Qualifying Report – FIA Formula 2, Round 10, 2025 – Hungary

Roman Stanek delivered a scintillating final effort to claim pole position for the FIA Formula 2 Feature Race in Budapest, leading an Invicta Racing front-row lockout ahead of team-mate Leonardo Fornaroli.

The Czech driver’s 1:28.779 lap, set in the closing stages of an intense qualifying session, proved untouchable despite a late flurry of improvements across the field. Fornaroli had his earlier lap deleted for exceeding track limits at Turn 1 but recovered strongly on his final run to secure P2, just 0.146s adrift.

DAMS Lucas Oil’s Jak Crawford made it three different teams in the top three, a tenth further back, while Free Practice pacesetter Luke Browning continued his strong form by securing P4 for Hitech TGR. The Briton, who topped the times earlier in the day, looked like a pole contender at one stage but ultimately fell two tenths shy of Stanek’s benchmark.

Joshua Duerksen put in a strong shift for AIX Racing to go fifth, just ahead of Oliver Goethe, who had briefly gone fastest mid-session for MP Motorsport before being shuffled down the order. Victor Martins slotted into P7 for ART Grand Prix, continuing his consistent form around the challenging Hungaroring layout.

Campos Racing’s Arvid Lindblad ended up eighth, pipping fellow Red Bull junior Alexander Dunne by 0.1s, while Josep María Martí claimed the final spot in the top ten. That hands the Spaniard reverse grid pole for Saturday’s Sprint Race — a valuable opportunity as he continues his title campaign against Fornaroli and Verschoor.

The session had plenty of drama throughout. Fornaroli’s initial effort was deleted for track limits, sending him tumbling down to 22nd before recovering late on. Montoya briefly surged up to fourth for PREMA Racing before being bumped back to 18th by the closing laps, and Meguetounif, Villagómez and Esterson all showed flashes of pace but couldn’t crack the top ten.

Despite a slightly cooler track than earlier, conditions remained physically demanding with 40.7°C track temperature and high tyre wear – characteristics which will almost certainly impact Sunday’s Feature Race strategy. As forecast in the weekend preview, getting in a rhythm was crucial, and Invicta clearly found their flow when it mattered most.

Following a dominant qualifying showing, Invicta Racing look set to carry the momentum into the rest of the weekend. With Stanek now securing his first pole of the season and Fornaroli on the front row, all eyes will be on whether they can convert that advantage in the Feature Race on Sunday morning.

Before that, Saturday’s Sprint Race gets underway at 14:15 local time, with Martí starting from reverse grid pole and Browning looking to climb from P7. Given how close the field was in both Practice and Qualifying, we could be in for another classic weekend at the Hungaroring.

Stay with InsideF2.com for all the build-up and reaction from Budapest.

Photo by James Sutton – Formula 1/Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images