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Bridgman takes first FPA win
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28 April 2007
Tim Bridgman made it three different winners from the first three Visma Formula Palmer Audi races of 2007 as he took victory in the first race of the Brands Hatch Grand Prix triple-header.
Former Formula BMW UK champion Bridgman took full advantage of polesitter Jolyon Palmer's sluggish start, and took a lead that he would never lose, despite some pressure from Luciano Bacheta late on, whose second place further strengthened his position at the top of the points table.
At the start, Bridgman's Laser Skoda-backed car and the Luxardo machine of Giacomo Petrobelli both made it past Palmer, who managed to keep the Tradelink car of Bacheta at bay. Petrobelli was on the limit in his quest for second place, but could only hold it until lap six when Palmer dived up the inside at Druids.
Palmer then set about chasing down Bridgman's four-second advantage, setting some of the fastest laps of the race as he went, but his race was to come to an early end as he spun and crashed at Surtees after putting two wheels on the grass. This, allied to a collision between Alex Brundle and Tom Bradshaw which forced the latter to retire, brought out the Safety Car.
At the front, the following restart proved no problem for Bridgman as he rattled off the remaining laps to take victory from Bacheta by a second. "It was disappointing to lose a big lead to the safety car, but I'm delighted to get my first win on the board" he said.
Bacheta, meanwhile, was pleased to take second after losing a place to Andy Demetriou at the start. "I overtook Demetriou at Westfield, which was scary to say the least! I'm happy to score another 20 points, and it's good to keep my challenge for the title on track."
Petrobelli was delighted to score a podium in his final FPA meeting, especially after coming under sustained pressure from Dominik Jackson for third in the closing laps. "Silverstone was a very disappointing weekend for me, so I'm really happy to get on the podium and feel back in touch with the leaders," said an ecstatic Italian.
Behind fourth-placed Jackson, fifth went to Stefan Wilson after charging through from ninth on the grid, and will be worth watching in Round 4 later today from his front-row grid slot. Richard Kent took sixth, followed by Demetriou and Jack Clarke, who recovered superbly to finish eighth after stalling at the start. Richard Plant finished ninth, relegating Chris Bell to tenth on the final lap.
Ends
Photo: LAT USA
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