Throughout the first half of the Hungaroring Sprint Race Italian fans had dreamed of another victory Andrea Kimi Antonellithe protagonist of a great start that had brought him to the top of the standings. A hope that was however dashed due to the soft tires who could not hold out for the entire 28 laps, with the victory thus falling into the hands of Richard Verschoorat the wheel of another Italian team like Trident. Nothing to be done for the Bolognese, forced to stop in the pits and still climbed up to 15th place. The podium was completed by Kush Maini and Victor Martinsin a race in which Isack Hadjar strengthened his lead in the general classification with 4th place and the 7th place of his closest pursuer Paul Aron.
Race report
Started alone in the second row in fourth position following the technical problem of Zane Maloneystarting from the pit lane, Antonelli proved to be the real star of the start, first by overtaking Maini on the outside of turn 3 (despite a blockage at the entrance to turn 1), and then Verschoor on turn 1 on the 4th lap following a previous attack attempt at the same point. Having taken the lead in the standings, the Bolognese driver pulled away from his pursuers thanks to the soft tyres, which however did not bring the desired beneficial effects as the laps went by. With Verschoor and Maini instead opting for the hard tyres, the two drivers gradually recovered on the #4 Prema, which was increasingly struggling due to wear and also due to other blockages.
Hopes of resisting the Dutchman’s comeback were definitively dashed on lap 17 of the 28 total, again due to another blockage that not only gave the lead to the Trident driver, but also pushed Antonelli out of the top-5. A worsening of the tyre conditions that forced the young Mercedes talent to return to the pits for a tyre change, with the podium area completed by Martins. A very good performance by the leader of the general classification Isack Hadjar, who with 4th place in the final race increased his advantage over Paul Aron, 7th under the checkered flag but poleman in tomorrow’s race. It is worth noting, however, the excellent pace of Antonelli after the pit stop, with the Sprint Race closed at 15th place and with many regrets for the strategy adopted.
F2 / Hungary 2024, Sprint Race: Finishing Order
POS. | PILOT | TEAM | TIME/GAP |
1 | Richard Verschoor | trident | 44:27.360 |
2 | Kush Main | Invicta | +1.575 |
3 | Victor Martins | ART Grand Prix | +11.139 |
4 | Isaac Hadjar | Fields | +16.580 |
5 | Dennis Hauger | MP Motorsport | +26.218 |
6 | Frank Colapinto | MP Motorsport | +27.736 |
7 | Paul Aron | Hi-tech | +34.400 |
8 | Taylor Barnard | AIX Racing | +39.026 |
9 | Juan Manuel Correa | DAMS | +42.479 |
10 | Jack Crawford | DAMS | +50.929 |
11 | Oliver Bearman | Press | +54.188 |
12 | Raphael Villagomez | From Amersfoort | +55.596 |
13 | Miyata Return | Rodin | +56.240 |
14 | Zane Maloney | Rodin | +56.488 |
15 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Press | +56.683 |
16 | Roman Stanek | trident | +56.877 |
17 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Invicta | +57.648 |
18 | Josep Maria Martí | Fields | +59.012 |
19 | Joshua Durksen | AIX Racing | +61.397 |
20 | Zak O’Sullivan | ART Grand Prix | +66.277 |
21 | Amaury Cordeel | Hi-tech | +67.438 |
22 | Enzo Fittipaldi | From Amersfoort | +1 lap |
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