Mitch Evans’ aggressive approach came unstuck on the opening weekend of GP2 action as the Kiwi driver finished down the order in both races in Bahrain.
Evans battled to a frustrating sixth in the feature race and then recorded a disappointing 117th in Sunday’s sprint race.
Evans’ troubles started in qualifying where he only placed 13th on the grid.
He made a charge during the feature race, but contact and poor tyre strategy by his Russian Time outfit left him short.
The reverse order gave him hope for the sprint race where he started third on the grid.
Evans survived a chaotic start and was in the mix over the opening eight laps, but disaster struck when he collided with Julian Leal, suffering a puncture that saw him limp to the pits.
Evans finished the round in eight place with eight points – well behind leader Stoffel Vandoorne who collected 43 points.
Fellow Kiwi Richie Stanaway, driving for Status Grand Prix, was 15th in the feature race and 11th in the sprint race to leave him out of the points.
The series moves on to Barcelona on May 8.
