FIA F2 Imola

F2 Imola: Hadjar resists Bortoleto to win after Bearman pit nightmare

Isack Hadjar scored his second F2 feature race victory in a row after absorbing intense pressure from Gabriel Bortoleto in the closing stages at Imola.

Hadjar put on a masterful defensive display to fend off polesitter Bortoleto in a race where the main drama was restricted to the pitlane.

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A poor start for Bortoleto had seen the Brazilian – who was sporting an eye-catching Ayrton Senna tribute helmet – drop to fourth, with Hadjar promoted to second behind only Oliver Bearman. Joshua Durksen also benefitted and climbed to third.

There was little to separate the quartet during the opening exchanges, leading Hadjar and Durksen to attempt the undercut at the end of lap six.

Bearman and Maloney pitted the following lap but the former endured a nightmare stop, appearing to stall with the team then struggling to get the car moving again. This dropped him to 21st, a position he improved only to 19th by the chequered flag. This means the Ferrari junior driver has still only scored in one feature race in 2024.

Oliver Bearman, Prema Racing

Photo by: Formula Motorsport Ltd

Maloney dropped out of the lead battle after being passed by Roman Stanek in the pitstop phase and was left frustrated by the stewards' inaction over what he perceived to be weaving by the Czech driver. The championship leader finished 11th.

On the alternate strategy, Amaury Cordeel and Pepe Marti looked like they could threaten the podium positions with Durksen significantly off the top two.

But drama in the pits again cost them, with Cordeel’s right-rear tyre coming loose as he exited the pit box before it stuck another tyre and flew into the air. Moments later, Marti’s left-rear came off. Both drivers retired on the spot with the stewards quick to confirm they would look into the events.

With Maloney failing to score, Paul Aron closed the gap in the standings to five points by virtue of his sixth-place finish. Hadjar is now just nine points from the summit.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli enjoyed another strong performance, finishing fourth for the second feature race in succession, and now sits sixth in the standings, 14 places and 30 points clear of his luckless team-mate Bearman.

Imola - Feature race

1 - 2
Cla	Driver	#	Laps	Time	Interval	km/h	Pits	Points	Retirement	Bonus
1	I. Hadjar Campos Racing	20	35	-				25
2	G. Bortoleto Invicta Racing	10	35	+0.500 0.5	0.500			18		2
3	J. Duerksen PHM AIX Racing	24	35	+13.700 13.7	13.200			15
4	A. Kimi Prema Powerteam	4	35	+18.000 18.0	4.300			12
5	F. Colapinto MP Motorsport	12	35	+18.400 18.4	0.400			10
6	P. Aron Hitech Pulse-Eight	17	35	+18.800 18.8	0.400			8
7	J. Crawford DAMS Lucas Oil	7	35	+20.700 20.7	1.900			6
8	J. Correa DAMS Lucas Oil	8	35	+21.200 21.2	0.500			4
9	V. Martins ART Grand Prix	1	35	+28.300 28.3	7.100			2		1
10	R. Verschoor Trident	22	35	+33.500 33.5	5.200			1
View full results