Sakhir, Bahrain: Rupert Svendsen-Cook emerged as the quickest driver in Race 1, beating title contenders Arthur Pic and Tio Ellinas, in the second round of the MRF Challenge 2013 at the Bahrain International Circuit here on Friday .
The British driver, who started from the third grid, overtook pole man Tio Ellinas in the very first corner and held the advantage until the end of the race to claim his second win in the championship. Arthur Pic finished second as he pushed Tio Ellinas to the third position in a last lap battle.
The race also saw a crash, which forced Belgian driver Sam Dejonghe to pull off and safety car was introduced in the second lap.
Though the car flipped upside down, driver was unhurt. “It was an excellent start for me and after leading I just had to keep on. After the safety car re-start there was some pressure but it all went right for me. I am confident with the consecutive wins, and it will help a lot to win the championship,“ he said.
Pole-sitter Tio Ellinas felt he could have finished in a better position. “I did a couple of mistakes. I ran a little wider in the final corner and Arthur took advantage of it to finish second,“ said Ellinas.
Indian drivers Parth Ghorpade and Raj Bharath finished in 13th & 14th place while Vikash Anand retired at the start with a mechanical problem.
Bharath, driving in the series for the first time started 19th and fought his way up to 14th position.
Race 2 of the day was cancelled due to bad light and will take place in the following round. On Saturday Race 3 and 4 will be held.
