FORMULA 2: FORNAROLI DOMINATES, INVICTA RACING TAKES 1-2!
The Formula 2 Feature Race in Budapest got underway with a rolling start on a damp but drying track. Roman Staněk led the field from pole, immediately pulling out a gap over his Invicta Racing teammate Leonardo Fornaroli, who started on the softer tyres. Behind them, Crawford, Browning, and Duerksen settled into the top five positions.
By Lap 3, Staněk had built a two-second lead on Mediums, while DRS was enabled. Amaury Cordeel spun at the final corner on Lap 6, briefly triggering yellow flags,he rejoined without major incident. A Virtual Safety Car (VSC) was then deployed on Lap 7 due to a stop from a Rodin Motorsport car.
Racing resumed on Lap 7 with Fornaroli reducing the gap to Staněk to 1.6 seconds. Arvid Lindblad launched an aggressive drive, overtaking Goethe and Duerksen to climb to fifth. Duerksen later ran wide at Turn 2, allowing Goethe back through and dropping to seventh.
On Lap 10, Victor Martins slowed down and had to stop the car at Turn 13, causing another VSC. Despite Martins leaving the car, the VSC remained active, keeping drivers from making their mandatory pit stops. When racing resumed on Lap 11, Goethe went off while trying to overtake Lindblad at Turn 13, letting both Alex Dunne and Joshua Duerksen slip through. The pit window opened with Staněk delaying his stop despite instructions, while Browning, Duerksen, and others pitted for Mediums. Lindblad, still on Mediums, was told his tyre was now quicker than the Softs.
Fornaroli stayed out longer, then boxed on Lap 17, rejoining well ahead of Staněk—despite a big lock-up that triggered a pit lane speeding investigation.
By Lap 18, Lindblad led a group of drivers yet to stop, while Fornaroli headed the pack of those who had completed their pitstops, followed by Staněk, Crawford, Browning, and Duerksen.
Championship leader Fornaroli had a big lock up coming into the pitlane, which led to a 5-Second-Time- Penalty, because he was found guilty of being faster then the allowed speed.
Verschoor became the first Medium runner to pit for Softs on Lap 23, but suffered a slow stop. Meanwhile, Fornaroli leads a tight battle, with StanÄ›k in DRS range and Crawford close behind. MartÃ, leading the race, was called into the pits and rejoined behind Browning in 10th. Meanwhile, Lindblad also pitted from the race lead, with the top five yet to make their stops.
Staněk lost DRS to Fornaroli on Lap 25, with Crawford closing fast behind him. On Lap 28, Crawford tried to overtake at Turn 1, but Staněk fought back around the outside at Turn 2 to regain position. Meanwhile, Martà dropped to 15th after pit stops changed the order, with Maini and Miyata still leading on track without stops. Martà briefly held position ahead of Verschoor, Goethe, and teammate Lindblad but soon lost ground on cold tyres to his Red Bull teammates and Alex Dunne.
Staněks gap to Fornaroli ahead is now 4.8 seconds. On Lap 30, Fornaroli overtook Miyata—who hasn’t pitted yet—to reclaim the race lead. By Lap 33, Staněk was keeping Crawford behind him, while Fornaroli maintained a gap large enough to absorb his five-second penalty and keep P1.
On Lap 35, Miyata made his pit stop, promoting Fornaroli to the P1, followed by Staněk and Crawford. Meanwhile, Lindblad faced a fast-charging Beganovic but was unable to pass for seventh as the race approached its final laps at the Hungaroring.
Fornaroli took the checkered flag to claim victory in the F2 Feature Race, with teammate Staněk securing second place to complete a 1-2 finish for Invicta Racing. Crawford finished third for DAMS Lucas Oil. Browning, Verschoor, Lindblad, Beganovic, Goethe, Dunne, and Martà rounded out the points from fourth to tenth, completing an exciting and closely fought race.
Share this content:
