OFFALY’S ALEX DUNNE finished third in the feature race in Qatar on the F2 circuit, as Italian Leonardo Fornaroli sealed the championship title with a round to spare.
In the first F2 race in more than two months, Dunne improved from his fifth-placed start on the grid to take a place on the podium, overcoming a five-second penalty in doing so. Fornaroli’s second-placed finish, though, ended Dunne’s hopes of winning the championship.
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Dunne’s five-second penalty came from an unsafe release from the pit lane, which he attributed to his own aggression in trying to stay in contention for the overall title.
“I’m a bit in two minds”, said Dunne post-race. “I think the first 10 seconds after the race, I was extremely happy, because for the last five laps of the race, my engineer was telling me the gap to the cars behind, and I was pushing 110% for the last five laps to try and get a five second gap to stay on the podium.
“But then I think once I calmed down again, I realised that the Championship was done. And I think then, of course, I was a little bit disappointed, but Leo’s done a very good job this year, and he fully deserves it. So well done to him.
“But yeah, I think it was a strong race. I think the penalty made it a bit more difficult. But to be honest, I said to our team manager -who does the lollipop – before the race because of where we are in the pit lane, if we’re in a position where you need to be aggressive and risk an unsafe release, then just do it, and I’ll manage the rest mysef. That’s what we did today. In the end, it worked pretty well. So, I think we went out with a fighting attitude and strategy, and I think we executed it well, but unfortunately, it wasn’t enough.”
The 20-year-old Fornaroli finished second behind race winner Victor Martins, and the Italian joins current F1 drivers George Russell, Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc in winning the Formula 3 and Formula 2 championships in consecutive years.
Twenty-year-old Dunne has designs on his own F1 career, and lies fifth in the overall F2 standings ahead of the final round in Abu Dhabi next week.
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Alex Dunne third in Qatar but Fornaroli wraps up F2 title
OFFALY’S ALEX DUNNE finished third in the feature race in Qatar on the F2 circuit, as Italian Leonardo Fornaroli sealed the championship title with a round to spare.
In the first F2 race in more than two months, Dunne improved from his fifth-placed start on the grid to take a place on the podium, overcoming a five-second penalty in doing so. Fornaroli’s second-placed finish, though, ended Dunne’s hopes of winning the championship.
Dunne’s five-second penalty came from an unsafe release from the pit lane, which he attributed to his own aggression in trying to stay in contention for the overall title.
“I’m a bit in two minds”, said Dunne post-race. “I think the first 10 seconds after the race, I was extremely happy, because for the last five laps of the race, my engineer was telling me the gap to the cars behind, and I was pushing 110% for the last five laps to try and get a five second gap to stay on the podium.
“But then I think once I calmed down again, I realised that the Championship was done. And I think then, of course, I was a little bit disappointed, but Leo’s done a very good job this year, and he fully deserves it. So well done to him.
“But yeah, I think it was a strong race. I think the penalty made it a bit more difficult. But to be honest, I said to our team manager -who does the lollipop – before the race because of where we are in the pit lane, if we’re in a position where you need to be aggressive and risk an unsafe release, then just do it, and I’ll manage the rest mysef. That’s what we did today. In the end, it worked pretty well. So, I think we went out with a fighting attitude and strategy, and I think we executed it well, but unfortunately, it wasn’t enough.”
The 20-year-old Fornaroli finished second behind race winner Victor Martins, and the Italian joins current F1 drivers George Russell, Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc in winning the Formula 3 and Formula 2 championships in consecutive years.
Twenty-year-old Dunne has designs on his own F1 career, and lies fifth in the overall F2 standings ahead of the final round in Abu Dhabi next week.
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