Chadwick opts for Spa
Defending W Series champion Jamie Chadwick has had to make a decision on where to do her racing this weekend.
In a clash of calendars, the W Series returns on Saturday for what will be a very poignant Belgian Grand Prix following the tragic death of Spa-francorchamps circuit CEO Nathalie Maillet - while Extreme E will be making history during the first ever motorsport event to take place in Greenland.
The Bath-born W Series leader has opted to tarmac rather than icy arctic conditions as Chadwick looks to cement her advantage in a quest to win back-to-back W Series titles.
As the drivers go into the second half of the season, the battle to be crowned W Series champion could not be closer. Just a single point separates Chadwick and Alice Powell at the top, while the fight for third is incredibly close as Nerea Marti, Sarah Moore, Emma Kimiläinen (Ecurie W, FIN), Fabienne Wohlwend and Irina Sidorkova (W Series Academy Team, RUS) are separated by three points.
Looking ahead to the weekend, Chadwick said: “As we enter the second half of the season, I’m feeling really positive. The first four races have gone very quickly and all of us have experienced ups and downs so far. But my confidence is really high after winning the last race in Hungary and that gives me good momentum going into the second half of the year.
“The victory in Budapest felt like an important one. I had lost the championship lead at the previous round at Silverstone and knew that finishing behind Alice [Powell] again would make winning the championship a real challenge and force me to be very attacking in the second half of the year. So, to regain the championship lead and do it in the fashion I did was a real boost.
“I’ve enjoyed some downtime during the four-week summer break. It’s been nice to get away on holiday and do some different training too – I did a triathlon a couple of weeks ago which I’ve been looking forward to for ages – so I’m feeling fresh and hoping that I can hit the ground running at Spa.
“I’ve raced at Spa in British GT and British F3 but haven’t been there for a few years. It’s one of my favourite circuits in the world and I’ll be looking to use that experience to my advantage.
“The first and last sectors are all about carrying straight-line speed so you can try to run with really low downforce, but in the middle sector you want to have the highest minimum speeds possible in all of the high-speed corners. It’s a lap of contrasts and getting the setup right will be all important. Spa always promotes good racing and is a real driver’s circuit for that reason, so I’m very much looking forward to it.”
As for Extreme E, Chadwick’s seat at Team Veloce will be kept warm by reserve driver Emma Gilmour - the New Zealand WRC racer three times runner-up of the New Zealand Rally Championship.
After a difficult opening round in Saudi Arabia, Chadwick and teammate Stephane Sarrazin performed exquisitely to claim second in Senegal.
As well as swapping the sands of Africa and Middle East for the icy terrain of Greenland, there have been some amendments to the weekend set up.
Instead of a time-based qualifying format used in the previous two rounds, this time the two qualifying sessions will be calculated separately with points awarded in order of where they finish.
The combined total across the two sessions will then be used to determine the semi-final and crazy race positions - with first place taking on fifth and sixth in semi-final one; second, third and fourth in semi-final two and the bottom three in the crazy race.
The final will this time comprise of five cars instead of three, with the top two from each semi-final progressing alongside the winner of the crazy race, meaning the overall Arctic X Prix champion could literally come from anywhere this weekend.
The super sector - where the fastest driver in that section earn five points for their team - continues to be in play, as are the hyperdrive buttons for each driver per race.