December 16, 2017: 17 year old Brazilian driver Felipe Drugovich had the perfect weekend under the lights in Abu Dhabi as he won the final race of Round 3 of the MRF Challenge 2017 in Abu Dhabi. Drugovich now takes an 86 point lead to Chennai, India for the final round with 110 point available. Drugovich had a lights to flag win ahead of Rinus van Kalmthout and Julien Falchero.
Starting on pole for the final race of the weekend, Drugovich made the perfect start yet again to lead into the first corner ahead of van Kalmthout, Falchero and Presley Martono. Martono tried to put pressure on Falchero but the French driver defended well. There was action behind as Nazim Azman and Alex Karkosik battled for 5th place. Azman went wide to stay ahead of Karkosik but lost out on the position the very next lap as the Polish driver passed him into the first corner.
At the front there was no stopping the dominant Brazilian as he crossed the finish line in 1st place. Van Kalmthout finished in 2nd ahead of Falchero and Martono. Karkosik and Robert Megennis rounded off the top 6.
Drugovich also had the distinction of becoming the first driver to top all sessions in an MRF Challenge weekend as he was fastest in both practice sessions, qualifying and won all 4 races. He currently leads the championship with 260 points, ahead of Martono (174), Van Kalmthout (165) and Falchero (165).
Championship leader Felipe Drugovich was thrilled after a dominating weekend. He commented, “I don’t think I have ever had a perfect motorsport weekend like I have had in Abu Dhabi. The car was amazing, my team was unbelievable so this is dedicated to them. It is important to have good rhythm here and every race it came easily. “
Rinus van Kalmthout was happy to be in 2nd place after a qualifying crash on Thursday put him on the backfoot. He commented, “My crash on Thursday cost me dearly. Today we showed that we had the pace to fight at the front. I tried to match Felipe’s pace but he was too quick this weekend.”
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MRF Challenge 2017, Round 3, Abu Dhabi, Race 4:
| S.No. | Driver Name | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Felipe DRUGOVICH | 21:53.173 |
| 2. | Rinus VAN KALMTHOUT | 21:58.475 |
| 3. | Julien FALCHERO | 22:02.770 |
| 4. | Presley MARTONO | 22:03.831 |
| 5. | Alex KARKOSIK | 22:12.729 |
Championship Positions after Round 3:
| S.No. | Driver Name | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Felipe DRUGOVICH | 260 |
| 2. | Presley MARTONO | 174 |
| 3. | Rinus VAN KALMTHOUT | 165 |
| 4. | Julien FALCHERO | 165 |
| 5. | Alex KARKOSIK | 106 |
