Victor Martins had his best weekend in the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup championship to date, with two podium finishes that have elevated him up to sixth in the championship standings. The French rookie has enjoyed a consistent points-scoring run since the second race of the championship in Paul Ricard, but finally found his place on the rostrum in both races at Monte-Carlo.
Martins spent the most time going on the offensive; firstly, he was glued to the rear of his fellow countryman Charles Milesi in the first race, although with no answer to his team-mate. And after the race he said, “It wasn’t really a battle with Charles, but I could stay with him and he did a good job to hold me off.
“He is my team mate, so I did not want to try something crazy. Starting third, I knew it would be hard to overtake, but I tried to pour on the pressure just until the finish.
“In the end, I finished third and claimed my first podium. It is great and even more so being Monaco! Tomorrow, I will be on the lookout for any opportunity. I noticed Yifei’s pace wasn’t that good at the start. Maybe there is something to take advantage of to score another podium result.”
In the second race, after dispatching of championship leader Ye Yifei at Ste. Devote, he went on the attack to try and dispatch of race one winner Alex Peroni. Although, with Monaco being so difficult to overtake around, the Frenchman was unable to make anything work.
After the race, Martins commented, “Yesterday, I noticed Yifei struggling to get on pace. My plan was to get a good start and to try to pass him on lap one. I got past him on the outside at turn one!
“The rest of the race went fine. I pressured Alex and didn’t make a single mistake. I think this is the best result I could have hoped for following qualifying. It was an encouraging weekend. These first podiums in the Formula Renault Eurocup are exactly what I need to be full of confidence. I can feel the tide turning!”
As the series heads to the Red Bull Ring in Austria in eight weeks, Martins will aim to build on these podium finishes around the principality to bring top-flight performances to the remaining races of the season.