A new phenomenon is taking
over the junior single-seater scene. Along with
the Toyota Racing Series in New Zealand and the Florida Winter Series from
Ferrari, the Indian-based MRF Formula 2000 has played host to an international crop
of young drivers looking to develop their skills outside the regular racing season,
with the lure of extra track time on Formula 1 circuits – and even a slot on
the support bill at the Indian Grand Prix – an attractive alternative to
kicking their heels over the winter.
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| Harry Tincknell arrived in MRF on the back of a strong season in FIA Formula 3. (Credit: Carlin) |
Following
a promising season in the FIA Formula 3 Championship, yielding a win on home
turf at Silverstone and an eventual fifth in the standings, 22 year-old Harry
Tincknell was one of many among the European single-seater elite to travel east
over the off-season to sample the ever-expanding MRF Challenge,
which also counted Cypriot hopeful Tio Ellinas, World Series race-winner
Arthur Pic and former F1 racer Narian Karthikeyan among a competitive field.
Despite bad luck and reliability problems which contrived to prevent a
title challenge, Tincknell was nonetheless pleased with his pre-season
preparations ahead of a switch of discipline to sportscar racing, joining Jota
Sport in the European Le Mans Series.
“Certainly it was all about keeping sharp. There’s not
really any negatives to it I don’t think, because win or lose, it’s all good
experience,” said Tincknell. “It’s a good championship for the young drivers
trying to get extra mileage to come and learn. They get a few more experienced
drivers who’ve got some results in good single-seater championships like
Formula 3 and World Series to come in as well, so there’s a benchmark for those
guys going into Formula Renault to look up to.
“In terms of data it’s all open as well, so it’s a good
opportunity for the young guys to learn and for the more experienced guys like
myself to get some more time in the car over the winter, when generally in
Europe everyone’s got their feet up doing stuff in the gym.”
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| Tincknell negotiates Turn 3 on the Buddh International Circuit during the Indian GP weekend. (Credit: MRF) |
After three years in Formula 3, Tincknell is well-placed to make the comparison between the categories, so how was the Formula 2000 Dallara to drive?
“It’s powered by a Renault engine, which is at a similar level
of power to Formula Renault, so it feels quite similar to a Formula 3 car, just
with a little bit less power,” says Tincknell.
“It’s all about keeping the minimum
speed up through the corners rather than pointing and squirting like you would
do in a more powerful car.
“It’s a good base car to learn from and they’re relatively
bombproof. I had a couple of issues during
the championship – I think I scored more points in the last round in Chennai
than I did in the whole season! – but they’re working all the time to improve
the car and Jos [Claes] from Dallara is the technical delegate for most of the
rounds, so you’ve got one of the top guys there looking to improve the car.”
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| Tincknell will switch to sportscars in 2014 after three years of F3. (Credit: Carlin) |
Double-R Racing team principle Anthony ‘Boyo’ Hieatt has also
lent his name and expertise to a series that already enjoys a massive following
in India, and is only set to expand in coming years as more follow the trail
blazed by Tincknell and co.
“Narain [Karthikeyan] came in for the last round, so there
were loads of fans in Chennai. They get a lot of coverage out there; we were
back page news in the national press in the Times of India and the Hindu Times,
so in terms of exposure in India it’s massive,” he said. “The fans love it;
they were all chanting away which is something I haven’t experienced too much
before. That was cool.
“I just had a great time out there and I think they’ve got
some plans this year to have a few more F1 support races, so hopefully the
championship will get bigger and bigger.”
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