Race incidents hampered the season opener in Bahrain for Campos.
Neither Ralph Boschung nor Gianluca Petecof had luck on their side, but they managed to show some potential for the upcoming season.
Both Campos drivers had a good start to the weekend on Friday in the practice session. In qualifying, Boschung started 12th from race one and three, while rookie Petecof started from row ten.
The first Sprint Race got underway in extremely high temperatures. However, retirement for Boschung left the Swiss driver on the backfoot for the second.
The Swiss driver tagged the back of Marcus Armstrong when the latter came to a halt and stopped on track. Boschung, who was already experiencing engine issues, couldn’t avoid Armstrong, and his race ended early.
Petecof made it to the finish 17th despite engine issues which he suffered with throughout the race.
The second Sprint Race saw another action-packed first lap, and Petecof got the most out of it. The Brazilian managed to avoid any clash and moved up to tenth while Boschung also gained several places from the back.
The field remained almost unchanged until lap 15, when the safety car was deployed. Petecof was one of a handful of drivers who pitted for new tires, but Boschung stayed on track with the leaders.
After the restart, Boschung fought to keep a points finish, but he dropped back in the final stages. He still pitted for new tires and claimed the fastest lap towards the end, while Petecof’s final charge was rewarded 13th place.
The Feature Race was another challenge for Campos. Boschung moved to 11th in the first lap, with Petecof further adrift.
Boschung pitted on lap 15 for fresh rubber. The fire extinguisher forced Petecof to retire after it accidentally went off. Boschung finally took the flag in 15th.
Boschung said: “Despite the circuit was pretty sandy on Friday, the car balance was quite good. In qualifying, I missed the top-six by a mere two tenths, which is actually promising.
“Race 1 was frustrating due to engine issues, and I was losing plenty of power. In the second race, I struggled a bit with brakes confidence, but at least I still scored the fastest lap of the race.
“On Sunday, we managed to improve the car from Saturday. Despite it wasn’t the best weekend possible, there are some positives to continue learning from. I would say it was a testing weekend, so let’s start the season properly in Monaco.”
Petecof said: “We can’t say we are satisfied, but it is important to underline it was a big step forward from last season. It was important to gain knowledge and experience throughout the weekend.
“We had plenty of situations to deal with in Bahrain, but we made no excuses. Our race 2 was the positive highlight from the weekend, running behind the driver who later won the race. It was close to finish in the top ten.
“We need to continue making progress and stepping the learning curve. Campos Racing are was very supportive of my debut in the FIA Formula 2 Championship. We will be back stronger for the next one..”
Campos will continue to work for the second round of the season in Monaco at the end of May.
Credit: Campos Racing
