Jasin Ferati Newsletter No. 2 / 2021 (April 13)
Season start for Jasin Ferati with Formula 1
Imola is not only hosting Formula 1 this weekend: the supporting program of the Grand Prix in Emilia Romagna includes the first two races of the newly created Formula Regional by Alpine with 17-year-old Jasin Ferati from Winterthur.
"Being able to start at the same place and on the same day as Lewis Hamilton, Jos Verstappen and all the other stars when making his debut in Formula 3 is extremely cool," says Jasin Ferati. "But I don't feel any additional pressure or major nervousness. Being next to each other in the paddock with the grown-ups is an additional boost of motivation to strive for an optimal performance throughout the weekend.” The direct encounter with Formula 1 will not remain an isolated case for Ferati either. The Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA) is also part of the program at the Spanish and Monaco Grand Prix.
The merger of the Formula Renault Europcup with the Formula Regionale has not failed to have an impact: twelve teams with 33 drivers from 17 nations are on the starting list for the new championship, in which 20 races on F1 tracks are planned for the inaugural year. The point distribution is the same as in Formula 1. The race will be driven by essentially identical Tatuus T-318 Formula 3 cars with halo, 1.8-litre four-cylinder turbocharged Renault engines with 270 hp and Pirelli tyres. The participants were able to familiarize themselves with their vehicles over six test days. The veterans Grégoire Saucy from Switzerland, the Finns William Alatalo and Patrick Pasma, Alex Quinn from England as well as the French Isaac Hadjar and Hadrien David pushed themselves into the role of the favorites with the best times.
Jasin Feratis Vorbereitung ist durch eine nach dem Test in Spanien aufgelesene Lebensmittelvergiftung empfindlich gestört worden. Der 17-jährige Winterthurer, der im italienischen Team Monolite Motorsport debütiert, hat sich aber bestens erholt und ist guter Dinge nach Imola gereist. „Die ersten Tests im famosen Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari sind gut verlaufen. Ich konnte mich konstant verbessern und dank den immer besseren Rundenzeiten ist auch das Selbstvertrauen gewachsen. Ein gelungener Auftakt, aber es hätte noch etwas besser sein können“, urteilt der Winterthurer Rookie. „Der erste Tag in Barcelona war weniger gut. Im letzten Moment konnte ich aber das Blatt noch wenden und Anschluss im Mittelfeld finden. Mit der Bestätigung in Frankreich hat es dann leider nicht geklappt. Paul Ricard war im wörtlichen Sinne des Wortes ‘scheisse’, da mich eine Magenvergiftung zerstörte. Am ersten Tag konnte ich das Hotelzimmer nur ganz kurz verlassen, am Folgetag war ich noch so schwach, dass ich nur mit viele Mühe 25 Runden absolvieren konnte. Für den damaligen Gesundheitszustand waren einige Runden aber gar nicht schlecht. Dass ich mich trotzdem steigern konnte und mich in der Zwischenzeit gut erholt habe, stimmt mich zuversichtlich für den Saisonauftakt.“
Switzerland is very well represented in the field of participants. In addition to Ferati and the four-year-old title candidate Grégoire Saucy from Bassecourt in the ART Grand Prix team, 18-year-old Alex Gnos from Geneva in his father's team and 23-year-old Lena Bühler from Vaud are also registered for the championship. Since the R-Ace driver has to do without the start due to a hand injury suffered during the test, the Spaniard Bélen Garcia is the only woman to be there at least in Imola.
Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine
Calendar 2021: 16-18 April Imola, 7.-9. May Barcelona, 21-23 May Monaco, 28-30 May Le Castellet, 17-20. June Zandvoort, 23.-25. July Spa-Francorchamps, 5th-8th August Nürburgring, 9th-12th September Spielberg, 7.-10. October Mugello, 28-31 October Monza. (each two races over 30 minutes plus 1 lap)
Live stream Imola: Saturday, 08.55 – 09.15 Qualifying 1; Saturday, 12:40 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. Qualifying 2; Saturday, 15.28 – 16.00 Race 1; Sunday 12.18pm – 12.50pm Race 2 on Youtube and Facebook via www.formularegionaleubyalpine.com tap
(Following the official list of participants for information)
11 teams and 33 drivers
R Ace Grand Prix (Fr): Isaac Hadjar (Fr/16), Hadrien David (Fr/17), Zen Maloney (Barbados/17), Lena Bühler (Sz/23)
ART Grand Prix (It): Grégoire Saucy (Sz/21), Gabriele Mini (It/16). Thomas Ten Brinke (Ho/16)
Prema power team (It): Paul Aron (Est/17), David Vidales (Sp/18), Dino Beganovic (Sd/17)
MP Motorsports (Ho): Franco Colapinto (Arg/17), Kas Haverkort (Ho/17), Oliver Goethe (Dä/16)
Arden Motorsport (GB): William Alatalo (Fi/19), Nicola Marinangeli (It/17), Alex Quinn (GB/20)
Van Amersfoort Racing (Ho): Francesco Pizzi (It/17), Lorenzo Fluxa (Sp/16), Mari Boya (Sp/16)
FA Motorsport (Sp): Andrea Rosso (It/17), Alexandre Bardinon (Fr/18), Gabriel Bortoleto (Br/17)
KIC Motorsport (Fi): Patrick Pasma (Fi/21), Elias Seppänen (Fi/17), Nico Göhler (De/17)
Monolite Motorsports (It): Pietro Delli-Guanti (It/17), Jasin Ferati (Sz/17)
JD Motorsports (It): Tommy Smith (Gb/20), Dodo Barrichello (Br/19)
G4 racing (Sp): Alex Gnos (Sz/18), Bélen Garcia (Sp/21)
DR Formula (It): Emidio Pesce (It/21), Brad Benavides (USA/20)