F2 Sprint Race Results: Hungary

It was the Norwegian who took the chequered flag at the Hungaroring and earned his second Sprint Race win of the season.

F2 headed to the gorgeous city of Budapest this weekend for the 10th round of the season. Entering this weekend, the fight for points is on with only a six-point gap currently separating Championship leader Frederik Vesti and Theo Pourchaire in the standings.

A quick recap of the weekend

As the F2 cars took to the track earlier on Friday morning it was Ayumu Iwasa who took the fastest time with a 1:28.882. The all-familiar red PREMA of Vesti crossed the line only three-tenths of a second behind that time. The Frenchman Victor Martins then rounded out the top three with a 1:29.206. With practice now out of the way, it was time for drivers to really push to the limits around the Hungaroring circuit and set their places for the feature race on Sunday.

Luck was on Jack Doohan’s side this session as he took his first pole position of the season ahead of Martins and Vesti. Kush Maini who qualified in 10th place will be starting on the front row as the reverse pole sitter.

We're *almost* ready to go racing in Budapest ⏳

Who's winning the Sprint Race??#HungarianGP #F2 pic.twitter.com/uMjwFN3mMi

— Formula 2 (@Formula2) July 22, 2023

With the weekend so far recapped, how did it all end up unfolding on Saturday’s sprint race?

Lights out

The sun was beaming down on the track this afternoon leaving the temperature at the track at a soaring 48 degrees. With a 28-lap race ahead, the fight for preserving tyres will also be a huge factor for the race.

LIGHTS OUUUUT!!

It's a super start for Dennis Hauger who lurches into the lead!

Ayumu Iwasa then moves up to second, pushing Maini down to third#HungarianGP #F2 pic.twitter.com/D4arSOqGkN

— Formula 2 (@Formula2) July 22, 2023

The five red lights went out and Kush Maini had a good reaction however a lockup on the first corner caused him to drop down a couple of positions and paved the way for the other drivers to catch up. By the second corner, the order was already started to mix up with Dennis Hauger taking first place, Ayumu Iwasa gaining three positions and finding himself second and Oliver Bearman taking third to round out the top three.

The battle wasn’t just happening at the front on the opening laps, just a few places down Sundays pole sitter Jack Doohan was fighting against Championship leader Frederik Vesti. It was Doohan who succeeded in the battle and took the 9th position.

Maini wasn’t going down without a fight and after dropping down four positions, he set the fastest lap on the fourth lap and found himself back in a podium place. Just a second behind the Red Bull of Iwasa, Maini was making sure to keep close and wait for an opportunity to get ahead.

The battle starts to heat up

Theo Pourchaire was looking to gain maximum points this weekend in his fight for the championship. On lap 7 he was 0.402 seconds behind Bearman and kept pushing to put more pressure on the other PREMA. The Frenchman kept on the young Briton’s tail for several laps keeping close behind the car and waiting for an opportunity.

At the front of the pack, Hauger and Iwasa were once again battling for first position. When this happened previously it was Iwasa who won that battle back in Australia. However, this time around it was Hauger who kept well under the pressure and by lap 10 he was keeping a steady 1.2-second gap ahead of the DAMs car.

The VSC comes out

The first yellow flag of the session came out and it was an unfortunate end for Ralph Boshung. Clement Novalak with a late brake caused both of the cars to collide and Boschung to run onto the gravel. Novalak retired after the incident. Arthur Leclerc who had set the fastest lap was also involved in the incident and saw him drop down to 19th position.

VIRTUAL SAFETY CAR (LAP 12/28)

Novalak and Boschung make contact at Turn 1, and the Swiss driver is out on the spot ? Leclerc also takes a minor hit#HungarianGP #F2 pic.twitter.com/rOp6NnE6BT

— Formula 2 (@Formula2) July 22, 2023

As the VSC comes in, Hauger was in the lead with a comfortable 2-second advantage over Iwasa. Pourchaire got an excellent reaction when the green flag came out and after trailing behind Bearman since the start of the race he finally overtook the PREMA.

On lap 16, it was the end of the road for Juan Manuel Correa who had a steering wheel problem and he became the third retirement of the race. He joins Boschung and Novalak. The luck was worsening for Correa who was then awarded a 5-second penalty due to speeding in the pitlane.

With the tyre starting to wear away due to the heat, Pourchaire was now on the tail of Maini and looking to get onto that podium. He was a close 0.3 seconds behind him before he ran wide and dropped a few tenths down. Pourchaire was now catching up to Vesti in the Championship standings but as he kept pushing, just down the line Vesti had made a position up after a late break against Doohan, he was now in 9th position and looking to hunt down Isak Hadjar.

The final stint of the race

On lap 22, Iwasa was now 1.3 seconds behind Hauger. Hauger who hadn’t dealt with any issues in the race so far was sitting comfortably in the front making sure his tyres are kept well so no surprises could catch him.

At the front of the pack, Pourchaire took third place and was now level on points with Championship leader Vesti. The overtake saw Maini and Pourchaire have a bit of contact letting Bearman catch up with them both and create a three-car battle for third. However, happiness was short-lived for Pourchaire as Bearman caught up with the Frenchman and overtook him on the second last lap which meant Vesti still had a couple of points advantage in the standings.

Vesti in 9th was catching up to Hadjar and with crucial championship points on the line, the PREMA was pushing as hard as he could to pass Hadjar. However, in the end, it was Hadjar who took 8th. Vesti now only had a two-point lead in the standings and that means the pressure will be on for the feature race tomorrow.

Our Budapest Sprint superstars! ?#HungarianGP #F2 pic.twitter.com/tKAUB3fMc0

— Formula 2 (@Formula2) July 22, 2023

As the chequered flag came out, Hauger took his second victory of the season. It was a great race for the Norweigan who led the race from start to finish. Iwasa and Bearman rounded out the podium after an incredible race in Hungary. It all shapes the Sundays Feature Race to be an eventful event.

Full results can be found here

Featured image credits: Joe Portlock via Getty Images