Starting second on the grid, the Mercedes Junior secured a second consecutive Formula 2 Melbourne Sprint Race victory after last year’s triumph. Noel León took P2 for Campos Racing, while Alexander Dunne climbed from eighth to complete the podium for Rodin Motorsport.
Chaotic First Laps
Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak led the pack as the lights went out, defending against Joshua Dürksen and Oliver Goethe. The Mercedes Junior took the lead as Lap 2 began after Goethe spun out of the pack.
Martinius Stenshorne pushed Nikola Tsolov further down the order at Turn 1, before Alexander Dunne followed through at Turn 3, placing the Rodin Motorsport duo sixth and seventh by Lap 3.
However, Stenshorne’s move on the Campos Racing driver was later deemed to have been completed off the circuit. The Norwegian subsequently received a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.
Bad Luck for the Bulgarian Lion
Nikola Tsolov looked set to fight for a podium position. However, on Lap 8 the Red Bull Junior Team driver dropped to the back of the pack after contact with Colton Herta of Hitech GP.
Minì for MVP
Gabriele Minì, who suffered issues during qualifying and started from the back of the grid, delivered an impressive recovery drive. The Alpine Academy junior gained 14 places, climbing to P6 and into the points.
Boya Brings out the Red Flag
Mari Boya of PREMA Racing spun into the wall at Turn 6, bringing out the red flag. After a crash into the barrier at the exit of Turn 12 during Qualifying left him without a representative time, the Aston Martin F1 Team Junior had been cleared to race in the Sprint.
Change in Tyre Strategy
The red flag brought out the Safety Car, which some teams used as an opportunity to pit their drivers for supersoft tyres. Several drivers in the lower half of the grid took advantage of this, including Villagomez, Herta, Tsolov, Shields, Goethe, Varonne and Beganovic.
Smooth Win for Dürksen
Dürksen made a perfect getaway as the race resumed, pulling more than a second clear of Inthraphuvasak. However, León soon overtook the Thai driver with a clever dummy move.
Dürksen remained unchallenged to the chequered flag, securing his second win in Melbourne, with León finishing second and Dunne completing the podium.
The Paraguayan is quickly establishing himself as a contender in the title battle.
“Very happy to win the first race of the season. Copy-Paste from last year, also starting second, so it was a good race. First time with the Softs, so we had to manage a little bit, but I think we got good data and good speed, so I’m super happy and super thankful with everyone. Super blessed to be here, see you tomorrow!” said the race winner to Formula 2.
Results
Dürksen Leads León and Dunne on the Podium in Melbourne Sprint. Inthraphuvasak comes fourth followed by Ritomo Miyata, Gabriele Minì, Laurens Van Hoepen, and Roman Bilinski as the point scorers.
FIA Formula 2 Feature Race of the season returns at 11:25 local time on Sunday, with Beganovic on Pole.
Featured Image Credits: Formula 2 on X