Taito Kato finishes P9 in the Feature Race
Circuit de Barcelona-CatalunyaOn Sunday 14 June, the Feature Race for Round 3 of FIA F3 was held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain.
Feature Race: P5 start → P9
The 25-lap Feature Race (Race 2) started at 8:40 am on Sunday 14 June in dry conditions, with air temperatures of 22°C and track temperatures of 32°C.
On the opening lap, drivers throughout the field looked to gain positions, with battles unfolding across the circuit. This led to significant changes among the leading positions, and Taito Kato, who had started from fifth, dropped to tenth. He then looked for opportunities to move back up the order, but chances were limited on a layout where overtaking is relatively difficult.
The race developed into an eventful contest, with the Virtual Safety Car (VSC) deployed three times. In the closing stages, Kato was involved in intense battles with the cars ahead and behind. He was overtaken on lap 20 and dropped to 11th, but reclaimed the position on the following lap before making another overtake on the final lap. Kato took the chequered flag in ninth, scoring his first points since the Feature Race at the Melbourne round in March.
The next round, Round 4, will be held at the Red Bull Ring in Austria from 26 to 28 June.
The Barcelona race week was one where I felt we had a very high level of potential. From free practice through to the final Feature Race, we consistently had the pace to aim for the top five.
In qualifying, despite some traffic, I did my job properly and managed the session well, which allowed me to qualify in P5. Both the Sprint Race and the Feature Race had some unlucky elements. In the Sprint Race, I could not get into gear and was unable to start, so I had to start from the pit lane.
In the Feature Race, partly due to the clutch change from the previous day, I could not accelerate as I wanted at the start and ended up losing positions. The result was quite frustrating, but I felt that both the car and I still had more potential to aim higher. I see that as a very positive point for the races ahead.
I think that if we can eliminate these small mistakes and issues one by one, it will definitely lead to results, so I want to keep working hard together with the team.
The Barcelona race week was one where I felt we had a very high level of potential. From free practice through to the final Feature Race, we consistently had the pace to aim for the top five.
In qualifying, despite some traffic, I did my job properly and managed the session well, which allowed me to qualify in P5. Both the Sprint Race and the Feature Race had some unlucky elements. In the Sprint Race, I could not get into gear and was unable to start, so I had to start from the pit lane.
In the Feature Race, partly due to the clutch change from the previous day, I could not accelerate as I wanted at the start and ended up losing positions. The result was quite frustrating, but I felt that both the car and I still had more potential to aim higher. I see that as a very positive point for the races ahead.
I think that if we can eliminate these small mistakes and issues one by one, it will definitely lead to results, so I want to keep working hard together with the team.
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