Plot twists, both Campos OUT and a red flag. Here’s what happened during the F2 qualifying in Baku!
Following the first practice session, the F2 qualifying in Baku saw Richard Verschoor crowned as the pole man for the Feature Race on Sunday morning, while Christian Mansell secured pole for the Sprint Race (having finished 10th, he will start from the first position on the reversed grid). Behind the Dutchman, Italian Kimi Antonelli and Victor Martins.
The first to set a time was the title favorite in the Formula 2 Championship, Isack Hadjar, with a time of 2:11.749. Behind him were Jak Crawford at +0.3 and Zane Maloney at +1.2. Shortly after, Paul Aron improved upon the French driver’s time. All drivers pushed as hard as possible, with Kimi Antonelli briefly setting the fastest time before being surpassed by Martins and then by Verschoor, who ended up on top. Gabriele Minì continues to make a name for himself, as he immediately places among the top contenders in the junior category on his debut, setting the fifth-best time with a 1:56.334, very close to his teammate for the weekend, who is in third position.
Luke Browning, on the other hand, positions himself just behind Maloney and Bortoleto in sixth and seventh place. The top 10 is completed by Crawford and Christian Mansell. With ten minutes remaining in the session, drivers return to the pit lane for a fresh set of tires before making their final attempts. However, a red flag caused by the two Campos Racing cars crashing into the wall at Turn 1 with five minutes to go halts the session. The session resumes, allowing just enough time for an out lap and a single attempt to try to be the fastest among the others. Gabriele Minì moves up to eighth position, ahead of the other two debutants, Mansell and Browning.
At this point, the appointment is set for 12:10 PM (Italian time) tomorrow for the Formula 2 Sprint Race on the Baku city circuit.
Photo: Formula 2, Trident Team
