FIA Formula 2 debutant Gabriel Bortoleto has described his first race in the series as ‘very fun’.
The Brazilian finished sixth in Friday’s Sprint Race in Bahrain with the Invicta Racing team, earning him three points in the championship.
Bortoleto will start Saturday’s Feature Race from pole position, after his team mate Kush Maini was disqualified from Thursday’s Qualifying session, having originally set the fastest time.
OUR FIRST SPRINT RACE WINNER OF THE SEASON! ?#BahrainGP #F2 pic.twitter.com/Trr0H6ZXiD
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) March 1, 2024
F3 champ makes immediate impact
Bortoleto, the reigning Formula 3 champion, said: “We had some enjoyable moments. We managed the tyres during the race and then made some nice moves towards the middle and end of the race.”
The 19-year-old, who is part of the McLaren Driver Development Programme, started on the hard compound Pirelli tyres and said it was good for the team to understand where the car’s performance was in race-trim.
As rivals on the soft tyres started to struggle, Bortoleto was able to make up places in the closing laps.
He said: “When I realised we had the chance to move up the order, as we were on the Hard tyre with many of our competitors on Softs, I fully sent it.”
Sundown sprint ?
Both drivers pushed until the end, making moves and the team proud! ?#F2 #Bahrain pic.twitter.com/A6l94dpSB0
— Invicta Racing (@InvictaRacing) March 1, 2024
‘We know what to do tomorrow’ says Maini
Indian driver Maini said the car has ‘potential’, even though he will start Saturday’s Feature Race from last, instead of at the front.
The Alpine Academy driver saw all of his times in qualifying removed after post-session scrutineering found an external strake on the undertray had been excessively worn, breaching the sports technical regulations.
Maini, 23, made up five positions on the opening lap of the Sprint Race on Friday evening, going on to finish 13th.
“I was happy with my start today. I had to play it safe, as I wanted to finish the race and gather data for tomorrow. The potential is there in the car.
“The team and I know exactly what to do tomorrow, as we look towards a stronger Feature Race. Today was all about learning and tomorrow we will aim to put it all together.”
Race day part 1 complete ?
See you all for part 2 tomorrow ?#F2 #BahrainGP pic.twitter.com/Oz6xf8SsCT
— Invicta Racing (@InvictaRacing) March 1, 2024
Saturday’s Feature Race, with 25-points on offer to the race winner, starts at 13:30 local time in Bahrain.
That’s 10:30am in the UK, and 11:30am CET.
