Interview
Gademan admits 'double podium is the next best thing' on home soil after missing out on both Zandvoort wins
Nina Gademan was joyful following the Feature Race in Zandvoort, after the Alpine driver took her second P3 finish of the weekend.
Gademan topped the only Practice session of the weekend on Friday, giving fans something to smile about on the first day of the final Dutch Grand Prix weekend. However, the Alpine driver was only able to set a lap time good enough for fifth in Qualifying after facing traffic on her final attempts.
Capitalising on her fourth-place start for the Reverse Grid Race, she fought her way past Rachel Robertson and Megan Bruce to get up to second. Despite a Safety Car restart, Gademan wasn't able to close in Payton Westcott for the win.
The Feature Race saw Gademan have victory in her sights once again. Lunging up the inside, she squeezed past Natalia Granada for third place, after dispatching Emma Felbermayr for fourth off the line but couldn't catch Alisha Palmowski and Alba Larsen up ahead.
Untroubled throughout the rest of the race, the Dutch driver comfortably finished in third place to take her second podium of the weekend.
“Not the win I wanted, but a double podium I think could be the best thing after that anyway,” she said. "I really did try and maximise after Qualifying where I got impeded. I just didn’t have the pace to follow Alisha and Alba, but I had really good pace to be P3.
"I was just in no man's land at some point. They were like 10 seconds ahead and 10 seconds behind me at some points. Pretty boring race actually, but a good haul of points this weekend, also for the team, so I think we are all pretty pleased.”
“I knew the wind was going to be weaker compared to yesterday, so overtaking was going to be harder. Yesterday was once in a lifetime. We had such a good headwind we could overtake around here. I have never experienced that around here. I knew I had to do it at the start.
“We looked at the data yesterday and I did some tweaks in my driving, so that’s why I had the pace to be P3 today. But also the start. Yesterday was not bad, but by my standards, the start was bad, so I knew I had to change it for today.
"I knew I had to push Natalia out of the corner to stick the move because I knew afterwards I was not going to make it anymore. So it was just having a good start. Getting past these two drivers and from then on just having my own race.”
Welcoming a third and fourth podium of the season, Gademan acknowledged that the achievement was made even more special by being in front of her home crowd, highlighting that the Dutch crowd was unlike any other.
“I can start now by saying we didn't have the pace to win and it’s such a shame," she noted after the Reverse Grid Race. "It’s the last Dutch Grand Prix and I got a podium here at my home race, I got a podium for the team’s home race. I got good points. I got to celebrate with my family, so in the end it’s not a bad day.”
“They go crazy, so I was like just lift me up. Let's wave at the crowd and they go crazy. It’s fun, I mean, it’s their last home race as well. They are crazy and they are super supportive.”
READ MORE: Larsen delighted with double podium in Zandvoort but rues missed Feature Race victory
After Gademan's double podium, the Alpine driver has closed the gap to second-place Emma Felbermayr from 28 to 17 points. Looking to cut down the deficit further next time out in Austin, she's relishing the chance to take on the Circuit of the Americas for the first time.
“It’s good that I finished in front of Emma as well," she said. "The main focus for now is maybe, after the next three races, to try to reduce the gap to below 10 or five points. That would be great and then fight for P2 in the Standings’ in Las Vegas."
“I’m so looking forward to that one (Austin). That track is amazing. I can’t wait. It’s going to be such a hard session., It's such a hard track to get to know and only one Free Practice session. But it’s the same for all of us, and I can’t wait to be tested like that on such a cool track.”