Hungarian Grand Prix – F2 Qualifying: Paul Aron returns to the front of the grid
The Hungarian Grand Prix circuit offered us a fairly calm qualifying session, but in the end it was Paul Aron who managed to secure first place for Sunday's race. He will start from 10th place for the sprint following the inverted grid.
From the beginning, the Formula 2 qualifying sessions were delayed by 10 minutes due to the high temperatures on the track, reaching 50°C, which had already caused issues during the Formula 1 free practice sessions. The majority of single-seaters rushed onto the track right from the start despite the risk of traffic, taking advantage of the little remaining coolness. For Crawford, a promising young driver, a spot in F1 is at stake, with his performances competing with those of Oliver Bearman this season.
As planned, the traffic caused several issues, notably leading to numerous brake lock-ups for Kimi Antonelli. The battle mainly took place in the final sector where new records were set, with the second sector remaining the most challenging.
A track excursion in the middle of qualifying
A yellow flag was waved at 19 minutes, transformed into a red flag caused by Joseph Maria Marti who spun on the track, repeating the same accident he had during practice. His disappointment was audible on the radio. The race resumed a few minutes later, this time the drivers waited to return to the track. Several of them criticized Fittipaldi, accused of hindering other cars.
Bortoleto held on to pole position until the 7th minute before Enzo Fittipaldi completed a lap in 1:30.096. A few minutes before the end of the session, Paul Aron, second behind Isaack Hadjar in the championship, set the fastest lap. Crawford then went off track at turn 7, a problematic point for many cars today.
Finally, no one managed to beat Paul Aron’s record, who secured pole position in Hungary. However, due to the reversed grid for the Formula 2 sprint race, Aron will start in 10th place, letting Verschoor start at the front, a crucial position that had allowed Antonelli to win the previous week.
Qualifying results
Driver | Équipe | Times | Écart | Lap | |
1 | P. Aron | Hitech Pulse-Eight | 1:30.028 | 11 | |
2 | E. Fittipaldi | Van Amersfoort Racing | 1:30.096 | +0.0 | 10 |
3 | I. Hadjar | Campos Racing | 1:30.221 | +0.1 | 10 |
4 | G. Bortoleto | Invicta Racing | 1:30.237 | +0.2 | 12 |
5 | V. Martins | Art Grand Prix | 1:30.247 | +0.2 | 11 |
6 | D. Hauger | MP Motorsport | 1:30.320 | +0.2 | 11 |
7 | A. Antonelli | Prema | 1:30.353 | +0.3 | 11 |
8 | Z. Maloney | Rodin Motorsport | 1:30.462 | +0.4 | 12 |
9 | K. Maini | Invicta Racing | 1:30.492 | +0.4 | 9 |
10 | R. Verschoor | Trident | 1:30.606 | +0.5 | 9 |
11 | J. Durksen | AIX Racing | 1:30.620 | +0.5 | 11 |
12 | F. Colapinto | MP Motorsport | 1:30.656 | +0.6 | 10 |
13 | A. Cordeel | Hitech Pulse-Eight | 1:30.697 | +0.6 | 10 |
14 | O. Bearman | Prema | 1:30.744 | +0.7 | 11 |
15 | Z.O’Sullivan | Art Grand Prix | 1:30.820 | +0.7 | 12 |
16 | R. Villagomez | Van Amersfoort Racing | 1:30.886 | +0.8 | 12 |
17 | T. Barnard | AIX Racing | 1:30.913 | +0.8 | 11 |
18 | R. Miyata | Rodin Motorsport | 1:30.979 | +0.9 | 12 |
19 | J. Correa | DAMS Lucas Oil | 1:31.013 | +0.9 | 12 |
20 | R. Stanek | Trident | 1:31.240 | +1.2 | 9 |
21 | J. Marti | Campos Racing | 1:31.539 | +1.5 | 4 |
22 | J. Crawford | DAMS Lucas Oil | 1:31.791 | +1.7 | 11 |