John Bennet claimed the Sprint race win of Round 6 of the Formula 2 Championship at the Red Bull Ring after an early yellow flag, a flawless race. Sebástian Montoya, after leading a major part of the race, and Rafael Villagómez completed the podium after an impressive performance.
Chaotic Sprint race start
John Bennett, starting second next to Sebastian Montoya, had a great launch and took the lead into turn 1. However, an incident in turn 4 involving Tasanopol, Oliver Goethe, and Emerson Fittipaldi caused several drivers to stop. Nikola Tsolov and Rafael Câmara were also involved, as the Brazilian driver had slight contact with Tasanopol Inthraphuvasak; meanwhile, Tsolov dropped to fifteenth.
With a yellow flag, Dino Beganovic had to go into the pits to change the front wing because of damage, as well as Joshua Dürksen. As the Sprint race restarted, Bennett was under pressure immediately from Montoya. Further back, Tsolov started making up positions as well.
At the front, Montoya and Bennett engaged in a relentless battle for the lead. Ultimately, Montoya retook the lead in an impressive move. As the grid established, Joshua Dürksen was asked to retire the car on Lap 13, becoming the fourth driver to not finish the Sprint race.
The race gets interrupted once again
As the Sprint race reached the halfway point, Rafael Câmara, running in fourth, was under pressure from Alexander Dunne. On Lap 17, Dunne made his move on the Invicta Racing driver and took fourth position easily.
Gabriele Mini closed the gap with Câmara ahead as well. At the front, Bennett opted to stay close to Monotya and save his tyres. Further behind, Nico Varrone and Laurens van Hoepen engaged in a battle for 13th. However, the race was interrupted when Colton Herta stopped on track on lap 21, and a Virtual Safety Car was deployed.
With six laps to go, Nikola Tsolov moved up to 10th position as Mini tried a move on Câmara for fifth. Mini successfully made the move stick. Behind, several drivers got involved in charges of their own, as Roman Bilinski defended from Kush Maini’s attack. Additionally, Miyata was handed a 5-second penalty for VSC infringment.
With three laps to go, Bennett closed the gap to Montoya with the hopes of making a move and retaking the lead. Further back, Nikola Tsolov moved up to 9th, just outside the points, despite the recovery drive the Bulgarian pulled.
The leaders engaged in a last-lap battle for the lead, as Montoya proved his defensive skills against Bennett’s relentless attacks. On the final lap, Bennett tried one last time and became the new Sprint race leader as Rafael Villagomez appeared right behind Montoya.
Ultimately, John Bennett became a Sprint race winner in Formula 2 after an amazing race, ahead of Sebástian Montoya and Rafael Villagomez. Championship-wise, as it stands, Gabriele Mini would have a 10-point gap in the drivers’ championship to Nikola Tsolov in second.
