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Barcelona: Pantano back on track

No points in the opening FIA Formula 3000 Championship round at Imola wasn't the dream start for title favourite Giorgio Pantano, but he made amends by leading all the way in Spain

Pantano led away from pole position and his Durango Lola was pressed hard in the early laps by fellow front row starter Bjorn Wirdheim, but the first round winner's brand new tyres started to go of and he dropped back, giving the Italian breathing space to win as he pleased.

Arden International's Wirdheim was still able to finish in second place to remain at the top of the points table, with Super Nova Racing's Enrico Toccacelo climbing from seventh on the grid to third after Ricardo Sperafico dropped out with mechanical failure.

Several runners were caught up in a "motorway-style" accident at the first corner, caused when someone hit the rear of Rob Nguyen's car with the subsequent impacts involving Patrick Friesacher, Townsend Bell and Derek Hill. Friesacher is thought to have broken one of his arms in the impact, but was able to drive back to the pits before flying back home to Austria for treatment.

Jaroslav Janis thus claimed fourth place for the ISR Charouz team after Jeffrey van Hooydonk and Vitantonio Liuzzi dropped out with accident damage. And so it was that fifth went to BCN F3000's Nguyen (up from 15th), with Tony Schmidt and Zsolt Baumgartner right on his tail in sixth and seventh for Astromega and Coloni respectively. Janis's team-mate Yannick Schroeder was the final point-scorer in eighth place.

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