On April 17-18, SMP Racing driver Robert Shwartzman took part in the third and final official pre-season tests of the 2019 FIA Formula 3 Championship at the Hungaroring circuit, Hungary.
On the second day of tests, Robert showed the best time of the day among thirty drivers, lapping the circuit in 1:30.746. During the first test day, Shwartzman had minor technical issues and was unable to complete the test session the way it was planned. His final result was 1: 31.733 and became the third in the overall standings.“The tests went great,” Robert Schwartzman said. “On the first day, we had a small problem with electronics and had to stop an hour before the end of the session. Therefore, the results were not as great as we could achieve. But we were absolutely not upset, because we understood that, in general, everything is going according to our plan. We had excellent settings, the team worked perfectly. During the tests, we practiced qualifying and racing pace with different settings. I am satisfied with the balance of the car and the work of engineers. I’m fully ready for the first round, which will take place in Barcelona."SMP Racing driver Vitaly Petrov was the coach of Robert Shwartzman during test sessions in Hungary and helped with the work of the car and the engineers.
“I am pleased with how Robert raced and how the team worked,” ex-Formula 1 driver Vitaly Petrov commented. “We are on the top in the overall standings, being almost 0.2 seconds ahead of the nearest rivals. The racing pace of Robert’s car was practically the highest of all, so I am very pleased with the tests and achieved results.”
The first round of Formula 3 will take place in Barcelona, Spain, on 10-12 May 2019.