Spectacular second place for Pepe Martí in Dubai. The Spanish talent put up a champion's fight
- Josep Maria Marti Sobrepera
- Mar 14, 2022
- 2 min read
Spectacular second place for Pepe Martí in Dubai
Martí scored two fourth places and his third podium finish in the Asian competition and is now second in the overall drivers' standings and the most consistent driver on the grid.
Formula Regional Asia is holding the third round of the season at the Dubai Autodrome for the second consecutive weekend. This time, the drivers face the long configuration of the track, which is a handicap for tyre wear in the longest corner of the circuit.
In the first qualifying session, the Spaniard qualified in seventh position, in a very tight grid, and then in QP2, Martí took second position for the last of the three races of the weekend.
In the first race, starting sixth, he got off to a good start and placed seventh, held the position for several laps until the race was interrupted by a red flag, and it wasn't until minutes later that the race was restarted.
When he restarted from seventh, he made one of the best overtakes of the day and climbed to sixth place, which he held until he crossed the finish line. However, several penalties from other drivers put him in fourth place, scoring a total of 12 points.
Pepe Martí concluded the third round of the FRAC with another podium finish, and one of the best races of the nine that have taken place so far. After three intense weekends and with two more to go, the driver from Barcelona is one of the most combative and regular drivers on the grid. In the first race on Sunday, the Barcelona driver started seventh after finishing fourth in the first race (inverted grid) and with one of his characteristic comebacks, he finished in fourth place.
In the third and last race of the weekend, Martí started second next to his teammate who started from pole position. In a great start he took first place and took over the lead of the race.
The Pinnacle Motorsport driver held the lead for several laps, but with a lot of pressure behind him.
He ended up putting on a formidable show in which Martí managed to hold on to the front in impressive style. Then the safety car appeared and on the restart he couldn't avoid being overtaken on old and cold tyres. However, he was able to hold on to second place until he crossed the finish line.
The young driver scored his third podium of the Asian season and a new 'victory' among the rookies.
"I'm happy because we had enough pace to stay in the lead, so it was a pity about the scare because otherwise we could have tried to fight for the win. I want to thank the team for all the hard work we are doing, we are getting faster and more consistent. This has been our best weekend so far. We are here to take it step by step and learn from every outing. So far, we have achieved our objectives and we will try to go for more if we continue in this line", said the same driver.
