Interview
Wurz praises ‘strong’ TRIDENT after positive Melbourne weekend
Charlie Wurz was delighted with the performance of TRIDENT in Melbourne, the team achieving a one-two finish in the Feature Race led by Rafael Câmara, with the Austrian driver finishing in P6.
The 19-year-old qualified in the same position on Friday but having started P7 for the Sprint Race, he retired due to collision damage on the opening lap.
But in a wet Feature Race, Wurz showed good pace but with conditions taking a toll, he could not make the move past Tim Tramnitz for fifth. Despite that, he is taking the positives from Round 1.
“I mean I think on Sunday we had really, really strong pace,” started Wurz. “But the only thing was my visor fogged up fully, plus the visibility is really bad in the wet, which is a shame because I was a lot quicker than the cars in front.
“At the end, as soon as I got close to Tramnitz, I couldn't even see the metre board to brake. So, I was driving by feeling, and I was still on the same pace or faster than Tramnitz. I think the car we had, the confidence I had on this track is really high.
“I am walking away with eight points, which is decent for the Championship, but I wanted more. In the end, to stay positive, we have a good car in the wet for sure.
“I think I was on pace to be the fastest in the wet, that is what I feel, and in the dry I just need to work on qualifying a bit. But the race pace, I think we are also strong.”
Asked whether he ever felt a move on Tramnitz was close, Wurz responded: “To be honest, no. Every time I came closer than eight tenths, I really couldn't see anything, and I thought if I go for a move, it's just guess work to see where he is because I couldn't even see his lights.
“I was catching him at one point quite a lot when he started to lose the rear tyres, but I didn't have an opportunity to make the move.”
READ MORE: Round 1 Post-Feature Race Press Conference
TRIDENT’s weekend in Melbourne was not without its challenges, as all three of their F3 cars and both of their Formula 2 cars retired due to collision damage in the Sprint.
But Wurz says the work done over the winter to put them in this position has clearly worked to start the year. Next up is the in-season test in Bahrain, and while morale is high, he says they have to take a step forward in performance, as many of their rivals will do the same.
“It's great being with such a strong team,” he continued. “I think all the work we have done over the past months, obviously nobody else sees that, but it's a lot of work that the engineers went through, that the drivers went through, so much preparation and it paid off.
“Of course, Saturday was a really tough day for the team. I think five out of five cars DNF'd but we came back stronger, and it's a good way to start the season.
FEATURE RACE: Câmara in control for maiden F3 victory in Melbourne
“At the end we have three more test days and everyone is going to make steps, so we have to keep making steps forward. I know I have room for improvement, especially in Qualifying, so I am going to work on that.
“But it’s a very positive start to the season in terms of the team's performance. It's just everyone is really happy in general over the winter and now, and it's just a great feeling to be with and that also helps a lot.”