Formula 2 qualifying at the Austrian Grand Prix delivered a nail-biting finish as Dennis Hauger secured pole position by a mere 0.008 seconds over Joshua Durksen. The session was marked by high drama, including pit lane incidents, off-track excursions, and an unfortunate engine failure for early pace-setter Isack Hadjar, setting the stage for an unpredictable race weekend at the Red Bull Ring.
Barnard stalls, with Aron narrowly escaping
The qualifying began with chaos in the pit lane as Taylor Barnard stalled, causing a traffic jam just as Hitech released Paul Aron directly in front of him. This was just the beginning of a series of questionable releases that set the tone for the session.
On the track, Isack Hadjar initially set the pace with a 1:15.828, putting him 0.2 seconds ahead of Paul Aron. Following closely were Bortoleto, Martins, Hauger, Fittipaldi, Durksen, Martí, Colapinto, and Antonelli, rounding out the top 10 after the first flying laps.
DAMS go off track
However, the session took a dramatic turn when DAMS teammates Correa and Crawford found themselves off-track, taking excursions through the gravel at turns 6 and 9, respectively. Both drivers managed to continue without significant damage.
The most significant setback came for Hadjar, whose engine failed just as he was preparing for another run. This left him stranded in the pits for the remaining 18 minutes, unable to defend his provisional pole position.
At the halfway mark, Hadjar still led the pack, followed by Aron, Hauger, Bortoleto, Martins, Miyata, Martí, Fittipaldi, Durksen, and Bearman. Andrea Kimi Antonelli was struggling down in P13.
As the second runs began, Dennis Hauger surged to the top with a 1:15.487, establishing a lead of one-tenth over Durksen. The new order saw Bortoleto, Colapinto, Aron, Barnard, Hadjar, Martí, Bearman, and Maini in the top 10. Victor Martins dropped to P13, just ahead of Crawford and Antonelli.
The action didn’t stop there. Paul Aron had a scare at turn 6, mirroring Correa’s earlier incident by ending up in the gravel. Unlike Correa, Aron spun across the track and came to a halt on the grass, further shaking up the session.
OH NO! 🫣
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) June 28, 2024
Paul Aron spins on the exit of turn 8, putting him out of the running for pole! ☹️#F2 #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/sXDSPj4xqI
Dennis Hauger clinches pole position
In the final moments, Durksen made a valiant effort to snatch pole but fell short by the slimmest of margins, finishing just 0.008 seconds behind Hauger.
A brilliant lap from Joshua Dürksen puts him on the front row of the grid, just missing out on pole by 0.008s! #F2 #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/sv4WpRk69S
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) June 28, 2024
The final qualifying standings saw Hauger on pole, with Durksen in second, and a competitive field lining up behind them, promising an exciting race ahead.
After Quali, Hauger told how the Pole is a great turnaround for the team;
“It was really nice, obviously, to get some momentum back after a really difficult weekend. And, yeah, just to get the motivation, you know, with a little bit of work to do, to try and specify what to work on a bit. And to see the work there, with the team, it was just really enjoyable, obviously. It was close, it was tight in the beginning, so we didn’t necessarily put everything together. But then we were really happy with the job.”
Feature Image: Formula Motorsport Limited
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