Both rookies and experienced drivers compete to win the 2024 F2 Championship. Here are five drivers who could win the tile this year.
The fight for the Formula 2 championship has just started, but there are already some drivers who have proven that this year, they could fight for the title. Among these names, there are drivers in their second year in F2, but there are also some rookies who could surprise everyone in 2024.
Victor Martins
2022 Formula 3 champion, in 2023 Martins ended his first season in Formula 2 in fifth position, first among rookies. An important result for the Frenchman who, in 2023, managed to win in Silverstone, starting from the pole position. After seeing his former teammate, Theo Pourchaire, win the title last year, Martins wants to replicate the same result. However, despite being one of the favorites for the championship fight, he did not have a great start to the season this year. He is currently in eighteenth place due to two withdrawals and two races outside the points. The season is still long, and the driver of Alpine Academy will have time to recover the lost points.
Oliver Bearman
After his debut in Formula 1 in Jeddah, where he replaced Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz, Ollie is ready to come back to Formula 2 where he is one of the main title contenders. The Englishman debuted last year in F2 with Prema Racing. He immediately showed off his talent with a Clean Sweep in Baku and another two wins in Spain and Monza. Impressive results that immediately put him in the spotlight. Unfortunately, he had several difficulties in Bahrain, but in Jeddah, the situation seemed to have improved. On Thursday, the FDA driver took the pole position, and, even if he had to withdraw from this round to race in F1, he showed his true skills. Although he is currently in the last position in the standings, Bearman is still one of the favorites to win the title this year.
Still. Not. Over. This.#SaudiArabianGP #F2 #F1 pic.twitter.com/Rfll1LPhGT
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) March 14, 2024
Zane Maloney
The current leader of the championship could be the surprise of this season. Maloney, vice-champion in Formula 3 in 2022, did not have an easy season in F2 last year. He managed to get only four podiums and no win. Unfortunately, due to the results not being up to the standard of the Red Bull junior program, he had to leave the junior team. At the beginning of the year, he was announced as a new member of the Sauber Academy and reserve driver for the team alongside Theo Pourchaire. Maloney started the year in the best way, with a double win in Bahrain. In the second round, despite starting from the back of the field, he managed to recover up to the points in both races. Will Maloney be able to maintain this positive trend throughout the season?
Paul Aron
For Aron, this is the first season in Formula 2. Given his performance, he could fight for the title already this year. Aron finished third in the 2023 Formula 3 Championship. Some mistakes cost him the fight for the title and also the second position in the championship. Despite not being part of the Mercedes Junior Program anymore, he managed to get into Formula 2 with Hitech. He has already racked up two podiums that put him in fourth place in the standings. If the Estonian can maintain these good results and win a few races, he could take part in the fight for the title and be a dangerous opponent even for more experienced F2 drivers in 2024.
Gabriel Bortoleto
2023 Formula 3 champion Gabriel Bortoleto is part of A14 Management, the program for young drivers of Fernando Alonso. In addition, this year he joined the McLaren Young Driver program. In Formula 3, he climbed to the podium six times and two of these were victories. The points gained throughout the season allowed him to win the championship already in qualifying for the Monza GP. Now, the Brazilian driver is in fifteenth place in the standings due to a difficult weekend in Jeddah. However, in Bahrain, he proved to be very fast with the new car. If he maintains the same consistency as last year in the new series, he could climb the standings.
