Adrian Quaife-Hobbs grabbed his maiden GP3 win at the Valencia Street Circuit this afternoon, making a perfect getaway to steal the lead as the lights went out. The Marussia Manor Racing driver built up a lead of more than six seconds over Lewis Williamson, while Mitch Evans ensured two MW Arden cars made the podium.
An excellent start from Quaife-Hobbs saw him move to the front at Turn 1, while Williamson and Smith dropped back from the front row. A post-qualifying penalty for Status GP driver Alexander Sims was a sign of things to come for the squad, as team-mates Antonio Felix Da Costa and Ivan Lukashevich made first lap pit-stops.
Numerous incidents before Lap 1 was completed saw the Safety Car deployed, with Simon Trummer, Maxim Zimin and Thomas Hylkema all being forced to retire from the race. The order remained mostly unchanged as the race got back underway one tour later, with Quaife-Hobbs quickly setting the pace at the front of the field.
The Briton went on to take a well-earned victory, finishing comfortably ahead of his Arden rivals who battled hard for position. Gabriel Chaves held off Dean Smith to take fourth place, while Sims completed the top six after a strong fight back from 16th.
Sunday's Race 2 begins at 9.25am local time (BST 1)
Series
GP3
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Adrian Quaife-Hobbs
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Manor Racing
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| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  A. Quaife-Hobbs | Manor | 28:49.603 |
| 2. | L. Williamson | MW Arden | +6.547 |
| 3. | M. Evans | MW Arden | +7.406 |
| 4. | G. Chaves | Addax | +11.403 |
| 5. | D. Smith | Addax | +14.315 |
| 6. | A. Sims | Status | +17.022 |
| 7. | V. Bottas | Lotus ART | +18.818 |
| 8. | J. Calado | Lotus ART | +19.339 |
| 9. | N. Yelloly | Atech CRS | +26.837 |
| 10. | L. Cordeiro | Carlin | +28.342 |
| Full results | |||
| Adrian Quaife-Hobbs | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| More Adrian Quaife-Hobbs photos | |||
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