Juncadella takes blame after Genesis falls from first to 11th in Barcelona

Daniel Juncadella admitted his opening-lap mistake was a major factor in the #19 Genesis GMR-001 finishing 11th in the Barcelona 6 Hours, after he briefly took the lead before dropping to the rear of the field.

The Spanish driver launched from third on the grid and passed Toyota’s Sebastien Buemi and Genesis team-mate Andre Lotterer to reach first place into Turn 1. But on a still-wet circuit, he misjudged the grip and braking at Turn 5, ran wide and fell to 16th. Only the Alpine that had spun in a start incident was behind him.

Juncadella’s recovery could not bring Genesis into the points

Two early safety cars helped Juncadella move back into the top 10 by the end of the first hour. He ran wide more than once during that recovery, and the car showed better form while the track remained wet. As it dried, Genesis lacked the pace to keep challenging for points.

Juncadella, Mathieu Jaminet and Paul-Loup Chatin eventually finished 11th, one lap behind the winning #8 Toyota shared by Buemi, Ryo Hirakawa and Brendon Hartley. The result denied Juncadella his first points of the season. He took responsibility for the error and said the team also encountered setbacks later in the race.

The driver said the car had been strong in the wet and had climbed as high as eighth, but Genesis was less competitive in the drying conditions. Further interruptions cost the crew time, leaving it close to the points despite losing a lap.

Juncadella has also spoken about his GT racing experience in a piece on the technique behind Verstappen’s dirty-air driving.

Qualifying promise gave way to a difficult race

Genesis had started the weekend strongly. Mathys Jaubert secured the brand’s first Hypercar pole in the #17 car, while Jaminet qualified third in the sister entry. The race, however, became difficult for both cars during the opening hour.

Lotterer dropped from first to third on the opening lap, then faced a technical issue understood to involve traction control. After a wide moment, he fell to 14th and received a drive-through penalty for a full-course infringement. The #17, shared with Jaubert and Pipo Derani, finished a lap behind the leaders.

Chief engineer Justin Taylor said the team still had plenty to learn in Hypercar. He pointed to technical problems that took too long to resolve and said Genesis would study them before returning better prepared at Monza. Derani’s next Genesis challenge is also covered in our report on the team’s Interlagos plans.