Antonio Felix da Costa Takes Stunning GP3 Victory

Antonio Felix da Costa has taken his second consecutive victory of the weekend, after scything through the field on slick tyres as the Hungaroring gradually dried out after an earlier rain shower. Patric Niederhauser stole 2nd away from local hero Tamas Pal Kiss on the last lap, in a tremendously exciting end to the GP3 weekend.

The race started on a treacherously wet track, with only Alex Brundle, Patric Niederhauser Vicky Piria and Robert Cregan starting the race on slicks. Once the five lights went out, the action began immediately as Championship leader Mitch Evans spun at turn 1. MW Arden’s morning then took another tumble, as pole man David Fumanelli also spun but this time collecting the barriers and subsequently retiring.

This handed the lead down to Fumanelli’s team-mate Matias Laine, with the Lotus duo of Conor Daly and Aaro Vainio close behind. Further down the order Alex Fontana spun his Jenzer Motorsport car, but was luckily able to rejoin without any damage. By the end of the opening, Mitch Evans opted to pit for slicks after a dropping to the back of the pack during the first lap.

Whilst Matias Laine continued to lead out in front, Mitch Evans continued to struggle. The Kiwi spun on the exit of turn 7, however once again he was able to continue albeit after loosing yet more valuable places. By lap 9, many drivers had begun pitting for slick tyres, with the Hungaroring circuit quickly drying out. Local hero Tamas Pal Kiss was enjoying a highly competitive race, and pitted for slicks from 4th position.

Antonio Felix da Costa, who started the race from 8th on the grid after winning yesterday’s opening race, also pitted for slick tyres. With the track now almost bone dry in certain places, the Portuguese driver began cutting his way through the order like a hot knife through butter, passing the likes of Pal Kiss, Daly and Vainio before eventually surging passed Matias Laine for the lead.

Unfortunately for the Finnish duo of Matias Laine and Aaro Vainio, due to not pitting for slick tyres, they plummeted through the order, eventually finishing only 7th and 8th respectively. As Antonio Felix da Costa crossed to line to take a memorable victory, local hero Tamas Pal Kiss lost 2nd place to the charging Patric Niederhauser, bringing an end to another highly entertaining GP3 race.