Interview
‘I love the guy!’ – Nissany says him and Iwasa are giving DAMS ‘two amazing perspectives’
Roy Nissany has hailed Ayumu Iwasa as “one of the best pairings” that he’s had in motorsport after the duo both took points in a “very exhausting” Feature Race at Jeddah.
An experienced competitor at this level, Nissany has enjoyed five different teammates in Formula 2 alone, but the DAMS’ racer believes the contrast in styles between himself and Iwasa makes their pairing a cut above the rest.
The duo finished seventh and eighth in the Feature Race on Sunday and Nissany was quick to praise his rookie teammate.
“I love the guy, we are working so well together,” said Nissany. “Our style is so different, I feel like an uncle to him, almost, because our styles come from different generations. We are really complementing each other and giving the team two amazing perspectives.
“Ayumu (Iwasa) is one of the best pairings that I have had. He is an amazing talent, so it is great to have him at the team - the results are talking for themselves.”
Nissany was making his second appearance at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, while his rookie teammate was debuting at the ultra-fast 6.174km street track.
Falling just short of the points with P9 in the Sprint Race, Nissany admitted that their pace wasn’t optimal in the opener, explaining that a change on Saturday night made his car a lot more competitive.
“It was physical around the streets, with no deg and no time to rest,” continued Nissany, who finished eighth in the Feature Race. “We were pushing flat out, constantly focusing, constantly trying to overtake. I think that all of us are very exhausted.
“Less than 24 hours beforehand, I was not at that level of pace, but a small change in the car and suddenly we had good performance and were capable of being able to express ourselves better and gain points.
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“It was hard but good, we had strong pace and I could quickly get ahead of the guys in front of me. It was so competitive around here that such a small change in the car could make a big difference.”
With a test in Barcelona up next ahead of Round 3 in Imola, Nissany said that DAMS are welcoming the chance to spend some more time on improving the car.
“We have a long, long list of stuff to test,” said Nissany. “It is great to have the opportunity of three days of testing, with less pressure, more time, and more tyres.
“The list is very long, but I am sure that we will find some extra stuff and be even stronger in Imola.”