FPA: Series Snetterton summary

Jousse extends championship lead after Snetterton treble Frenchman runs riot as his rivals hit trouble

19-year-old Maxime Jousse extended his lead in the overall Formula Palmer Audi standings at Snetterton this weekend after taking three victories during the series' first ever four-race event.

Despite having his championship lead cut during Saturday's opening contest after finishing behind maiden race winner Jordan Williams and second-placed Nigel Moore, Jousse then went on to dominate proceedings for the remainder of the event as his rivals endured differing results.

Devon-driver Williams took his first ever single seater victory after getting the jump on pole-sitter Moore in race one, but the 19-year-old's weekend then began to unravel when he and Jousse made contact on the opening lap of race two. The result was a frightening accident for Williams that saw his car become airborne along the Revett Straight, jumping the safety barrier in the process before coming to rest on the banking. Jordan was completely unharmed in the incident but he was unable to replicate his early weekend pace thereafter as he contested the remainder of the event in a spare car.

Jousse won the restarted race on Saturday afternoon and was followed home by Ginetta-graduate Moore and Spaniard Ramon Pineiro. Moore's sequence of finishing every FPA race on the podium so far ended on Sunday morning however, when the single-seater rookie was passed by Melroy Heemskerk and Jose Alonso Liste after running second in the early stages.

The squabble for the remaining podium positions allowed Jousse to march on to a dominant win and he repeated the trick in the final race of the weekend -- again being followed home by Heemskerk and Alonso Liste. Moore's race ended after he spun out of second place on the exit of Riches Corner in the early stages. He was able to continue initially but retired in the pitlane late on after suffering damage to his car in the incident.

Jousse's win was his fifth from just seven races this season and helped him to extend his championship lead to 39 points over Moore -- underlining his dominance of the campaign so far. Just five points separate third through to fifth in the standings, as Pineiro holds a slender advantage over Heemskerk and Alonso Liste.

Maxime Jousse said: "It was a great weekend for me. I wanted to finish each race on the podium, which would have been good for the championship, but to take three wins is fantastic. This championship is about being consistent and I feel that I am doing that."

The 2010 Formula Palmer Audi Championship will resume when rounds 8 and 9 take place at Oulton Park on 24 July.

-source: fpa