F2 – Belgian Grand Prix – Sprint: Fornaroli doubles Spa win ahead of Martins and Mini

Leonardo Fornaroli signed his second consecutive sprint race victory at the Formula 2 Belgian Grand Prix in Spa-Francorchamps. The Italian Invicta Racing driver expertly capitalized on the chaos of the first lap to take the lead and maintain it, beating Victor Martins and Gabriele Minì on the podium. The race was marked by the early retirement of championship leader Richard Verschoor.

A turbulent first round

The start turned into a nightmare for several title contenders. Starting third on the grid, Fornaroli pulled off the perfect move by passing on the inside of Oliver Goethe and Amaury Cordeel on the climb to La Source. But it was behind that the drama unfolded.

At the exit of the first corner, three contenders for the championship found themselves on the same trajectory. Luke Browning ended up sandwiched between the leader Verschoor and Jak Crawford, all three qualified beyond the tenth place. The contact was immediate and violent.

Browning was eliminated on the spot, his single-seater too damaged to continue. Crawford was able to resume the race, but at the very back of the standings. Verschoor, on the other hand, managed to get going again, but the damage to his side wing caused a fluid leak. In the climb up Eau Rouge, the Dutchman lost control of his MP Motorsport and had to abandon the race for good.

Fornaroli takes control

Under the safety car, Fornaroli maintained his first place ahead of Cordeel and Goethe. Victor Martins was in fourth position, ideally placed to monitor the proceedings. The Frenchman from ART Grand Prix was going to be patient but formidable.

At the restart in the fourth lap, the Italian maintained his advantage. Cordeel tried to stay on his tail, even recording the fastest lap on the sixth pass, but Fornaroli immediately responded with a personal best time to widen the gap.

The hierarchy seemed fixed when Goethe had a big moment at Raidillon. The German managed to save his third place, but this slip allowed Martins to get dangerously close. A lap later, another scare for Goethe at the same spot, and this time Martins didn’t let the opportunity pass by.

Martins seizes his opportunity

The French driver was not satisfied with third place. On the eleventh lap, he found himself in Cordeel’s DRS zone and prepared his attack. On the Kemmel straight, Martins slipstreamed the Belgian before overtaking him on the outside at the entrance to Les Combes.

Cordeel did not leave enough space for his opponent. The contact was inevitable. Rodin Motorsport’s driver ended up in the gravel trap, deprived of his first podium in F2. A costly mistake on home soil, in front of his audience.

This new neutralization reshuffled the deck. The majority of the pack took advantage of it to switch to soft tires, hoping to make up ground in the final laps. Only Fornaroli, Martins, Goethe, Mini, and Cian Shields stayed on track with their medium tires.

Mini benefits from the recovery

On the restart, Mini took advantage of the slipstream to overtake Goethe and claim third place. Behind them, Pepe Marti, equipped with fresh tires, quickly dispatched Shields to move into fifth position. The Spaniard seemed set to challenge the podium.

Alex Dunne also tried his luck with his new tires. The Irish driver overtook Roman Stanek, but failed to confirm when he tackled Marti. This battle allowed Stanek to regain the advantage over Dunne in the process.

Fornaroli managed perfectly in the lead, opening up a gap of nearly two seconds on the penultimate lap. His second victory of the season seemed assured when Sami Meguetounif stopped on the Kemmel straight, causing a final neutralization that froze the positions.

Fornaroli returns to Verschoor

This victory allows Fornaroli to close to eight points behind leader Verschoor in the championship. The Italian confirms his rise in form after his first win at Silverstone. For Martins, this second place is an excellent result after starting from sixth position.

The tricolor driver regains confidence and closes in on the top 5 in the overall championship.

Mini completes the podium with his first top spot this season, a satisfaction for Prema Racing. Goethe finishes just off the podium despite his scares at Raidillon, ahead of Marti who couldn’t exploit his soft tires as hoped.

The championship is tightening

In the overall standings, Verschoor retains the lead with 122 points, but his rivals are closing in. Crawford remains second with 116 points despite his mishap, ahead of Fornaroli (114) and Dunne (112). Browning, a victim of the initial chaos, falls back to 98 points and sees his title hopes diminish.

This sprint race has once again shown that nothing is ever guaranteed in F2. The first-lap accidents highlight the difficulty of managing grouped starts, especially when the stakes of the championship intensify. On Sunday, the main race promises to be just as competitive with Dunne on pole position.