Bourdais in ambush at Monza

Sébastien Bourdais (Sevilla FC) is playing its second Superleague Formula round this weekend. After quickly getting up to speed at Estoril, the Frenchman was very competitive at Monza. First in his qualifying group, Le Manceau then made it through the quarter-finals and semi-finals before failing in the final, against Esteban Guerrieri. Second on the grid, Bourdais is a perfectionist, knowing why he is not on pole. “ I made a mistake when braking. Since the start of the weekend, I have had some problems finding the right distribution. Fortunately this did not happen earlier during the qualifying phases. I knew the final with Esteban (Guerrieri) was going to be close. I took more risks to get pole. Tomorrow there will be many candidates for victory. Passing the first chicane will be crucial. Then, I hope to be able to finish on the podium »

Two other French people managed to reach the quarter-finals, in order to enter the top 8 of the qualifications. Julien Jousse (AS Roma) and Tristan Gommendy (FC Porto) were however unable to qualify for the last four. For the beginner in the discipline, Julien Jousse, satisfaction was nevertheless very present on the evening of the qualifications. “ Joining a group of drivers who have known the car since the start of the season is not an easy challenge. I had to find the right rhythm with a car very different from the one I flew this year in F2. I progressed well over the laps. In the quarter-final, with tires that had four qualifying laps, I did not find the same behavior. What's more, I found myself facing the driver who later took pole position. Overall, I'm happy to be 5th on the grid for my debut. »

Sixth on the grid, Tristan Gommendy allows us to count three French drivers in the first six positions on the grid. The FC Porto driver expects a big fight. “ You will have to pass the first lap which is always very complicated here because the drivers always try to overtake in the first chicanes. Starting 6th, a good result is entirely possible »

As for Nelson Panciatici, he is further back on the grid and should have a more difficult race. “ We were on pace for the best on Friday. Then, we changed some gearbox ratios with the hope of being even more competitive and getting a place at the front of the grid. It was not the case. We will put the car back in Friday's configuration with the hope of achieving a good result. Starting from so far away, this will not be easy. But, it is a circuit where overtaking is possible. It’s a circuit that I’m new to, but that I appreciate. »