F3 Euroseries news

Bird: Brands doesn't love me!

Sam Bird was left a disappointed man at Brands Hatch on Sunday despite achieving a podium finish on his home weekend of the season. After qualifying fifth and racing to sixth place in Saturday's first race, the south-Londoner experienced a difficult Race 2 in which a series of problems very nearly brought the Mücke driver's afternoon to an early end.

Sam enjoyed a strong start to Sunday's race although the Brands Hatch Indy circuit provided its usual amount of drama. "I love Brands but it seems Brands doesn't love me back!" Bird said in the post-race press conference.

"I don't know whether to cry or laugh; I managed to get Esteban (Gutierrez) off the start and was on Brendon's (Hartley) tail when, suddenly, my engine started to rev with no power coming out of the second corner; I immediately got on the radio and started screaming 'My clutch is gone, my clutch is gone!' - the team just said 'Keep going, keep pushing for as long as you can!'

Sam joins team-mate Alex Sims and winner Brendon Hartley on the Race 2 podium

"I was quite an angry driver in that car but I actually think that I drove one of the best races of my life because, when your clutch is giving up on you, you get lots of revs with no power! I was losing a lot of time down the straights and having to make it up again round the corners to stay with the lead."

Bird's troubles didn't end there though, as a new problem occurred later in the race. "On the restart, after the safety car, my steering wheel got jammed after Druids which sent me onto the grass," he recalled. "I had to force it back with all my strength to straighten the wheel again but that lost me second place.

"I guess I was relieved to see the chequered flag, because I really wasn't sure my car would make it to the end, but mostly I'm very disappointed because I had the pace for much better than third."

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