Strakka Racing’s World Series division ready for Aragon
Strakka Racing is prepared for the start of the single-seater season at Aragon this weekend; the first round for both the 2015 Formula Renault 3.5 Series and 2.0 Eurocup
With plenty of off-season testing under its belt in both series, Strakka Racing is prepared to debut its four new drivers who have already shown the potential and ability to be frontrunners in their respective series. Gustav Malja and Tio Ellinas will line up for the team in FR 3.5, while Valentin Hasse-Clot and Charlie Eastwood are paired together in the Eurocup.
This weekend will mark the teams’ inaugural full-season outing in the 2.0 Eurocup Series, after further expansion to the single-seater side of Strakka Racing.
Motorland Aragon in the east of Spain is playing host to the Renault World Series season opener this year for the first time since the 2011 season. The team looks to better its podium finish at last year’s trip to the circuit when driver Will Stevens finished third in the second race of the weekend.
“Aragon presents an interesting challenge as a driver, the circuit flows really well, but does have some technical sections that often take you by surprise,” says Strakka Racing driver Tio Ellinas. “After a successful pre-season test there, finishing with the second quickest time after two days, I’m confident that we have the pace to challenge for wins straight away.”
This will be the first time the FR 3.5 drivers will be competing under the new aerodynamic regulations which force each car to run a low downforce setup during the Saturday at each meeting (which includes Race 1) except for those at the Monaco and Red Bull Ring.
Both Malja and Ellinas adapted quickly to the new rules during off-season running however, posting very competitive times and accumulating the second most mileage of the series’ runners at the official test days at Jerez and Aragon.
In the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup, expectations for Strakka Racing start high despite having little experience in the series. Both Charlie Eastwood and Valentin Hasse-Clot have proven their ability in lower-formulae and look to build on their running in the off-season to become truly competitive as the season wears on.
“Testing at Aragon went really well,” says Eastwood. “We managed to get inside the top 10 at times, in what looks to be an ultra-competitive grid of young drivers. I’m really looking forward to it.”
The on-track action at Motorland Aragon kicks off this weekend, starting on Friday April 24th.
Press Contact
Nick Bailey, 44 (0) 7813 956664
About Strakka Racing
From early domestic campaigns with BMWs and Aston Martins, Strakka Racing has evolved to become one of the most respected and successful privateer teams in the World Endurance Championship. In 2010 the Silverstone-based team achieved a class win, five circuit records and fifth overall in the iconic Le Mans 24 Hours. In 2013, it secured a second Le Mans win in the LMP1 Privateers’ class. Ever developing, in 2013 Strakka Racing entered the Formula Renault 3.5 World Series single-seater championship, regarded as one of the best training grounds for F1. In 2014 Strakka Racing joined forces with esteemed Japanese chassis manufacturer DOME to develop, market and race the Strakka DOME S103 chassis. 2014 also saw Strakka Racing create a Formula Renault 2.0 team and the Zanardi Strakka Kart racing team, the latter winning both prestigious FIA KF and KZ titles in 2014. This line up enables racing drivers to develop and refine their skills with Strakka Racing at each step of their career with an infrastructure that goes beyond any typical racing team.
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