20.06.18
Nicholas Latifi is targeting a point-scoring start to three back-to-back race weekends as the FIA Formula 2 Championship heads to France for round five this weekend (22-24 June).
The Canadian heads to Circuit Paul Ricard for just the second time in his career with the objective of putting all the ‘ingredients’ of a strong race weekend together after a tough start to 2018 with his DAMS Racing team.
“The way I see it, there are probably five ingredients for a strong race weekend,” he explained. “So far this year we’ve been ticking off four of them each time. The one that was missing – which has been different at every round – has been detrimental to the whole weekend.
“Paul Ricard is going to be about putting all the ingredients together and having a good weekend. I know we are capable of doing that, and the fact that this is the team’s home round makes me even more determined to give them something to celebrate.”
A month-long break in the F2 calendar, and the opportunity to take part in a Free Practice 1 session at the Canadian Grand Prix with Sahara Force India F1 Team, has given 22-year-old Nicholas the opportunity to reflect on his season to date.
“Even though on paper it hasn’t seemed so good, there have been quite a few positives and if they continue, and we put everything together on a race weekend, then the results will come,” he explained.
“Clearly, we have a fast car but for one reason or another we haven’t been getting the results we know we deserve. I’m looking to bounce back as we start this run of back-to-back races at Paul Ricard.
“I’m feeling quite confident and excited going into the week. I want to get my season back on track and reward the guys at DAMS for the effort they’ve been putting in.”
Having missed pre-season testing at the 5.8km track through illness in March, Nicholas’s last experience of the high-speed Paul Ricard circuit was in 2014 during his Formula Renault 3.5 campaign. Despite a long time away, he’s excited to experience the track again.
He said: “It’s a track I have limited experience of. I raced there once before but since then the track has been repaved and a few of the corners have changed. I haven’t driven it since they made those modifications.
“From what I know, it’s quite a fun track to drive. The lap is fast and flowing and with the enormous run offs and bright coloured surface it looks amazing.”
Nicholas’s 2018 FIA Formula 2 Championship campaign is proudly supported by Royal Bank of Canada, Lavazza and Sofina.
