Australian youngster Christian Mansell is set to continue expanding his knowledge base with a second FIA Formula 3 Championship outing this weekend.
Formula 3 is set to support the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix as the sport returns from its summer break.
Mansell had his first taste in the F1 feeder series at the Hungaroring late last month.
This 17-year-old’s appearance this weekend is designed to build on that experience ahead of an anticipated full-time move into the competition next season.
“The more you put in, the more you get out, it’s as simple as that,” Mansell told Speedcafe.com of his approach heading into the Spa weekend.
“There’s no need to overcomplicate it.
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“If you just sit on your hands, then if you finish 27th, then what do you expect. But if you try your best, give the team what they want, what they need, then if the best the car has is 19th, then if you’ve finished 19th, happy days.
“But if the best I could do is 19th, and you finish 23rd, then you’re like, sorry.”
There are again no expectations going into the event, with the focus on learning the car, the weekend tempo and format, and understanding the team’s expectations.
“Overall, I just need to build,” Mansell reasoned.
“Obviously still build on what I did in Hungary, but not get too excited – just try to keep chipping away just slightly and making inroads.
“It’s crazy how much you take away from driving the car for the first time, because it’s just like ‘right, I have an easy tenth and a half in Turn 1, an easy two tenths in this sector, an easy that and that’.
“If I put a lap together, then I’m mint. The other thing is, all the other drivers do too.
“So you can’t be like ‘right, I’m mint, I’m going to nail it’, because everyone else is working equally hard , if not harder.
“So that’s the kind of thing that you don’t get with Euroformula; you’re working extremely hard but there’s just not 30 other drivers working at your level, so it’s definitely a culture shock.”
Mansell and the rest of the Formula 3 field will be first out on track on Friday; Practice begins at 18:25 AEST, with Qualifying to follow at 23:30.
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