Alex Dunne outshone everyone in the Imola F2 Feature Race, catching the championship leadership and scoring his second win of 2025 so far.
A New Championship Leader: Alex Dunne Wins in Imola
Alex Dunne dominated the Imola F2 Feature Race, winning with a gap of almost seven seconds. The McLaren junior driver’s pace was unmatched by anyone on the grid. Thanks to this result, he takes over the lead in the championship.
🚨 NEW CHAMPIONSHIP LEADER ALERT 🚨@alexdunneracing‘s Feature Race triumph sees him move from fifth in the Standings to first! 📈#F2 #ImolaGP pic.twitter.com/jEQeDjebhY
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) May 18, 2025
Luke Browning and Dino Beganovic had to settle for second and third, with much disappointment for the Swedish driver, who started from pole position.
Imola F2 Feature Race: As It Happened
The Imola F2 Feature Race began with a twist. Sebastian Montoya, who was supposed to start from the front row in second place, stalled during the formation lap. He failed to restart before all the cars passed him and was forced to start from the pit lane.
Another unexpected moment occurred as the lights went out. Victor Martins, who was set to start from fourth place, stalled as he took his foot off the clutch. This unfortunate incident left him at the back of the field.
Leonardo Fornaroli attempted to attack Beganovic’s position on lap 1, but the Hitech TGR driver’s defence proved impenetrable.
Pit stops began on lap 7, when Beganovic, Fornaroli, Dunne, Lindblad, Goethe, and Meguetounif entered the pits together. On this occasion, the Invicta Racing driver had to wait before entering the fast lane due to heavy traffic in the pit area. This delay ultimately damaged his race, as Dunne and Lindblad rejoined the track ahead of him.
Alexander Dunne began putting pressure on Beganovic, closing in with every lap. The Swedish driver succumbed to the pressure. After briefly going off into the gravel, Beganovic was overtaken by Dunne without much of a fight.
As the other drivers on the option tyre began to pit, Luke Browning was among them and rejoined the track ahead of the Rodin Motorsport driver, briefly taking first position. However, no one seemed to hold off the Irish driver, who quickly regained the lead.
READ MORE: Crawford Conquers First 2025 F2 Win in the Imola Sprint Race
The Final Laps
On lap 15, the Safety Car was deployed after Rafael Villagomez stopped his car in the gravel due to contact with Sami Meguetounif. The Mexican driver was later given a five-second time penalty for the incident. However, since he did not finish the race, the penalty will be converted into a five-place grid drop for the next event.
During the Safety Car period, some drivers who had not yet pitted took the opportunity to do so. Among them were Gabriele Minì and John Bennett. However, this strategy proved costly, as it was too early for them to switch tyres, and they lacked grip in the closing laps.
When the race resumed, Dunne overtook nearly every driver who had not pitted earlier. Not even traffic could stop the Irish driver from securing victory with a margin of almost seven seconds over Browning.
The English driver, who finished second, achieved another podium, marking an impressive weekend for him and his team. Beganovic, disappointed after starting from pole, completed the podium in third place.
What a thrilling Feature! Battles throughout ⚔️
Here’s where the points went 👇#F2 #ImolaGP pic.twitter.com/84m8U1nd72
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) May 18, 2025
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Formula E: Nissan Win and Lose in Tokyo
Learning and Improve
During a press conference after the race, LWOS spoke with Dunne about what this victory means to him, especially on a technical circuit like Imola.
“I’m very very happy. I think being a bit more patient and making moves at the right time is something from the beginning of the year that I probably needed to do better. We saw the Sprint Race in Bahrain, and then also in the Feature Race in Jeddah with Luke (Browning). I think my decision making in those little moments probably weren’t quite good enough. At that timed I always put myself in a position that I didn’t need to put myself in. I think today I knew that making the right decisions at the right time was going to be very important, especially with all the Primers in front of us. I just tried to make sure that I was patient as possible and I didn’t try and force the issue. So I’m happy I did that. The end result is a testament to working on what I needed to do better previously.” – Alexander Dunne to LWOS
Formula 2 will return from May 23 to 25 for the Monaco Round.
READ NEXT: Santiago Ramos Stuns Field with Imola F3 Feature Race Victory
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / PsnewZ
Recording Date: 18.05.2025
