Following his maiden pole position just the weekend prior at the Bahrain GP, Invicta Racing’s rookie driver Leonardo Fornaroli secured P3 with a 1:43.671 at the Saudi Arabian GP . Just 0.070s shy of Victor Martins who placed P2 and missed pole position by a mere 0.92s.
The reigning F3 champion has reported that he is happy with his qualifying session.
Fornaroli is pleased with his laps
Despite finding himself comfortable in a good position after Set one setting quick lap times. An unfortunate red flag was brought out by Bennett hitting the barriers in the second set. It came out with just 5 minutes left on the clock during Fornaroli’s first push of the set.
This made his third and final set all the more crucial. The Italian driver managed to perform under pressure, pulling a P3 out of the car. Leaving him satisfied with his performance.
“I’m quite happy about my lap, it was not the perfect setter one because you know I was in a perfect position after set one”
“Then we got a red flag in my first push of the second set, so I knew I had only one chance to make a good result so maybe I lost a bit of time there in the snake.”
“But still we finished P3 and it’s a good result, I’m happy.”
New experiences at the Saudi Arabian GP : Street Circuits and faster corners
The Saudi Arabian GP will only be Fornaroli’s third race weekend in Formula 2 and he’s already leading the Formula 2 championship. The Jeddah Corniche Circuit will be the first street circuit that he will be racing in his new series. It is also known as the fastest street circuit on the calendar and features the most corners.
The Italian driver spoked on racing his first street circuit, recounting the high speed corners and the feeling of constantly being on the limit.
“It’s amazing, you know it’s a street circuit with no room for mistakes and it’s also a very fast track.”
“So I mean to be quick you have to be on the limit with everything going very close to the wall, it’s an amazing feeling.”
He did however also admit that it was hard for him to convince himself to go closer to the walls on track, especially with the high-speed corners. Although the risk was usually worth the rewards.
“To go fast, you have to be really, really close to the walls and risk everything, and there is almost no room for mistake. So you know, you have to tell your brain, push more, push more, but your brain is saying, but the wall is getting closer, be careful. So, but no, it was okay, risk and reward.”
Maiden win incoming ?
Despite this being his first time in Jeddah, Fornaroli believes he could be fighting for what could potentially be his maiden feature race victory. His ultimate goal, however, will be maximising the number of points he scores to maintain his lead in the championship.
“Why not, I will give my best, but it’s also my first time here in Jeddah, a very difficult track, so I will try to fight for the win but if I can’t, I will just try to score as many points as I can.”
Simulators and training adaptability
Adaptability is a key skill a driver should have. Especially for those in Formula 2 who will eventually transition into Formula 1. Fornoroli was asked if he hops in the simulator away from the track and how long for. A question on how sim work helps train his adaptability was also asked.
The Invicta driver revealed that his simulator set-up with the team was beneficial. He also revealed that he does sim race himself at home with friends. He even revealed that he was currently waiting for upgrades to build a new set-up.
“Yes, today’s simulator has arrived at a very good point. They are actually quite realistic, so the one we’re using with Invicta is helping a lot.”
“And then speaking about home, yes I do spend some time, especially in the evening. I take it more as a joke, you know to drive a bit with my friends, doing some crazy sense and starting last to see where we arrive.”
“ Also, I will have my new upgrades waiting for me at home. So I can’t wait to build my new sim.”
