PREMA Racing team boss René Rosin has praised the decision to end Saturday’s FIA Formula 2 Sprint Race at Zandvoort after just three laps of running, the majority of which took place behind the safety car.

As rain intensified at Zandvoort on Saturday afternoon, the race start was initially delayed by 10 minutes. It finally got underway with two formation laps behind the safety car.

The opening lap of the race then saw a three-car incident involving Jak Crawford, Kush Maini and Ralph Boschung, which brought out the return of the safety car and then a red flag at the end of Lap 2.

A nearly 30-minute delay followed, and when the race got underway again behind the safety car at 14:00 local time, the rain had once again worsened.

Leaders completed just more one lap before a second red flag came out, whereupon race control announced that the Sprint Race would not be restarted.

“The conditions have been quite dangerous, and visibility was very poor,” Rosin said.

“We’re all here because we like to race, but when coming in terms of safety, it was the right call to stop the race under red flag and due to what happened.

“Because on the other hand, if [another] accident would happen, it would have been too dangerous.”

Though no points were awarded for the race, PREMA driver Ollie Bearman did cross the line third, with Frederik Vesti ending up seventh.

For Sunday’s Feature Race, Vesti will start third and Bearman sixth, mirroring the results of a stop-start Qualifying on Friday.

For Vesti and PREMA as a whole, the race is a key opportunity to gain points on drivers’ standings leader Théo Pourchaire, who starts 10th, and on his team, ART Grand Prix.

“For sure, we would have done a better job,” Rosin said about Qualifying. “Everything was ready for the second set. Unfortunately, we were not able to do a lap due to three red flags that happened yesterday during the qualifying.

“But still having two cars, both cars, in the top six is a good starting point for the Feature Race.”

Image: Formula Motorsport Ltd