DAMS Lucas Oil clinches podium on the streets of Baku

DAMS Lucas Oil scored an excellent second-place in the Sprint Race, as Jak Crawford managed to earn his fifth top-three finish of the 2024 campaign.

 

In Saturday’s semi-reverse grid event, the Aston Martin Driver Development Programme member started on the front row, having qualified ninth. Involved in a race-long battle, Crawford made some excellent overtakes to clinch second place, while Juan Manuel Correa finished 15th.

On Sunday, an opening lap red flag saw a reduced timed race, with Crawford battling inside of the top-10 throughout the Feature. After his pit-stop, the 19-year-old would manage to clinch eighth, claiming three points, extending his scoring streak to six races in a row.

In the #8 car, Correa would suffer an engine failure which would lead to his retirement in the early stages of the race.

 

Jak Crawford:  “I’m pleased to pick up a fifth podium of the season which is brilliant on a weekend when we were a bit off the pace. It was crucial to qualify inside the top-10, and we made the most of starting on the front row in the Sprint Race. Sunday’s event was challenging with the reduced time, but I was able to get some points as we aim to maximise the last two rounds of the season after the break.”

Qualifying: 9th |  Sprint Race: 2nd (+8 points)  |  Feature Race: 8th (+3 points)

 

Juan Manuel Correa: “It was a weekend that started off very promising in practice, but we couldn’t take this further into qualifying. We went with the medium downforce set-up to do something different on Saturday and then were forced to retire in the Feature Race. There’s a long break now so we’ll make sure we come back stronger and prepare for a new challenge in Qatar.”

Qualifying: 14th  |  Sprint Race: 15th |  Feature Race: DNF

 

Charles Pic, Team Owner: “It’s great to see Jak on the podium again, as even in a weekend when we haven’t been the quickest, we still managed to be in the top-three. It was a tricky event for JM after a positive start in practice, but we tried to do something different on Saturday which didn’t work, and then on Sunday we suffered an engine issue. It’s two and a half months until the double header to end the campaign where we’ll hope to finish the year on a high.”

 

Image: Dutch Photo Agency