DAMS
DAMS confirmed their status as one of the very best teams at the level just below Formula 1 this year by adding a Formula Renault 3.5 title to their similar successes in GP2 in the previous two years. Antonio Felix da Costa and Stoffel Vandoorne shared the pre-season hype but Kevin Magnussen was fast from the moment he first tested with DAMS at the end of last year and ended up putting his rivals in the shade. On pace, he was a constant frontrunner and became a consistent feature on the podium as the season wore on, before finding another gear in the final four races. Unfortunately, the French squad?s season is tarnished slightly by the messy exclusion of Magnussen after he won the first Paul Ricard race due to a modification to the DRS flap that was deemed illegal. Norman Nato also proved DAMS? pace in the early rounds, claiming a pole at Motorland Aragon, before tailing off as his rookie season wore on.
In GP2, they failed to make it three titles in a row but lost very little of their competitiveness. Unfortunately, lead driver Marcus Ericsson continued his trend from the previous two seasons of having a slow start to the year, and failed to score points from poles at Barcelona and Silverstone. After team-mate Stephane Richelmi continued DAMS? strong qualifying form at the Nurburgring, Ericsson finally bagged his first win of the year. It would be his only victory but he continued to be a contender until the end of the campaign.
Signing form man Jolyon Palmer for 2014 should give DAMS a good shot at the GP2 title, while Red Bull look set to place Carlos Sainz with them in FR3.5 in a bid to repeat Magnussen?s success.
Peter Allen