After an exciting race at Sepang, we now have the three podium finishers with us. From left to right we meet second place driver for Millennium Grand Prix Sven Hesse. Race-winner Stuart Fields from GRIDline Racing, accompanied by his teammate in third place Michael Pieneman.

Q: First to you Stuart, a step down in the championships, but on the highest step on the podium today. What are your feelings about this race?

SF: It is a real shame I had to change division but the new times after the clock change make it impossible for me
to get up and then run my racing rig at such an early hour with a new baby. I am sad to leave the Challenge division
but joining sprint has its own advantages and is at a far better time of day for me. As for the race,  it was simply one of the most enjoyable I have ever had in sim racing, not because of the win but because of the way in which it  happened. I had a good start, some clean driving, great racing against 3 different guys and I really had to push as hard as I could  to catch Robin and Sven as they were on a different strategy. I had the more aggressive strategy and had to drive my hardest to make it work.  Thankfully it paid off and I was so happy to take the chequered flag and the win.

Q: The GRIDline team is performing well so far in the championship, resulting in a big lead after the first three rounds. Can the team title be a serious goal this year?

SF: I don’t see why not, anyone can put themselves in a position to fight for wins and championships,
it just takes the right group of guys and the right approach to the racing. Like with everything this year,
we have got to the  grid and that’s the biggest goal, getting points, wins and possibly a title are all welcomed extras.
The guys are motivated, everyone gets along well and there is a healthy, respectful rivalry going on on track, things are looking promising.

Q: Back to your own racing then, how do you see the Sprint Series compared to Challenge?

SF: Very similar in a lot of ways. Obviously the race distance is a lot shorter but that’s of little consequence. The biggest thing is that we see the same percentage of drivers in sprint as we do in challenge who
seem to be quite reckless and are not totally in control of their cars. This must change if we are to keep the quality of GPO at its highest level.  We have the people and the structure to help out any drivers that may be struggling otherwise we have a good penalty system that will hopefully make people think about their approach to racing. The excitement level and quality of racing in the front half of the grid is superb though.  I was especially impressed with the guys in Melbourne, the racing there was close,  hard fought stuff but it was kept very clean. Exactly what we want in GPO.

Q: Thank you Stuart, now Sven Hesse. Your debut in the sprint series, aswell as Stuarts and immediately battling for victory. Do you think you could’ve beaten Stuart today?

SH: Yes, I think I could have beaten Stuart today, but after my bad start and a mistake in turn 1, I didn’t feel as confident anymore. My race was practically fine after that, but in the last laps Stuart had the better tires, which resulted in me losing the position. He was extremely fast in the last laps. Congratulations to him, he had the complete package today and we had some very nice battles.

Q: Did you think you would be up there already? Compared to other drivers that are more used to the car already doing a total of three races?

SH: Quite honoustly, I didn’t expect it at all. I expected to be in the midfield, due to the fact we stroke some bad luck in practice, which limited my track time. I am just very happy to be in second place, and be able to keep up with the front runners that well.

Q: Indeed, the first result looks promising. What do you expect of the races this season?

SH: Unfortunately due to work related business I cannot attend all races. But if I can grab a few wins here and there this year I’d be pretty satisfied.

Q: Thank you Sven, now last but not least, Michael Pieneman, another solid result for you. How did you experience today?

MP: Well, not having a race in the Netherlands, I consider Sepang and Suzuka my home races, and I always hope to
perform good there. Before the race I felt confident, knowing my setup very well, and having done a lot of practise
races here. I drove a very stable and clean race, trying to save my tyres though staying competitive,
and catching up with the guys in front of me due to not making any errors. As I was driving, I noticed I was on
a higher pace than some guys in front of me, and in the early laps, I used Sven Hesse, who was at a higher pace than
me, to get towards the other guys. When I passed Malcolm Rice and Robin van Brenk at the end of the race, I only thought  about getting the car home safe. Being able to race along the top of this grid just makes me feel good, and proud.

Q: You eventually finished about 15 seconds down on Stuart and Sven. Do you think you would be able to get closer to them?

MP: To be honest, I think I could have been a bit closer to them due to damage sustained in the first few laps,
but overtaking would have been really hard, they were at a similar pace to me, despite Sven driving on old tyres.
In the final few laps, I think I catched up a total of 3 seconds, while I might have been within a 3 second reach
behind the both of them. But that is something I don’t really mind, and don’t really like to think of either,
I’m happy with the points I’ve scored, and I’m happy for the team also, proving that the car really works for us.

Q: Last question of today, before the other press can ask questions in the drivers native language. As we know you can’t race in China The first time you are back on track, we are in Europe ( Barcelona resp. ) What are your predictions to that race?

MP: Not being able to race at China saddens me, since the track is quite good, and Malcolm Rice has the opportunity
to extend his points lead over me. For Barcelona, I really don’t know what will happen, I know it is one of the tracks
I am rather slow at, but I haven’t seen the other guys there yet either. Only time will tell what will happen there.
Finishing is my primary target, points, well, they only matter to me at the end of the season.

Thank you three, for your time, now on to the native press questions..

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