Hungaroring: Series qualifying report

First pole for Martinez!

He's the leader of the Formula Renault 3.5 Series championship, he's already taken three wins, but until this morning Marcos Martinez (Pons Racing) had yet to taste the satisfaction of being on pole position. Job done! On the Hungaroring circuit, the Spanish driver managed a perfect lap to grab the best time in the SuperPole qualifying session, ahead of Miguel Molina (Ultimate Motorsport) and James Walker (P1 Motorsport).

Group B:

Group B drives were first on track this Saturday morning, under ideal track conditions: fine weather, temperature cool. Fairuz Fauzy (Mofaz Fortec Motorsport) and Bertrand Baguette (International Draco Racing) set the pace. The times became markedly quicker towards the end of the session and the established order was upset. Jaime Alguersuari produced the best provisional time of 1'32''623. But Brendon Hartley (Tech 1 Racing) had the answer. In the last seconds, the New Zealander grabbed the quickest time in Group B, with 1'32''228, ahead of Jaime Alguersuari and Fairuz Fauzy. Bertrand Baguette, Adrian Zaugg (Interwetten.com Racing) and Oliver Turvey also qualified for the SuperPole.

Group A:

With the Group A cars barely out on track, the red flag came out with Mihai Marinescu (RC Motorport) stranded on the tarmac. At the restart, James Walker went to the top of the timing screens. The Marcos Martinez (Pons Racing) set off a wave of fastest laps. The Spaniard took Jon Lancaster (Comtec Racing) and Charles Pic (Tech 1 Racing) with him. Miguel Molina joined the leader group at the end of the session, swapping top spot with Walker and Martinez. Marcos Martinez had the last word with a best time of 1'31''883, followed by James Walker and Miguel Molina. In fourth, Jon Lancaster succeeded in qualifying for SuperPole in his maiden qualifying session in Formula Renault 3.5 Series. Charles Pic (Tech 1 Racing) and Marco Barba (International Draco Racing) also both got through to the decisive SuperPole.

SuperPole:

James Walker was first man on the pace in SuperPole. The British driver was relieved by Marcos Martinez. Then it was Fairuz Fauzy's turn to grab provisional pole position in 1'32''862, while his rivals pitted for new rubber. The first to fight back was Adrian Zaugg, then Bertrand Baguette moved past to the top of the timing screens. The standings changed lap by lap. Charles Pic, James Walker then Marcos Martinez all took turns on provisional pole. With a supreme effort, Martinez finally took control with a 1'31''295 lap, rivals Miguel Molina, James Walker and Charles Pic failing to overhaul him at the end of the session. So Martinez claims his first pole position in Formula Renault 3.5 Series.

Quote, unquote:

Marcos Martinez: "It's my first pole position-- and it's a very special feeling. After winning some races, I really had to get this pole. Since the beginning of the weekend, we've had a very good car and we've done a lot of good work with the Pons Racing team. But the race is going to be very tight, because Molina and Walker are close."

James Walker: "I made a slight mistake in my fastest lap and that cost me the front row and maybe pole position. We've been very close since the start of this morning, Marcos Martinez, Miguel Molina and myself. The race is going to be interesting."

-credit: wsr