Rodin take pole position in both qualifying sessions in Baku. Alex Dunne takes pole for Feature Race 1 with Martinius Stenshorne on pole for Feature Race 2.
This weekend brings us an extra F2 feature race, which gives us two qualifying sessions today. The first qualifying session works the same as our usual session as it decides the order for the Sprint Race and Feature Race 1. The second qualifying will decide the order for only Feature Race 2.
Qualifying One
As the first runs got underway it was clear drivers were rather tentative as to just get a banker lap on the board. This season is regarded as the more important qualifying as it sets the grid for the sprint and Feature Race 1. It wasn’t till the second runs that we saw the normal chaos of F2. On the second and third runs, the drivers were desperate to not give out the tow to the field, resulting in a car park halfway around the lap as Dino Beganovic slowed down to bait anyone to pass him at the front.
Of course, no-one would and It was a slightly dangerous situation as drivers were almost stopped on the exit on Turn 15 before Cian Shields took the lead and they headed off. Almost half the field were noted by stewards for driving unnecessarily slowly, which will be investigated after the session.
Low Grip Struggles
As drivers began their second runs, it seemed a struggle for anyone to improve. The order was mostly unchanged as drivers were losing time through the second sector, this included championship leader Nikola Tsolov. On the other end, Rafael Camara was one of a few to improve as he made it up to P5.
It was a tough first session for Tsolov overall. His first run left him P5 but after no improvement on the second run he was under a bit of pressure. The third run brought little comfort as he had to abandon it after catching up to Cian Shields and getting held up at the end of the lap. He wasn’t able to put in another flying lap and only finished P10. On the bright side, this will give him the chance to start from pole for the sprint race.
We saw a lot of lock ups into turn one, due to the 2.2km straight leading up to it. Drivers were struggling with keeping temperature in the tyres meaning they couldn’t slow the car down to make Turn 1. There were multiple occasions that we saw up to 3 cars in the Turn 1 run off area at the same time, having to manoeuvre around each other to ge back on track.
Chequered Flag
In the end Alex Dunne’s first lap of 1:55.583 was enough to secure him pole position for Feature Race 1. If he can keep it clean for the rest of the weekend this could be a fantastic result for his distant championship chances. Dunne’s teammate, Martinius Stenshorne took P2 just 0.033s behind and Noel Leon took P3 0.134s behind.
Championship leader Nikola Tsolov was left in P10 after a tricky session. He will start from P1 for the sprint race and overtaking is very possible here so he may be able to turn this into a decent result this weekend. Championship rival Rafael Camara had a decent qualifying finishing in P5, where he will start for the the first two races tomorrow.
Qualifying 2
Qualifying 2 saw Martinius Stenshorne take his first pole position in Formula 2, leading the field by nearly half a second.
High Speed Incidents
There were a few incidents in this session including a spin for Colton Herta through Turn 13. Despite the high speed and scary moment, he was able to gather it up and continue.
We also saw drivers really fighting with the cars in general, especially through Turn 18. There were very tricky moments for Tsolov and Mini as the rear grip was failing them through the very high speed sweepers. Regardless everyone got through cleanly although probably not the fastest way to take that corner.
Chequered Flag
Martinius Stenshorne took pole position for Feature Race 2 with a 1:53.728. Rodin Teammate Alex Dunne followed in P2 and Rafael Camara in P3.
Both Campos drivers remained in the pit lane while others completed their final runs leaving Noel Leon in P6 and Nikola Tsolov in P8. It will be an uphill battle for Tsolov for the rest of the weekend and Camara starts ahead of him in both Feature Races and only seven points separating them for the lead.
Image Credit: Formula 2 on X