Canadian looks to further increase championship lead

FIA European Formula 3 Championship leader Lance Stroll heads for the latest rounds of the series in Germany this weekend (25-26 Jun) refreshed, batteries fully recharged and totally focused on extending his points advantage. Nine top-five placings, including three victories, in his Prema Powerteam Dallara F312-Mercedes from the opening 12 races earned the Canadian teenager a 38-point championship lead prior to a five-week break in the series.

But Williams Martini Racing development driver Stroll, who attended the Monaco Grand Prix and then returned to Montréal to witness his “home” F1 race earlier this month, will again be on maximum attack at the Norisring. Staged on a temporary 2.3km “street” circuit in Nuremberg – the weekend’s third race on Sunday morning significantly marking the halfway point of this year’s 30-race Euro F3 championship.

The event marks the second time that BRDC “Rising Star” Lance has competed at the Norisring having achieved two, top-six results in his maiden F3 season there last year. The unique Norisring track, the shortest on the F3 calendar, sees sub-50secs lap times in the dry. A large crowd, often approaching 100,000, has historically attended the event which also sees the DTM as part of the weekend programme.

“The races I’m sure will be close and exciting. It’ll be my second time at the Norisring which features a very unique layout. It’s the only track on the calendar with what is really just four corners but it’s nevertheless very challenging with the cars often running very close together. Like Pau, it’s a ‘street’ circuit but the similarity is only in the name. Pau is mainly narrow while Norisring is wide. It’s less technical than Pau and is all about slipstreaming. But like Pau there is always a fantastic atmosphere over the weekend. Qualifying will be important as usual but no more so than anywhere else in my opinion. I’ll always be aiming to start from the front of the pack but there are straights with hard braking areas that allow for overtaking manoeuvres. I’ll be attacking but also thinking of consistent finishes – that’s what wins championships.”