F2 | Feature Race | Bahrain GP | Dunne claims maiden win in Sakhir - Motorsport

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After the cancellation of the Feature Race in Melbourne due to the poor weather conditions, the first Feature Race of the 2025 F2 season got underway at the Sakhir International Circuit on the final day of the Bahrain GP weekend.

Invicta Racing’s Leonardo Fornaroli started on pole after a tightly contested Friday Qualifying session, alongside ART Grand Prix’s Victor Martins. Hitech TGR’s Luke Browning, rounded out the top 3. However, after an intense battle for the podium, it was Rodin Motorsport’s Alex Dunne who emerged victorious. The Irish driver claimed his maiden F2 victory and first points of his F2 career.

A turbulent start to the F2 Feature Race in Bahrain

As the lights went out, Leonardo Fornaroli made a clean getaway from pole, holding his lead into Turn 1. Rodin Motorsport’s Alex Dunne got off to a lightning start, jumping into second place, while Juan Manuel Correa’s teammate, Rafael Villagómez, surged from eighth on the grid to third with an impressive launch.

Victor Martins, on the other hand, suffered significant wheel spin off the line, dropping him to sixth and setting up a race-long recovery drive.

With tyre management a key factor early on, the top eight drivers—including PREMA’s debut point-scorer Sebastián Montoya—carefully managed their soft compounds. Capitalizing on the DRS, Dunne made his move down the main straight to snatch the race lead. Not long after, Pepe Martí also joined the fray, launching himself into podium contention from 11th on the grid.

By Lap 13, several drivers had begun to make their mandatory pit stops, switching to fresh soft tyres and warming them up for the final stint. Notably, the leading trio stayed out longer as strategy played a crucial role in the race’s outcome.

On Lap 16, both Martí and Fornaroli dove into the pits, rejoining the track behind Martins. Martí, in particular, continued his impressive charge through the field. Dunne eventually boxed as well, rejoining on cold tyres and slotting back into the mix.

Martins’ early stop had proven to be a strategic masterstroke, putting him back in contention for a podium finish alongside Fornaroli and Luke Browning.

Browning, part of the Williams Driver Academy and fresh from substituting for Carlos Sainz in F1 Free Practice, delivered a standout performance. On Lap 21, he pulled off a brilliant move down the inside to pass Fornaroli and later used DRS to overtake his Williams Academy teammate Martins into Turn 1, taking second place with little resistance.

Dunne claims maiden F2 victory on Bahrain GP

With just 10 laps remaining, Luke Browning began hunting down Alex Dunne, who had built a comfortable lead out front.

Further down the field, an intense four-way scrap developed between Taylor Barnard’s replacement Aiden Bennett, Roman Stanek, Joshua Dürksen, and Oliver Goethe. Bennett muscled past Stanek to gain position, but a moment of wheel spin opened the door for Dürksen to sneak into ninth.

Meanwhile, the battle for the final podium place was heating up. Leonardo Fornaroli closed in on Victor Martins and made a decisive move to reclaim third. Shortly after, Pepe Martí continued his charge by overtaking Martins for fourth, adding even more drama to the closing stages.

On the final lap, the fight for third reached its climax. Martí attacked Fornaroli down the straight and through Turn 13, but the Invicta driver held firm in a tense, wheel-to-wheel duel to secure his spot on the podium.

At the chequered flag, Alex Dunne crossed the line to take a landmark victory in what was the 200th race in FIA Formula 2 history. It marked his maiden win in the series and made him the first Irish driver to stand on the top step of an F2 podium. Browning secured second after a stellar weekend, while Fornaroli completed a strong showing for Invicta Racing by hanging on for third.