Fraser MasefieldJamie Chadwick’s remarkable winning streak of seven consecutive W Series victories stretching back to New York 2021 finally came to an end as British compatriot Alice Powell took victory at the Hungaroring from Chadwick and Beitske Visser.
“It’s so good to be back on the top step,” said Powell following her pole to flag win. “It’s taken longer this season than I would have liked, but to get Bristol Street Motors there with their first win in the championship is amazing. Every single person on my car has done an incredible job so a big thank you to the team.”
Another epic weekend of #WSeries in Hungary 🇭🇺
Mega racing saw @AlicePowell take her first win of the 2022 season, and secure P2 in the driver standings. 🥈
View all the action from the weekend, below. ⬇️ #WSeriesHungary #HungarianGP
— W Series (@WSeriesRacing) August 1, 2022
Having secured her first pole position of the season on Friday, Powell was starting from the best possible position to ram home her advantage on race day, especially with Chadwick starting an uncharacteristic fifth on the grid.
Yet with a damp circuit providing tricky driving conditions, the race began behind the Safety Car, Nerea Martí still managing to spin at Turn 10 before rejoining the track. When the Safety Car pulled off and racing began in earnest, it was Powell who maintained her advantage from Beitske Visser and Marta Garcia, but it was Chadwick who was on the charge both her and Abbi Pulling passing Spaniard Marti.
Now Chadwick had another Spaniard in her sights in the form of Garcia, and when she made the move stick with a third remaining, she set about the leaders. Braking later than Visser with a gutsy move into Turn 1, Chadwick closed to within half a second of leader Powell following a late Safety Car.
But with the clock against her in a bid for consecutive win number eight, Chadwick pushed too hard and ran wide at Turn 11, allowing Powell enough breathing room to bring her car home for a fifth W Series win and first since September 2021.
P1 baby 🏆🍾Thank you for all the amazing messages and big thank you to the team @BristolStMotors . Back up where we should be 🏁
A little gap now until we head to the streets of Singapore 🇸🇬 @WSeriesRacing#F1 #wseries #HungarianGP #racing #motorsport #hungarygp pic.twitter.com/xphfh9uoAT— Alice Powell (@alicepowell) July 30, 2022
Nevertheless, Chadwick’s second-place finish extends her run of W Series podium finishes to 13, and stretches her seemingly unassailable lead at the top of the championship to 75 points before racing resumes at the Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore, on 30 September-2 October.
“It’s roles reversed from here last year when I beat Alice [Powell],” said Chadwick. “If anyone was going to break that winning streak, I feel like Alice is a deserving person. I did what I could today.
“The wet conditions helped early on because it’s a really tricky circuit to overtake on, but at the end I didn’t have enough to challenge Alice. I’m still happy with second place, happy with the race and I go into the summer break really pleased with how the season has gone so far.”
That's a wrap on the European leg of the #WSeries season. ✅
After six races, here’s how our drivers are lining up in the standings. 👊
🔗 https://t.co/ecxbZCHubn#WSeriesHungary #WSeries #HungarianGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/jjjUdpQKkZ
— W Series (@WSeriesRacing) July 30, 2022
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