Emil Bernstorff took his first GP3 point today, in race two of the weekend at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona. The Carlin man recovered from an accident yesterday on the opening lap, fighting his way to eighth after starting from 24th on the grid. Team mate Sa Silva also took a top ten finish after starting from 16th. Yesterday’s race winner Alex Lynn finished in 18th, after a gamble to pit for wet tyres saw him lose ground.

Following a dominant win yesterday, it was Lynn who was the top Carlin man on the grid, starting the reverse grid race from eighth place. Following rain earlier in the morning, the track was damp, but all drivers elected to start on slick tyres. 

In slippery conditions, the race start was a slightly chaotic affair and despite a good getaway initially from the line, Lynn lost ground in run into the first corner. Bernstorff meanwhile was flying, keen to make up for his early exit from yesterday’s race. 

An early safety car neutralised the racing action, by which time Bernstorff had climbed ahead of Lynn and was running 12th, with Lynn just behind him in 13th. With conditions still incredibly slippery and the track not drying as quickly as anticipated, Lynn gambled to pit for wets while the cars circulated behind the safety car.  

At the restart, Bernstorff was on the move once again, pushing hard the GP3 rookie was up to seventh place while Sa Silva was also look racy, passing Adderly Fong further down the field. At the back of the field Lynn look on the pace initially, but as the track started to dry the Carlin man lost any advantage. 

Having passed Nick Yelloly with a great move for seventh, Bernstorff found himself under increased pressure from the Status GP driver. Bernstorff withstood the pressure for several laps, but Yelloly finally found a way past in the final stages, relegating the Carlin driver to eighth, the final points paying position. 

Driving his own strong race, Sa Silva was still making progress and at the chequered flag was 10th, his best GP3 finish so far. Bernstorff held onto eighth to start off his 2014 points tally. Lynn came home in 16th place.

Speaking about the race, Bernstorff said, “It was a brilliant race today; to take a point in eighth from 24th on the grid is a great feeling. It almost makes up for yesterday’s misjudgement.  We knew we had good pace this weekend, so it’s good to have taken my first point although we know we were capable of more. It makes me even more determined to have a good race next time out in Austria.”