Track record and fastest lap didn't help - Johan Jokinen lost valuable points in Finland

Northern European Cup in Formula Renault 2.0 continued last weekend in Alastaro in Finland. In changing weather on the 2,721 km long, but technically challenging track, Jokinen was second fastest in the free practice and took P2 in the first qualification and P4 in the second.

In the Saturday race Jokinen started from second position and the entire field waited unusually long for the red light to turn off. Several of the cars started rolling due to overheated clutch, among these Johan’s car. Even though he managed to stop the car after 20 cm rolling and subsequently made a good start the result was a stop-and-go penalty which Johan took as the first of the four penalised drivers starting from top 10. In the pit the team was not aware of the penalty and because of the misunderstanding Jokinen’s pit-stop was prolonged a further 5-10 seconds. When he came back on to the track it was at the very end of the field. The result was a single point for his 20th place – and a lost 2nd place in the series. During his pursuit of his competitors Jokinen drove the fastest lap in the race and made new track record which was a poor consolation for the disappointed driver.

“The track at Alastaro is short but challenging and I had a good pace in the first race. To lose a practically certain podium this way is a bit annoying”, says Johan Jokinen

In the second race on Sunday Jokinen started from fourth position and was third after the second corner, although he had problems with heavy understeering from the start. The track had changed overnight due to heavy rainfall during the night.

“The set-up we had from the previous day was made for loads of grip. It paid off throughout the week, but massive changes in the track unfortunately didn’t work out for the set-up for Sunday’s race. The team worked to perfection the entire week and I believe Motopark Academy had the best set-up of all. Sometimes small things you cannot prevent from happening are just enough to turn things upside-down.”

Despite the problems Johan finished the race in fourth position without ever getting the maximum out of the car. His overall position in the series fell from second to sixth, but as Johan says: “We’re not even half way through the season and I’m only a few points from top 3. My next race-weekend is on my “home circuit” in Oschersleben, and if I avoid any incidents and back luck I hope to be back in top-3 after the race”.

The race in Oschersleben is in just two weeks, on July 4-6.

Published: 2008-06-22

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