Nurburgring: Pippa Mann race one report

PIPPA MANN ACHIEVES HIGHEST FINISH FROM LAST PLACE START

Pippa Mann might have started from 25th and last position, but the young Brit didn't let that deter her and drove an outstanding race to take a deserved seventh position at the Nurburgring. Staying calm under pressure, Mann really did have it all to do, but a mature drive handed two points to the 24 year-old, a fantastic top ten finish and a personal best in Formula Renault 3.5.

It was an eventful race, with drama off the starting line as Alvaro Barba (Prema Powerteam) got pitched into the air at the first corner, provoking chaos behind him as the field vied for position to avoid getting caught up in the debris and confusion. Mann saw the carnage ahead and dived down the inside, managing to escape through the corner.

The safety car was deployed with Mann having jumped from last position to 12th place. After the re-start, Mann continued to push and gained a couple more places, stealing eleventh place from Alexandre Marsoin (Epsilon- Euskadi) and then tenth from International Draco Racing's Marco Barba. Now up into the points, Mann had six laps to go when another incident brought out the safety car again, and the field was allowed to close back up. However, the race was far from over, as the safety car was brought in and a two-lap dash ensued. The British female could not afford to slip back on the re-start, and in fact did the exact opposite - passing Marcos Martinez (Pons Racing) as they crossed the line to climb into ninth position, where she finally finished in what was a fantastic result for herself and the team. However shortly following the race, two of the cars ahead of Mann were penalized, resulting in the P1 Motorsport driver being promoted to seventh position.

Pippa Mann: "Considering where we started I'm surprised and of course very happy with the result! I kept out of trouble, made some good overtaking moves and the team did a great job with both cars today. This result also gives me a much better starting point for tomorrow so hopefully we can have another strong race."

Mann has earned herself a 12th place grid position for Sunday's feature race at the Nurburgring, and her points, combined with that of her team mate Giedo Van der Garde, ensure P1 Motorsport remain in the lead of the team's championship.

-credit: pm