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27 May 2001 FIA International Formula 3000 Championship - Monaco (images
here) Giorgio failed to finish after a missed gearchange caused him to spin into retirement. That was the last in a series of problems that had made it a particularly character-building weekend. The Italian qualified his Astromega Lola 21st because of a peculiar handling imbalance. Team manager Sam Boyle said: "Giorgio told us that it was particularly difficult to get the car to turn into the hairpin - and the car understeered so much that he didn't feel totally confident anywhere on the track. When we got the car back to the garage in the evening we adjusted the steering rack - and that seemed to do the trick in the race." Starting so far back, however, Pantano knew he was in for a tough afternoon. "Overtaking in Monaco is almost impossible," he said. "I made a good start and gained several places, but once the race had settled down it was almost impossible to progress if the driver ahead didn't make a mistake." On lap 17 of 45, Pantano sliced inside rival Gabriele Lancieri in an effort to wrest 12th place at the hairpin, but the two cars brushed wheels and Giorgio had to pit for front suspension repairs, which cost him two laps. He rejoined at the tail of the field and went on to set seventh fastest lap of the race, but his afternoon ended at the tricky Rascasse corner when he was on his 30th lap. "I went to shift down from third to second," he said, "but instead I got first gear. That caused the rear wheels to lock up and I spun into the barrier. It has been a tough weekend, but at least I showed in the race that I had good speed. Once we had our problems yesterday, however, it was always going to be very hard to finish near the front." The series continues on June 23 at the Nurburgring - a track Giorgio knows well from his title-winning campaign in last year's German F3 Championship. Porsche Pirelli Supercup - Monaco |
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