Sunday was again a battle through from 15th up to seventh before a collision with Vitaly Petrov put me out of the race, and I also ended up with a ten-place grid penalty for Spa. I was really not happy after Valencia, and I spent a couple days away from phones, e-mails and motorsport to just get over it before getting into some good training again before Spa.

We also had our team barbeque, which was a good way to boost everyone's morale after the weekend. The whole team work as a single unit, and to come away with no points for anyone was a really bitter pill to swallow.

We knew going into Spa that it would be a tough weekend with the ten-place penalty, but even so, I knew that I had started 17th and finished seventh there last year with Durango, so some good points were still a possibility. Nothing could have prepared us for the roller-coaster weekend we had, though!

I absolutely love Spa. I love everything from the drive there from my home in Brackley, to the thick forests, the atmosphere in the grandstands and – most importantly – the circuit. It truly is a super challenge for the drivers, with its undulating corners and incredibly unpredictable weather.

Free practice went well and we were straight into the top six without too much trouble. The car was working well and I felt that I was driving with a bit in reserve for qualifying. Just before the session started, Paul Jackson said: 'This is the first time your objective is going to be to get P11.'

The rain came down when we were in the pit-lane, and although it took me a couple laps to get going, we were right in the hunt for a good spot. After a mid-session red flag I got stuck in a load of traffic, and eventually on the final lap I had a clear enough run to do a lap, which was a pretty committed but still clean lap and gave me my first GP2 pole position…temporarily.

Obviously I knew I had the ten-place penalty, but then I got another five places for setting a personal fastest time in a particular corner under yellow flags. Given the changing circuit conditions, it was a bit harsh I felt, but at the end of the day I accepted P16 as a starting position with the mental satisfaction of knowing that I had set the fastest lap of the session.

The races turned out to be painful again, however. We had an error with the rear tyre pressures, which meant that the car was pretty undriveable in the early stages when it was wet. I was down in 26th and last when it was time to put slicks on, and from there we ended up tenth which was great on its own and pretty exciting, but all-the-same frustrating since we were clearly quick enough to get some solid points.

The second race was again more of the same after Sakon Yamamoto took me out at the first corner and left me last behind the safety car. Once again it was a long hard climb back up to eighth. It was really frustrating to drop from fourth to tenth in the championship with five non-scores in a row, but it meant we went to Monza with more motivation than ever to finish the season with some strong points – even if, again, that weekend would only end in disappointment and frustration.

Overall it was a positive season, though. I am very pleased with the progress I have made this year. Winning my second GP2 race was a big highlight, and having been a regular front-runner this year has put me in a good position in the queue of drivers trying to break into Formula 1.