Motorsport: Louis Delétraz misses out on V8 championship title

After Renault withdrew as organizer and sponsor of the World Series, the Spanish took over the organization of the former Formula Renault 3.5. From a Swiss perspective, this racing series, which is comparable to GP2, became famous thanks to Nico Müller's triumph in the 2013 Monaco GP. This year, Louis Delétraz was the only Swiss driver in the field of 530 hp racing cars, which held their championship under the name Formula V8 3.5.

The season got off to a promising start for the 19-year-old from Geneva with a victory at Motorland Aragon (E) in April. From then on, the Renault Junior remained in the title fight until the end. Last weekend, the son of former F1 driver Jean-Louis Delétraz took second place in Saturday's race in Barcelona, after which he was able to tackle the final race with a six-point lead over Tom Dillmann. With the best time in qualifying, he also created the best starting position, while his opponent only started from midfield.

Advance without overtaking
But in the race, everything went against the Frenchman. At the start, Delétraz had already lost three positions by the first corner. The mandatory pit stop to change tires went wrong not only for him and his team, but also for other competitors. "It was unbelievable. Everyone had their problems, except Dillmann, who was able to drive to victory without overtaking on the track," Delétraz marveled.

Finishing fourth in the championship, he was seven points behind the 27-year-old Alsatian, who has raced in practically every racing car formula since 2004, including GP2 and the World Series, and was therefore the big favorite. Delétraz's disappointment is limited: "It was still a good season. I learned a lot and was the best rookie in 13 of the 18 races. I'm confident about the future. I'm now waiting to see if I stay in the Renault support program, because I was the only one fighting for a championship title."

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Photos: Archive