Jordi Gené hails “almost perfect weekend”

Jordi Gené is now fully in the hunt for the championship as he is within reach of Craft-Bamboo Lukoil team-mate Pepe Oriola. The Spaniard is happy with the outcome of the Red Bull Ring event, especially considering he was carrying 30 kilos of ballast.

“I was on full success ballast and this is one of the circuits you suffer the most, due to the elevation changes,” said the Spaniard. “Both races were hard, but I was happy to see that I had had a good start in the second heat. It was not easy to follow Pol (Rosell) in the first few laps, but from mid-race on I made a few changes on the setup from inside the car and from then on the car was very good.

At that point, knowing that there was Pepe (Oriola) behind me and that we had a similar pace, which would have made it difficult for him to overtake, I had the choice to either save my second place or go for the win and risk it. I chose to try and to be honest I don’t regret it, because I know that I need to fight very hard in order to close the gap in the championship. Of course it didn’t pay off, that’s clear, but I knew I had to do it and just went for it.”

Gené explained the weekend was even better than he expected, as this track seemed to suit Honda much more than the SEAT: “I have to say I’m happy, because this was the perfect circuit for Honda, and the result is good for Craft-Bamboo Lukoil and SEAT. It turned out to be almost the perfect weekend for me, although I would have liked Race 2 to be a little better. Still, I’m satisfied.”

Gené also discussed the situation with his team-mate Oriola, as they are now both fighting at the sharp end of the standings: “When I attacked Pol I did so because I knew that Pepe would act like a professional, which he is. I knew he could overtake me, but I was almost sure he was not going to take me off the track, that’s why I took the risk. Had it been any other driver I would have been a little more cautious.”

Gené praised Oriola, saying he will be happy if his young team-mate clinches the title, although he would surely prefer to win it himself: “Of course he is a very good driver, he wants to win the championship, but he understands that I want to do it as well. Every time we have fought against each other so far it’s been fair, I have such a confidence with him that I can rely on him. If he wins I will be happy for him and I’m quite sure he would feel the same for me.”

Gené sits third in the standings, 24 points shy of Oriola.