It’s been a couple of races since my last column and since then it’s been a fairly busy few weeks.

 

I’ve had a real mix of results over the last two GP2 weekends, as well as taking on some extracurricular activities such as a GT race at the new Valencia street circuit and an IndyCar test in the USA.

 

Germany was a pretty difficult weekend for me.

 

I crashed in the practice session and that set us back quite badly in qualifying, especially as it was the first time I had driven at Hockenheim.

 

Having said that, I had a good start to the feature race and was up to ninth from 20^th on the grid when, with just four laps to go, it started to rain quite heavily, leaving some parts of the track wet and others dry.

 

Unfortunately I span out on a wet patch and although I didn’t damage the car, it put me out of the running for the points as well as compromising my grid position in the sprint race.

 

The positive thing was that my car improved throughout the weekend – I actually set my fastest lap on the last lap of the final race – but, with a ninth place finish in the sprint race, it was disappointing not to score any points.

 

Thankfully things were better in Hungary and we found some good one-lap pace in qualifying which meant I lined up sixth – although it could have been fourth with a little less traffic.

 

The feature race was fairly uneventful for us; we stayed P6 throughout and couldn’t really do much more, but it was good to score points again and get third on the grid for the sprint.

 

However, any joy from the grid position didn’t last long, as Lucas di Grassi took me out a few laps in to the sprint race and I fell back down the field to finish 10th.

 

I asked Lucas afterwards what he thought he was doing and obviously he apologised. He knew he had done something wrong, but it was one of those situations where there wasn’t really much you could say.

 

Over the break I was invited to the US to test an IndyCar for Panther Racing and watch an IRL race at the Kentucky Speedway.

 

I’d never been to an oval race before and I’d only seen that kind of racing on TV, so it was good to see what’s available to me on the other side of the pond.

 

The test itself took place at the Sears Point Road circuit and I had to learn the track and the car really quickly to get up to speed with everyone else.

 

I ended up setting the fastest time of the day which was pretty cool and I think I adapted to the new surroundings quickly.

 

The car itself was much heavier than my GP2 car, it has a big gearbox and rear crash structure to give protection against the concrete barriers that they have out there, so it was different to what I’m used to.

 

Because it’s designed for ovals it’s not as responsive as a GP2 car but that was kind of expected and overall the car was well balanced.

 

It was nice to get out there and try something new. I think it’s important that I keep my options open, although having said that, my main aim is still to stay on the route to Formula 1 for as long as possible.

 

 

I raced a Dodge Viper with my GP2 team-mate Ho-Pin Tung at the circuit in July and from what I saw of it, it looks as though the organisers are doing a good job.

 

It’s in a really nice setting, right near the beach and in and around the America’s Cup buildings so it’s going to look pretty good.

 

But if I’m honest, I was hoping for a bit more of a challenge from the track itself.

 

It’s a bit too smooth and it’s more like a permanent circuit than a raw street circuit like Monaco where they actually put barriers up through the street.

 

So I’m a bit disappointed in that respect, I was hoping for a bit of a rougher surface but as with all F1 circuits these days they’ve done everything to make sure they match that current standards on safety and trackside facilities.

 

On the plus side, there are definitely two good overtaking opportunities at the end of the two big, long back straights.

 

But even the straights kind of sweep round, so it’s going to be fairly easy to block drivers who move off the racing line – overall it should make for a few good scraps down the field.

 

I’m expecting to do well there, we should be able to turn up and be fast from the word go because we were quick in Hungary and Ho-Pin and I know the circuit from the GT race.

 

Obviously it’ll be slightly different in a GP2 car, but we know where the bumps and kerbs are and what bits you can and can’t drive on, so we should have an advantage over the guys who haven’t been there before.

 

Valencia kicks off the final sprint to the end of the season and I’m aiming for another win or maybe a couple of podiums.

 

I like all the upcoming tracks so we should stand a good chance.