“I think being on the inside at the rolling start here is a big benefit, because it's such a long corner,” added Wickens, who has almost single-handedly vaulted Canada up the pecking order in his 13 race starts this season. “I got a good reaction time to when Neel decided to go and I had a little bit of luck when Portugal got on the limiter a little bit, so it think I lucked out ok and I was just happy to make it to the first corner.

“From there I just settled in and attempted to keep up with the Switzerland car, but we still have a lot of work to do to the Canadian car. I think we have a tough race ahead of us for the feature, but I think it's possible to make it back on the podium.”

“I made a mistake at the start that cost me a lot,” rued Albuquerque, who nevertheless secured his second rostrum finish from just three events in the World Cup of Motorsport. “I fell back into fifth place and then had to fight with Karthikeyan.

“I was able to be third at least, and then I was trying to push Robert to get second but it's very hard to overtake here. He was getting the team instructions when I was using the 'push-to-pass', so I was not able to catch him on the straight. Third place is still good, though, and I'm pleased to be on the podium but just not as I wanted.”

To see the sprint race results in full, click here