FIA F3 driver Lukas Dunner shows mental strength at second home race

Young Austrian driver for MP Motorsport Lukas Dunner experiences a rather eventful second FIA Formula 3 race weekend, filled with valuable lessons, at the Red Bull Ring. Both free practice and qualifying had the field getting used to the hard tire compound (last week they only raced on medium). During qualifying, Dunner was twice interrupted by red flags during a quick lap with promising sector times.

Race 1 on Saturday saw some heavy rain, as forecasted, leading to many drivers spinning their cars. Dunner stayed composed despite being out on slicks and dry setup, setting laptimes on par with the best in the field. With conditions worsening, more and more drivers kept spinning out, one of which Dunner could not evade due to the poor visibility conditions. He hit the opponent going in excess of 100 mph, luckily neither of them got seriously hurt. The race was subsequently cancelled, as had been demanded by various drivers even before the accident.

Race 2 on Sunday had the Austrian start from P16 (result from race 1). Going into corner 3, a teammate of his chose an optimistic braking point, dove into the inside and pushed Dunner wide, which had him lose 5 positions. Not giving up, he drove the car to the limits, causing the tires to degrade and even develop flatspots. After several Virtual Safety Car phases, the two leaders collided which had the field finish the race behind the Safety Car.

"All in all I was able to make progress during the weekend. Saturday was probably the most intense racing day of my career so far. Rain kept getting heavier, hydroplaning, no visibility whatsoever. In the end I couldn't evade one of of the others spinning and I hit him doing well over 100mph. That was not necessary and in my eyes it's wrong to wait with cancelling until something happens. I don't even want to imagine what happens if I hit the other one into the side.
I started well into Sunday though and felt really good from the start. Then one of my teammates divebombed me which made me lose 5 positions.. I understand that he feels the pressure of having to deliver, but I really wonder if it's necessary for him to attack his teammate, of all people, like that.
Next up I'll have my physio check my back - I'm really lucky to have an outstanding team around me. The next steps are clear, we'll soldier on." - Lukas Dunner