The iconic Autodromo Nazionale Monza hosted one of the crazy races of the F2 seasons, and the Feature Race at the 2024 Italian GP was no different. Gabriel Bortoleto delivered a masterclass drive, turning twenty-second to a race victory. In case you missed the dramatic race, here’s what you need to know.
Lights Out.
The race began with Zane Maloney starting on pole with championship leader Isack Hadjar alongside him. However in typical Formula 2 fashion, the excitement quickly turned into chaos as Paul Aron was taken out into turn one. This incident saw a lock up from the Spaniard of Martí which led him to hit the behind of Aron’s hitech. This incident brought out the Safety Car on the very first lap.
Shuffling Positions
The Safety Car ended on Lap 2, with Maloney leading the PREMA duo of Ollie Bearman and Kimi Antonelli as the race resumed. Bearman had made an impressive start prior to the safety car. The Brit gained six places, while Antonelli was up four positions. These two Formula one bound drivers did not let the fact they were teammates stop them from fighting on track. Thus, leading to an intense battle for positions throughout the entire race.
Joshua Dürksen was also a big mover, continuing his amazing form over the Monza weekend. The driver from Paraguay who qualified in eleventh was able to make his way up to second by the beginning of Lap 6. Proving him to be a force to be reckoned with over this half of the season.
Mid-Race Drama: Hauger’s DNF and the Second Safety Car
Lap 8 saw more drama as Dennis Hauger and Ritomo Miyata made contact into Turn 1, bringing out the Safety Car for the second time. Hauger’s race ended there, but Miyata was able to continue – albeit with a 10-second penalty for the incident. An additional 5-second penalty was also added later in the race.
We saw it in Spielberg with Antonelli and now we’ve seen it in Monza with Bortoleto. The Safety Car played perfectly into the strategy of Invicta. Starting from the dead last, the Brazilian had made steady progress through the field and was able to pit under the Safety Car, effectively moving him into the net race lead once the front runners made their mandatory stops.
Bortoleto’s Charge to Victory
As the Safety Car ended on Lap 10, Goethe, Maini, and Correa led the field, though they had yet to pit. Bortoleto, now in P4, was lurking behind the top four. By Lap 13, the McLaren Junior had moved up to P3, and just a lap later, he overtook his teammate Kush Maini to take the lead.
This marked a remarkable journey from twenty-second to first.
Elsewhere, during Lap 23, the PREMA drivers were battling it out for fifth position. Without team orders, both drivers were free to race, with Antonelli getting the better exit after Turn 1 and taking that place away from his teammate. Bearman’s woes did not stop there however, as he was in the gravel and lost a place to Joshua Dürksen.
Final Laps and the Podium Battle
In the final few laps of the Feature race, Bortoleto was able to put his foot down and extend his lead to nearly six seconds. Marking an extremly dominant race for the Brazilian who seemingly had no troubles out front.
Whilst the safety car timing was amazing for Bortoleto, it meant that Zane Maloney finished the race in second, instead of converting his pole position into a feature race win. Richard Verschoor had an amazing drive, converting nineteenth on the grid to third, for a well deserved podium.
Formula 2 Title fight intesnifies
Bortoleto’s victory in the F2 Feature race at the 2024 Italian GP has thrown the championship wide open. Isack Hadjar having a tough weekend allowed the Brazilian to slash a 30+ point deficit to just 10.5 points. With only a few races left in the season, the title fight can be won by several drivers. It will all go down to the wire.
Photo credit: Formula Motorsport Ltd
[adrotate banner=”8″]
Get 10% off all official F1 Merch at TheRaceWorks.com using code ‘EF1‘ at checkout.