F2 arrives in Austria at a track well known for exciting races and a title battle still wide open.
F2 is having back-to-back race weekends, following Silverstone last week we’ve headed to Austria.
Silverstone saw the first wet race of the season where some drivers really shone and others suffered. Sunday’s Feature Race showed once again how the Halo is an important piece of safety for the sport.
Logan Sargeant took a dominant victory in the Feature Race. Becoming the first American driver to ever win in F2 and is looking to turn this momentum into a title charge.
News
Juri Vips
Last week there was the controversy around Juri Vips and Red Bull subsequently removing him from their driver academy. It appears that was not quite the case. The team has removed him from being their F1 reserve and test driver, being replaced by Liam Lawson. However, Vips will remain in the academy while Red Bull helps with his transition and re-education. It is unlikely that Vips will ever be seen in F1, or not with Red Bull anyway, but he will still benefit from the connection and resources for now.
Campos Racing
In the early part of the season, Campos Racing driver Ralph Boschung has been struggling with a persistent neck injury received in Imola. He has taken the difficult decision to step down from racing, for now, to allow himself the time to recover and come back stronger.
In his place, we welcome back Roberto Mehri to Campos Racing who last raced in F2 in 2018. Mehri competed in the last four rounds of that season with a third place in the final Sprint Race. Without the testing and prior races that the other drivers have had, it will be very much a baptism of fire for Mehri to get up to speed with current F2.
The Circuit – Red Bull Ring
The Red Bull Ring (yes owned by that Red Bull) has been back on the calendar for a few years now.
It is a relatively short track with few corners but it does have 3 DRS zones and big elevation changes. All this combines to create very close racing and plenty of overtaking opportunities. Expect to see a few surprises in the results between the two events this weekend!
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Drivers Standings
While Drugovich might still have a large lead, the drivers chasing him are closing in on one another. It would still only take a couple of low scores for Drugovich to fall right back into them.
- Felipe Drugovich – 148 points
- Theo Pourchaire – 106 points
- Logan Sargeant – 88 points
- Jehan Daruvala – 80 points
Teams Standings
Formula 2 is more about the drivers aiming to step up to Formula 1 but the last race moved the championship order around a bit. Serial winners Prema being the big losers falling from second.
- MP Motorsport – 170 points
- ART Grand Prix – 160 points
- Carlin – 147 points
- Prema Racing – 135 points
Race Predictions
The series is one of the most unpredictable and results can swing wildly as a result of the part reversed grid for the Sprint Race. Drugovich has previously won here with the Sprint Race victory in 2020.
Last year’s F3 champion, Dennis Hauger, also took victory here in Austria before making the move up to F2.
The Feature Race podium prediction:
- Jehan Daruvala
- Felipe Drugovich
- Dennis Hauger
How to Watch Formula 2 – EDT & GMT
- Practice 07/08 – 5:05 AM on ESPN3 (11:05 AM Sky Sports F1)
- Qualifying 07/08 – 9:55 AM on ESPN3 (3:55 PM Sky Sports F1)
- Sprint Race 07/09 – 11:55 AM on ESPN3 (5:55 PM Sky Sports F1)
- Feature Race 07/10 – 4:05 AM on ESPN3 (10:05 AM Sky Sports F1)
