Paul Aron secured his maiden victory at the Lusail International Circuit, taking the win after a dramatic race. Championship rivals Gabriel Bortoleto and Isack Hadjar battled fiercely, with the title race now heading to an intense finale in Abu Dhabi.
After yesterday’s Sprint Race victory by Ollie Bearman, attention shifted to the penultimate Formula 2 Feature Race of the season at the Lusail International Circuit. The stage was set for a dramatic contest, with Paul Aron starting from pole position after a stunning qualifying performance. Championship leader Gabriel Bortoleto lined up alongside him on the front row, ready for battle.
Victor Martins began from third, with F2 debutant Dino Beganovic impressively securing fourth for DAMS Lucas Oil. Richard Verschoor rounded out the top five, while championship contender Isack Hadjar started ninth, aiming to close the slim 3.5-point gap to Bortoleto in the title race. Meanwhile, Sprint Race winner Bearman started in P10.
Race start delayed
A minor delay due to barrier repairs pushed the start back, with the second F1 Academy race cancelled as a result. Drivers strategised their tyre choices: Duerksen, Miyata, Browning, Esterson, Martí, Bearman, and Maini opted for hard tyres, while the rest of the grid chose mediums for the opening stint.
As the formation lap finally got underway, Aron had a slight lock-up while warming his tyres, but the field soon reassembled for the race start.
When the lights went out, Bortoleto surged into the lead at Turn 1, while Aron managed to hold off Beganovic and Martins after a thrilling three-wide moment. Hadjar fell to 10th, while Andrea Kimi Antonelli climbed to ninth from 11th.
By Lap 4, Bearman had overtaken Maini for seventh, with Antonelli and Goethe following suit. Maini continued to drop the order, eventually surrendering 11th to Hadjar. Up front, Bortoleto pulled out of DRS range from Aron, creating a three-second buffer to third-placed Beganovic.
Pit stops and drama
Aron began to close the gap to Bortoleto and pitted on Lap 7, along with Beganovic, Martins, Verschoor, and Antonelli. Martins emerged ahead of Beganovic during the stops. However, Lap 8 saw chaos when Antonelli spun into the gravel with broken steering following contact with Verschoor in the pit lane. The incident ended Antonelli’s race and caused a puncture for Verschoor.
The ensuing Virtual Safety Car forced Bortoleto to abandon his pit entry, but his manoeuvre violated the Race Director’s instructions, earning him a five-second penalty. After the Safety Car period, Bortoleto rejoined the action but now faced the challenge of building a gap to offset his penalty.
Another safety car was deployed when Crawford and Villagomez collided at Turn 6.
LAP 13 / 32
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) December 1, 2024
Jak Crawford and Rafael Villagomez come together down at turn 6
🟡 SAFETY CAR 🟡#F2 #QatarGP pic.twitter.com/yPqvry39Gd
Battles and lead changes
The race resumed with Bearman leading the pack on hard tyres. Duerksen briefly took the lead when Bearman ran wide but quickly lost positions to Maini and Browning. Bortoleto executed a brilliant switchback move on Martí for fifth, while Aron followed suit to keep the championship leader in his sights.
Bortoleto overtook Duerksen for second and began building a gap to the chasing pack. Paul Aron soon passed Duerksen as well, setting his sights on Bortoleto. The gap between them extended to 1.6 seconds as Bearman finally pitted, handing the lead back to Bortoleto.
An incident on Lap 18 also saw Formula E bound Zane Maloney spin at Turn 6, taking Max Esterson with him and damaging the car of Victor Martins. Unfortunately, Martins was out of the race.
LAP 18 / 32
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) December 1, 2024
Zane Maloney spins at turn 6 with Esterson also involved as Victor Martins gets damage and has retire the car 😢#F2 #QatarGP pic.twitter.com/kc6oWDUxhQ
The final lap
As the laps dwindled, Hadjar emerged as Bortoleto’s primary threat. The Frenchman stayed within striking distance, chipping away at the five-second buffer needed to capitalise on Bortoleto’s penalty. In a tense final lap, Hadjar closed the gap to just 0.4 seconds, securing second place and critical points in the championship battle.
Aron, however, was untouchable. The Estonian crossed the line first to claim a stunning victory. Bortoleto’s penalty dropped him to third, with Hadjar’s second-place finish cutting the championship gap to just half a point heading into the final round in Abu Dhabi.
Goethe delivered an impressive drive to finish fourth, followed by Beganovic in fifth. Christian Mansell claimed sixth, with Amaury Cordeel, Brad Benavides, Zane Maloney, and Tôhoku Miyata completing the top ten.
With only one race remaining, the Formula 2 Drivers’ Championship is on a knife’s edge. Just 0.5 points separate Bortoleto and Hadjar, setting the stage for an epic finale under the lights in Abu Dhabi.
What a race this has been!
