, including Deletraz, and then with Panis’ penalty for what he did to me on the first lap, I gained one place. It was a good recovery, and we took high points again.
“It was a really strong weekend for Lotus, which I expected because they were really fast here last year, and I am confident we can do great in the Red Bull Ring. I think it was not a bad weekend, it was not a good weekend but not a bad weekend.”
Dillmann feels that the pecking order is ever changing within the series in 2016, and has no doubt that his AVF team will show strength again and that he will be fighting to take more race victories this year.
“With that car, we can see, depending on the track layout and track conditions, we can see that the forces are a bit different every weekend,” said Dillmann.
“This weekend it was Lotus, Paul Ricard also, but we were very strong in Budapest and Motorland, and it changes really quickly.
“We always score good points even if we are struggling for pace, so I am confident that when we are the ones to be fast, we can fight for the wins. But not a bad weekend.”
