PIASTRI SCORES FIRST F2 WIN

Australian Oscar Piastri has notched up his first Formula 2 win taking out the second sprint race of the opening round in Bahrain.

The 2020 F3 Champion took full advantage of a chaotic race and clever strategy to storm through the field in the 23-lap sprint under lights to make his way up from sixth on the grid to score the win.

Piastri struggled to make any positions at the start of the race but kept clear of the carnage before pitting for fresh rubber on Lap 18.

From there the Australian was able to push forward into podium contention on Lap 19, before stealing the lead on the final lap in a close-fought battle between the top three runners.

Oscar Piastri scores first F2 win – Image: Suttons

“That has to be the craziest race win I’ve ever had in my life.” said Piastri.

“We struggled during the first half of the race on hard tyres and, to be honest, I wasn’t driving good enough, still getting used to the grip change we had from the earlier [Race 1] race.”

“Full credit to PREMA, they called ‘box’ and I did my first ever pit stop, that was pretty daunting, and I pulled off a few good moves at the end and here we are on the top step.”

Guanyu Zhou and Jehan Daruvala rounded out the podium in the second race, while Christian Lundgaard who was also in the battle for the lead tumbled down the order after receiving a 10-second penalty.

Liam Lawson also claimed a win – Image: Suttons

It was a fantastic start to the FIA Formula 2 Championship for the rookies, with Kiwi youngster Liam Lawson also taking the win in the opening race.

Lawson launched off the start in the opening race from the third position on the grid to lead the field by the first corner. The New Zealander was able to command the field from there to notch his first F2 win.

The Kiwi’s luck turned in the second race after he was spun, also suffering a puncture which ruined what looked to be another good result.

Piastri finished fifth in the opening race of the weekend.

The opening round of Formula 2 concludes tonight with the 32-lap feature race.

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