Barcelona, May 22 : Indian racer Jehan Daruvala was left ruing his bad luck after an electrical problem denied him the chance to fight for victory in Sunday’s Formula 2 Feature race in Spain.
The Red Bull-backed driver, fourth on the grid after a strong qualifying display on Friday, had chosen to start the race on the harder prime tyres, opting for the alternate strategy that would have seen him run a long first stint before his pitstop.
With most of his rivals starting on the less durable soft tyres, the decision would have paid dividends in the closing stages of the race, putting the Prema Racing driver in contention for the win.
But it was not to be as Daruvala, already the lead driver on the alternate strategy, was forced to grind to a halt after an electrical problem switched his car off on just the 4th lap.
Daruvala said, “This is an extremely disappointing result, all the more so given the pace we’ve shown all weekend.I’m sure we could have fought for the win so it’s a shame we couldn’t even let our strategy play out.
“Luck just doesn’t seem to be going our way with the safety car last time in Imola and now the electrical issue here.But that’s just part of motorsport.
I know I have the speed and if we continue in this manner I’m pretty sure things will go our way soon,” Daruvala was quoted as saying in a release by his management team.
Despite the unlucky result on Sunday, Daruvala doesn’t leave the Spanish round empty-handed.
He finished a strong fourth in Saturday’s Sprint race, fighting his way up from seventh, where he had started under the championship’s reverse grid rules.
He remains third in the overall drivers’ championship standings.
He will now be turning his focus to Monaco, which follows immediately the next weekend as part of back-to-back races.
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