Formula Renault 2.0 NEC Nurburgring: Podium for Jehan Daruvala

Force India protege Jehan Daruvala scored a fortuitous second place finish for his second podium of the season at the Nurburgring round of Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup (NEC) on Sunday, behind race winner Max Defourny.

Daruvala held on to his third place grid spot at the start, but fell behind Defourny as the race progressed. Latter’s move over Daruvala proved to be crucial as race leaders Louis Deletraz and Ukyo Sasahara ran wide at the first corner after the safety car entered the pits, catapulting Defourny to the lead.

Daruvala slotted himself behind Defourny in second place but was unable to challenge the ART Junior team driver for the win. He eventually finished nearly three seconds behind, with Josef Kaufmann Racing’s Kevin Jorg completing the podium.

Yesterday in race one, Daruvala ran in fourth place for majority of the duration, but a poor restart following a safety car period dropped him down to fifth.

Sixteen-year-old Jehan Daruvala is currently in his first season of car racing, having taken part in a number of karting championships across Europe including the CIK-FIA World Karting Championship and the German Karting Championship. He’s competing full season in NEC, while making guest appearances in the sister Alps series as well as the the flagship series under the Formula Renault 2.0 umbrella, the Eurocup.

The next and final round of the Formula Renault 2.0 NEC season is scheduled to be held at Germany’s Hockenheim circuit on the weekend of October 3 to 4.