Gabriele Minì claimed victory in the Formula 2 Sprint race at Hungaroring after an incredible performance. Dino Beganovic finished in second place, and Laurens van Hoepen completed the Sprint race podium. Meanwhile, championship leader, Nikola Tsolov, couldn’t complete the race and left pointless on Saturday.
Clean launch into Turn 1
Sebastian Montoya kept the lead as Gabriele Minì and Nikola Tsolov fought for second position, with the Alpine driver coming ahead. Further back, Noel León and Joshua Dürksen fought for ninth position, and it was the Invicta Racing Team driver who claimed the position.
The Sprint race had a clear launch and first laps, with Rafael Câmara, who started down in 9th, making up three positions. Tsolov made up one position and positioned himself in an early provisional podium. As the race progressed, the grid establised and overtaking became more difficult.
On Lap 8, Gabriele Minì caught up to Montoya and attempted to overtake him. However, the Colombian driver defended the lead successfully as the Alpine driver backed off. Behind them, Tsolov followed the action from afar, as Dino Beganovic in fourth chased Tsolov down, too.
Halfway through Sprint race
As the Sprint race reached its halfway point, there weren’t many changes. Tsolov and Minì showed incredible patience as Montoya led them for 14 laps so far. However, on lap 17, Minì tried to take the lead again, and this time successfully. Behind them, Nikola Tsolov tried to capitalise on his chance, but couldn’t complete the move.
With 7 laps remaining, Nikola Tsolov tried to make a move on Montoya. However, he did not succeed and ended up in contact. The incident ended Montoya’s race as Tsolov’s car sustained suspension damage and compromised his race. A virtual Safety Car was issued as Nikola Tsolov drove to the pit lane.
As Tsolov drove into the pit lane, Campos Racing tried to assess and repair the damage under the VSC, but to no avail. Meanwhile, Gabriele Mini, second in the drivers’ standings, was leading the Sprint race as it restarted. Câmara made up two more positions, running in fourth.
With three laps remaining, Noel León and Joshua Dürksen engaged in a wheel-to-wheel for seventh. The Campos Racing driver was successful and completed the move, moving up to seventh. However, León got a 5-second penalty for VSC infringement.
Ultimately, Gabriele Mini crossed the chequered flag and claimed the victory. Behind him, Dino Beganovic secured second position and Laurens van Hoepen completed the podium.
