Camara rounds off FREC season with win in red-flagged Monza finale

Photo: Dutch Photo Agency

Prema’s Rafael Camara took his seventh Formula Regional Europe win of the year, and ninth in total, to round off a dominant title-winning season in the finale at Monza.

The Ferrari junior got an excellent launch from the second row, taking the lead on lap one and holding off ART Grand Prix’s Alessandro Giusti for victory as the race was halted after just nine laps.

Prema’s James Wharton took the final podium position after an exciting battle with the Sainteloc Racing duo of Theophile Nael and Enzo Peugeot.

Nikita Bedrin drove an excellent race to claim seventh after being relegated to the seventh row on the grid with his best time in qualifying deleted for causing a red flag.

The race was red-flagged with five-and-a-half minutes plus a lap remaining after an incident at Lesmo saw Trident’s Ruiqi Liu spin into the barriers, with KIC Motorsport’s Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi being pitched in alongside him as he tried to take avoiding action.

With the Thai’s car on fire, and both cars embedded in the tyre barrier, the decision was taken not to resume the race.

Pole sitter Nael made a strong start, but Camara’s was even better, sweeping around Giusti in the first chicane. Keeping momentum through the exit, Camara was immediately on Nael’s gearbox as they accelerated through the Curva Grande and calmly took the lead into the Roggia chicane.

Giusti disposed of Nael at the same corner on the following lap and set about chasing down Camara’s lead.

Wharton had demoted Peugeot at Parabolica at the end of the first lap, while race one winner, Ugo Ugochukwu was also making progress, moving past Nael for third.

An incident between Liu and Romain Andriolo at Ascari brought out the safety car. As racing was about to resume at the end of lap six, Brando Badoer’s stricken car was off at Parabolica.

Camara headed Giusti into turn one, but Ugochukwu got very sideways, although he just about managed to collect it and rejoin without damage, while Wharton dived past Nael.

Behind them there was chaos as Van Amersfoort Racing’s Pedro Clerot bowled into Tuukka Taponen and Matteo de Palo, eliminating all three on the spot and requiring the safety car to be deployed again.

Camara got the jump on Giusti at the restart, grabbing a lead of 0.6s as they crossed the line. Nael managed to hold off Wharton, although the Australian was back in front into Parabolica.

Heading past the pits, both Nael and Peugeot were tucked in his slipstream looking for a way past.

Ugochukwu was charging back through the field after his moment, passing Bedrin and then Peugeot to move back to fifth, although with the red flag meaning results were declared at the end of the previous lap, he dropped back to seventh in the final standings.

Taponen held onto third in the final standings despite his retirement, with Giusti requiring victory to overhaul his points total.

The result also ensured that the rookie title went to Race Performance Motorsport’s Noah Stromsted, who took 10th, one place ahead of his remaining challenger, Evan Giltaire.

Race result (9 laps)