Who won this week? Star of the Race: Nikolai Milkovich
The Ingram driver stunned the field qualifying a stunning 5th for the small Ingram team, beating all but the Franklins and Liverpools. The Russian struggled off the start line and slipped back, and many suspected that was that. A good strategy call brought him back up the field, and for a while it looked like he could challenge Hoskins for 4th. It wasn't to be, but it was still Ingram's best ever result. Overtake of the race: Karl Beckenbauer on Adrien Simon (5:37) Another mental blow to Adrien Simon, as his German team-mate plants one right up the inside of Simon. The German had already made a similar move earlier on in the race, but that was due to a slight error from Simon. The second time was a move of pure class to swoop round up the inside at the final turn. Franklin: Hoskins 3 Ruiz 1 Ruiz finally gets off the mark with a good win against his team mate. Ultimately it came down to one error from Hoskins, running wide let through his team mate and Giodano and cost him enough time to come out behind the one-stopping Milkovich, whom he couldn't pass. Ruiz kept the pressure on the Liverpool's and came home with his third podium Team 23: Mattson 1 Wagner 3 A qualifying battle as much as anything. Mattson has taken out by Nakumaya early on and Wagner's suspension failure meant no finishes for the beleaguered Team 23 boys. Wagner was faster in qualifying and gets the point. Liverpool: Simon 0 Beckenbauer 4 Beckenbauer needed an outstanding pass to help him, as a rejuvenated Simon challenged his team mate all the way. Pole for the Frenchman and a better pit call meant he led the race twice, but twice Beckenbauer passed his team mate, and even traffic difficulties couldn't stop another win for the German (though Simon did get very close). Lucas: Davenport 3 Phipps/Abott 1 Regi Abott seems to have gotten used to his new car, as despite a struggle in qualifying for both cars, Abott managed to deny his parent team points and he pinched the final placing in 10th place. Davenport's two-stopper didn't have the same effect and he came home with no real dramas. Rossi: Giodano 2 Domenicalli 2 I am a big fan of Giodano and he is definitely the future of the sport, but again he has been matched by his less impressive team mate. Considering the money being bid on the young Italian you'd expect a better drive. A three stop strategy didn't help matters, and Domenicalli did a good job. Both Rossi's were caught out by the one-stopping Ingram but ultimately Enzo did a better job. Peugeot: Ellington 1 Abott/Lesic 2 Lesic 0 Fazio 1 The Peugeot's seemed tied together this race, as Ellington returned two races early. Lesic had the edge in both qualifying and the race, and was unfortunate to finish outside the points. Ellington's return didn't give the boost I'm sure Armos would have wanted and it will be interesting to see how Peugeot go from here. Westwood: Kinnumen 2 Boston 2 Keith Boston once again beat his more highly-fancied team mate. The American bringing home another couple of points for the Westwood team. However, Westwood has already announced that Boston will not drive again this year, and Kinnumen will face ex-Downton driver Kip Maxwell for the remainder of the season. Based on results alone, Boston is unlucky. Fun: Dwyer 3 Agostino 1 Considering the great run of form the Fun team is on at the moment, it was a big shock to see both drivers struggling this weekend. Dwyer had the measure of his team mate in both qualifying and the race and this ultimately only meant 15th place. The team will hope this is a one off. Downton: Powers 3 Thunder 1 What has happened to Marcus Thunder? The young Brit impressed last year in both the Downton and the Mathershaw, and began well this year. Since being passed in Malaysia, Thunder has dipped massively. This week, a decent qualifying led to an awful race, with mistakes and he eventually finished 10 places behind the world champion, who had another impressive race. Ingram: Campos 0 Milkovich 4 To be fair to Diego Campos, his results are on the up (20th, 16th, 14th, 13th). However, while Campos battled the midfield, Milkovich battled championship leader Will Hoskins. Test driver Arden Hutchinson is rumoured to get a few practice sessions, and Campos will need to improve. Force Australia: Alaniz/Nakumaya 1 Beyer 3 Nakumaya did a good job in qualifying, but threw it away with an optimistic lunge early on, resulting in Mattson's retirement and a broken front wing for Nakumaya. Beyer once again drove solidly, giving the impression he'd be very good as a second driver for a big team. Warrior: Harding/Osterhagen 3 Kubat 1 Abel Osterhagen had another good race this weekend, and with a bit more luck would have won my overtaking award. Despite that, he'll need to improve his qualifying, as he was half a second off Kubat this time. Star of the race: Beckenbauer 1, Agostino 1, Powers 1, Milkovich 1 Overtake of the race:
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