Photo: Formula Motorsport Limited
Campos Racing’s Ralph Boschung topped the postponed Formula 2 free practice at Imola, but a trio of red flags in the shortened session meant few laps were completed.
The circuit was too wet for F2 to run in its original slot, and so its single practice session was moved to the afternoon and trimmed by 15 minutes. Even in its new slot, it got delayed further due to bad weather at the track.
It was just five minutes in when the first red flags came out, as Hitech GP’s Marcus Armstrong crashed on the run down to Acque Minerali.
The session resumed as it approached its halfway point, but no driver had completed more than three laps before Carlin’s Logan Sargeant spun at the end of the second Rivazza and stalled.
At that point, it was Hitech’s Vips and Boschung who sat at the top.
In the final five-minute dash, Boschung went quickest. Vips was fastest in the first and second sectors, but did not quite have enough in the third to reclaim top spot.
However, there was further drama as Boschung spun in the final moments of the session at Tamburello, bringing out the third red flag and ending the running.
Prema’s Jehan Daruvala went third fastest at the end, over a second off the pace, ahead of Clement Novalak (MP Motorsport), Marino Sato (Virtuosi Racing), Felipe Drugovich (MP), Dennis Hauger (Prema), Richard Verschoor (Trident), returnee David Beckmann (Charouz Racing System) and Liam Lawson (Carlin).
In addition to the pair who went off, Ayumu Iwasa (DAMS) and Enzo Fittipaldi (Charouz) did not set a laptime, while none of the times set by Jake Hughes and Amaury Cordeel (both Van Amersfoort Racing), or Calan Williams (Trident) were particularly representative.
Free practice results
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ralph Boschung | Campos Racing | 1m41.996s | 5 | |
| 2 | Juri Vips | Hitech GP | 1m42.277s | +0.281s | 5 |
| 3 | Jehan Daruvala | Prema | 1m43.362s | +1.366s | 4 |
| 4 | Clement Novalak | MP Motorsport | 1m43.968s | +1.972s | 5 |
| 5 | Marino Sato | Virtuosi | 1m44.083s | +2.087s | 5 |
| 6 | Felipe Drugovich | MP Motorsport | 1m44.316s | +2.320s | 5 |
| 7 | Dennis Hauger | Prema | 1m44.629s | +2.633s | 4 |
| 8 | Richard Verschoor | Trident | 1m44.704s | +2.708s | 4 |
| 9 | David Beckmann | Charouz Racing System | 1m44.741s | +2.745s | 5 |
| 10 | Liam Lawson | Carlin | 1m44.838s | +2.842s | 5 |
| 11 | Jack Doohan | Virtuosi | 1m45.102s | +3.106s | 5 |
| 12 | Olli Caldwell | Campos Racing | 1m46.251s | +4.255s | 5 |
| 13 | Theo Pourchaire | ART Grand Prix | 1m46.755s | +4.799s | 5 |
| 14 | Roy Nissany | DAMS | 1m47.104s | +5.108s | 4 |
| 15 | Frederik Vesti | ART Grand Prix | 1m47.602s | +5.606s | 5 |
| 16 | Calan Williams | Trident | 1m50.410s | +8.414s | 3 |
| 17 | Amaury Cordeel | Van Amersfoort Racing | 1m52.885s | +10.889s | 4 |
| 18 | Jake Hughes | Van Amersfoort Racing | 1m54.422s | +12.426s | 4 |
| 19 | Marcus Armstrong | Hitech GP | no time | 1 | |
| 20 | Logan Sargeant | Carlin | no time | 2 | |
| 21 | Ayumu Iwasa | DAMS | no time | 3 | |
| 22 | Enzo Fittipaldi | Charouz Racing System | no time | 3 |