Isack Hadjar set the pace in FP1 for the 2024 F2 Abu Dhabi GP ahead of his championship rival Gabriel Bortoleto and Victor Martins.
Going into this final weekend of the Formula 2 Championship, title contenders Gabriel Bortoleto and Isack Hadjar remained separated by half a point. Third place Paul Aron is also in contention for the title, a further 25 points behind the two leaders.
The 2024 Formula 3 Champion Leonardo Fornaroli was the newest addition to the F2 grid this weekend, filling in for Zane Maloney at Rodin Motorsport.
Free Practice is in the books 📚
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) December 6, 2024
Here's how they ended up with the championship contenders P1, P2 and P4 😳#F2 #AbuDhabiGP pic.twitter.com/Nx26mCdUqT
As It Happened
The Invicta of Gabriel Bortoleto was first out on track as the last FP1 of the Formula 2 season was underway. Many drivers went back to the pits after their first lap, preserving their tyres.
Drivers started to set flying laps about ten minutes into the session. Durksen set the pace early on ahead of Aron with a 1:39.314, before Aron improved on that time.
Aron had an impeding incident at the last corner with Verschoor. Traffic could pose a problem in qualifying later this weekend.
Aron and Durksen continued to swap places at the top of the timing stands as Bortoleto struggled in comparison. The times were improving as the drivers did more laps on the track. However, multiple drivers struggled to extract the full pace from their tyres.
The Halfway Point
Multiple drivers were setting fastest laps throughout the session so far. Victor Martins was leading the way with a 1:38.082, just eight thousandths ahead of Isack Hadjar.
The majority of the field made their way to the pits as Bortoleto and a few others continued to set flying laps. The championship leader jumped to P1 by 36 hundredths of a second.
RED FLAGS 🚩
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) December 6, 2024
Cian Shields is in the barrier on the exit of turn 14 #F2 #AbuDhabiGP pic.twitter.com/vQ4KxICWQ9
Red Flag
The red flag was brought out with a little under 15 minutes to go for Cian Shields from AIX Racing. He was in the barriers after losing the rear of the car and locking up.
The session quickly resumed with eight minutes left in the session. All of the drivers exited the pits to get in a few more laps. However, very few were making massive improvements.
Isack Hadjar set the fastest lap of the session on his last lap. He set a 1:37.817, over two tenths ahead of his championship rival Bortoleto.
Isack Hadjar led the F2 field in FP1 for the 2024 Abu Dhabi GP. His championship rival Gabriel Bortoleto finished in second ahead of Alpine Junior driver Victor Martins.
Photo Credit: Formula Motorsport Limited
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