F2 – Belgian Grand Prix – Qualifying: Dunne takes his second pole of the season at Spa, Martins 4th

Alex Dunne dominated the Formula 2 Belgian Grand Prix qualifying at Spa-Francorchamps on Friday from start to finish. The Rodin Motorsport driver and McLaren protégé secured his second pole position of the season with a time of 1:57.151, ahead of ART Grand Prix’s Ritomo Miyata and Invicta Racing’s Roman Stanek by more than four-tenths of a second.

Evolution of timing

The session took place in good weather conditions for Spa, with a clear sky and a perfectly dry track. Luke Browning (Hitech) set the first benchmark at 1:58.537 after the mandatory warm-up laps on the longest circuit of the calendar.

The times quickly dropped with Roman Stanek (Invicta Racing) taking the lead by just seven thousandths, before being dethroned by his teammate Leonardo Fornaroli. Dunne then took the lead for the first time with a time of 1:58.340, beating the Italian by only three thousandths.

Most of the drivers attempted a second flying lap on the same set of soft tires. While few found time, Dunne delivered a remarkable performance by improving by 0.421 seconds to clock a 1:57.863. This significant margin over Fornaroli already set the tone for the rest of the session.

The championship leader Richard Verschoor (MP Motorsport) was only in tenth place, finding himself in pole position for the reverse grid sprint race. His direct rival in the overall standings, Jak Crawford (DAMS Lucas Oil), was even further back in 13th place.

Final ranking established

During the final push with new tires, Crawford was the first to respond, temporarily climbing to third place thanks to personal sectors. Oliver Goethe (MP Motorsport) even briefly moved into second position.

Victor Martins, the Frenchman from ART Grand Prix, maintained a solid performance throughout the session to finish in fourth place. An honorable position that confirms his consistency this season, even though the Williams academy driver is still struggling to convert his good performances into a win.

The surprise came from his Japanese teammate Ritomo Miyata, who achieved his best F2 qualifying result by placing himself on the front row. The ART driver took advantage of the final moments to displace several competitors and secure a prime position for the main race.

Dunne, on his side, once again demonstrated his superiority. The 19-year-old Irishman set the three fastest sectors of the session, bringing his time to 1:57.151, creating a definitive gap of 0.419 seconds over Miyata.

Stanek completed the qualification podium ahead of Martins, while Arvid Lindblad (Campos Racing) salvaged his session with a last-minute fifth place. His teammate Pepe Marti took sixth place.

This pole position could allow Dunne to reduce his championship deficit to Verschoor, who will only start from the eleventh position on Sunday. Crawford, another title contender, will have to start from the 14th place, seriously compromising his ambitions for this Belgian round.

For this Saturday’s sprint race, it’s Oliver Goethe (MP Motorsport) who will benefit from pole position thanks to the reverse grid system, having finished tenth in the qualifiers.