Spa Delivers Close Racing in F2 and F3 on Pirelli Tyres
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Press release SPA DELIVERS CLOSE RACING IN F2 AND F3 ON PIRELLI TYRES Spa, August 30, 2020 – Spa-Francorchamps played host to some typically action- packed races in the FIA Formula 2 and Formula 3 championships. The P Zero Yellow medium and P Zero Red soft 18-inch tyres were available in F2, with F3 racing on the medium tyres. Across both categories, the drivers were racing in memory of Anthoine Hubert, who tragically lost his life at Spa one year ago. FORMULA 2 Feature Race, the winner: Yuki Tsunoda took the victory for Carlin after Hitech GP driver Nikita Mazepin was given a penalty. Tsunoda started from pole with Mazepin alongside on the front row, both beginning the race on the soft tyre. Mazepin pitted on lap nine of 25, one lap earlier than Tsunoda, and gained the effective race lead. He fended off a faster Tsunoda in the closing stages to take the chequered flag, but was judged to have forced his rival off the track and given a five-second penalty. Yuki Tsunoda: “I am really happy to take P1 in the Feature Race. This is 100% for Anthoine Hubert. A big thanks to Carlin, Red Bull and Honda. It was not an easy situation, and I was a little bit unlucky during the pitstop, but after that I just pushed until the end as much as I could. I maybe couldn’t win in the race, but the final result is P1 and I am really happy with that.” Feature Race, alternative strategy: Dan Ticktum came from 14th on the grid to finish sixth for DAMS, a strong recovery after he had to miss Friday’s practice session. He started on the medium tyre and switched to the soft on lap 14. He then managed to fend off Guanyu Zhou (UNI-Virtuosi) on the same strategy, who had led the middle of the race before pitting for soft tyres on lap 16. Sprint Race, the winner: Robert Shwartzman claimed his third win of the season for Prema, taking the championship lead back from Callum Ilott who retired on the first lap. After the subsequent safety car period, Shwartzman took the lead when Ticktum and Trident’s Roy Nissany collided, and then pulled away on his medium tyres, used by all the field from start to finish. Mick Schumacher eventually finished second in a Prema one-two, with Zhou in third. FORMULA 3 Race 1, the winner: Lirim Zendeli (Trident) took his maiden F3 victory from pole position, finishing four seconds in front of Theo Pourchaire (ART Grand Prix) after preserving his medium tyres well until the finish. David Beckmann finished third, also for Trident. Race 2, the winner: Logan Sargeant won ahead of his Prema team-mate Frederik Vesti, reclaiming the championship lead that he conceded to Oscar Piastri in race one. Sargeant started from third on the reversed-grid and took the lead from Richard Verschoor (MP Motorsport) early on. PIRELLI QUOTE Pirelli’s head of F1 and car racing Mario Isola: “Spa is always one of the most challenging races of the year and this time it took on a special significance, as we all paid tribute to Anthoine Hubert. With the threat of rain just about holding off, all the drivers in both championships put on an excellent display to make the most of their slick tyres and race hard on this spectacular circuit in memory of Anthoine.” Ends For further information about Pirelli, please contact Anthony Peacock on +44 (0)7765 896 930 or [email protected] .