Stepney: 'There is more pace to come'

31/08/2010

Both Sumo Power Nissan GT-Rs fought their way through the field in a tough round six at Nurburgring.

The No.22, driven by Warren Hughes and Jamie Campbell-Walter, climbed from 16th on the gird up to an impressive eighth and the No.23, shared by Michael Krumm and Peter Dumbreck, went from 20th to 15th, in a race that featured some hard, panel-beating action.

In the opening stint in the No.22, Hughes made a great start and powered past four cars on the run up to the turn one. Four places further back, Krumm in the sister car, was eager to keep out of trouble and avoid another first corner incident that put him and Dumbreck out of the Qualifying Race the previous day.

At the end of the first lap, Hughes was up to 12th and Krumm 18th, both cars making good progress – with Hughes even moving up another place on lap four. However, Krumm became snagged in traffic and, unwillingly trading paint with the cars around him, was nudged into a spin and dropped back to 20th on lap five.

Hughes, meanwhile, climbed into the top 10 and up to ninth before the mandatory pit stop to change drivers and tyres on lap 13. Even nursing a suspected slow puncture from one of the earlier clashes, Krumm was also overtaking and reached 17th before he pitted.

The stops for both cars took less than 30 seconds, but unfortunately some of the team’s good work in the pits was undone as each of its Nissans re-joined the race in slower traffic. Once all the cars had stopped and the true positions sorted, Campbell-Walter, who had taken over from Hughes, was in 10th and Dumbreck, who had replaced Krumm, was 18th.

Campbell-Walter went past the SRT Nissan GT-R of Henry Moser in one of his hallmark out-braking manoeuvres. This, coupled with a drive-through penalty applied to a car in front, moved the Sumo Power GT driver up to eighth place.

He then spent the rest of the race ensuring that the pursuing Maserati did not get past and was pleased to cross the line in a points-scoring position.

Once his tyres bedded in, Dumbreck also found himself making up places and ended the race in 15th position.

Overall, the race saw a considerable amount of ‘contact’ between other cars and therefore, the Sumo Power GT team was pleased that both its Nissans came away relatively unscathed.

The outcome for Sumo Power GT means that it now lies sixth in the teams’ standings, with Hughes and Campbell-Walter 12th and Krumm and Dumbreck 13th in the drivers’ points battle.

Team quotes:

Michael Krumm, No.23

“Even though I tried to keep out of the way, because I was overtaking I became involved with quite a lot of contact at the start of the race. I think this must have damaged a wheel or a tyre and from then on the car wasn’t 100%. It could have been a better weekend for us, but I know from our times that the car can be good, so I’m now looking forward to the next round in Portugal.”

Peter Dumbreck, No.23

“Once I was able to get some heat into the tyres I was pleased with the pace of the car and was able to start overtaking. Our lap times were consistent and, if it wasn’t for the low start position and the problems that come with that, I’m sure we would have finished in the top ten.”

Warren Hughes, No. 22

“We made a few changes to the car after yesterday’s race and it felt better. I was able to get a really good start and then catch and pass the cars ahead of me. Our race pace doesn’t seem to be a problem. At the moment its our Qualifying that needs work, so if we can get that right, I’m sure we’ll be running at the front again.”

Jamie Campbell-Walter, No.22

“Our lap times were not far off the leading cars in the end. I’m really pleased we’ve been able to get into the points again, which is good for us and the team. Although grip levels could have been a bit better, it was a good race and, if we can get on top of things for Qualifying, then I think we’ve cracked it.”

Nigel Stepney, team manager

“There’s no doubt that both cars had the speed in the race, but fighting through from the back is always going to make things difficult. There’s more pace to come from the cars. We know what areas we have to work on and we’ve now got three weeks to do it.”

James Rumsey, team principal

“It’s good to finish in the points, with one car, but the pace of both was good. If Qualifying and yesterday’s race had gone better for us then there’s no doubt the outcome would be different today. I’m pleased that it was another good all-round effort from the team.”

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