F2: Bortoleto starts Barcelona in-season test on top from Crawford

Gabriel Bortoleto set the pace on Day 1 of FIA F2 in-season test in Barcelona from Jak Crawford and Dennis Hauger.

MORNING

Everyone was out for installation laps immediately, with PREMA Racing conducting some early work using the lower downforce configuration of the new 2024 car with Oliver Bearman. With the track declared wet and conditions below 10 degrees to start the day, teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli set a tentative early lap, leading the way on a 1:53.656, before the times began to fall with the opening hour almost done.

Dennis Hauger took over P1 for MP Motorsport on a 1:25.830 as the second hour begun, leading teammate Franco Colapinto by 0.3s. Invicta Racing’s Kush Maini was next to go quickest overall, setting a 1:25.798 to pip Hauger by just 0.032s with over half of the morning session to go. Richard Verschoor was another to improve as he put his Trident within three tenths of the top spot, while Championship leader Zane Maloney followed in fourth for Rodin Motorsport, a further tenth adrift to move ahead of Colapinto.

Several other teams began to test out the lower downforce specification, with ART Grand Prix and Hitech Pulse-Eight sampling the different wing setups in the opening morning of the test. Over half an hour to go and Hauger retook the top spot with a 1:25.372 to go almost half a second clear. Maini made improvements of his own to go to within 0.114s of the Norwegian’s time, as Verschoor remained in third place, 0.3s down on the top time.

With less than three minutes left of the session, the Red Flags were thrown after Ritomo Miyata stopped on track in the final sector and the session was ended early. PREMA proved to be busiest of all in the first session, logging 102 laps between their drivers with Antonelli topping the lap charts on 52.

AFTERNOON

Verschoor led the way early on in the session as teams were split between patiently waiting or getting out on track immediately. The Dutch driver’s time was beaten by Campos Racing’s Isack Hadjar soon after, as the Red Bull Junior Team member recorded a 1:26.361 to go 0.052s ahead in the opening half hour of running.

Paul Aron was next to go to the top of the timing screens for Hitech Pulse-Eight. The Estonian driver put in a 1:26.210 to go quickest of all heading into the second hour of the afternoon session. The second Red Flag of the day arrived with an hour and 45 minutes left following a spin into the gravel at Turn 9 for Antonelli.

With running back to green, Bortoleto put his Invicta car on top of the pile with a 1:26.076 just after the halfway stage, a tenth clear of Aron. Into the final hour of running and Enzo Fittipaldi moved Van Amersfoort Racing up to second to go within 0.1s of Bortoleto’s session-topping effort before Aron deposed the Brazilian to once again go quickest overall.

With less than half an hour to go, drivers began to emerge from the garages with softs bolted on and the times began to fall. Jak Crawford became the first into the 25s to go comfortably fastest for DAMS Lucas Oil. His 1:25.182 came just in time as the third Red Flag arrived. ART Grand Prix’s Zak O’Sullivan was the driver stopped in the middle sector to bring a pause to the session.

Bortoleto was another driver to fit the soft tyres and he bettered Crawford’s time to go onto a 1:25.143 in P1. Just after the rookie set his time, fine rain began to fall, all but ending the session prior to the chequered flag. Crawford remained second with Fittipaldi third to cap off the opening day’s running. Aron ended up the busiest driver overall in the afternoon session, with 43 laps to his name.

[Note: The story is as per press release]