Photo: Formula Motorsport Ltd
Formula 2 points leader Theo Pourchaire claimed his second pole position of 2023 in qualifying at Monza.
It was not until 12 minutes into the half-hour session that a laptime was set, with drivers even passing through the pits without stopping prior to that, and it was Campos Racing’s Kush Maini who set the pace.
His 1m32.882s put him 0.108 seconds ahead of Virtuosi Racing’s Jack Doohan, with Van Amersfoort Racing’s Richard Verschoor a further 0.001s behind in third.
Maini was shuffled down to fourth less than a minute later as ART Grand Prix’s practice pacesetter Victor Martins set a 1m32.423s and Hitech GP’s Isack Hadjar and Trident’s Roman Stanek also beat Maini’s benchmark.
Prema’s Frederik Vesti went fifth fastest, several places ahead of title rival Pourchaire, but then was knocked down to eighth.
ART GP driver Pourchaire lowered the pace to 1m32.328s and Ollie Bearman went second fastest with a 1m32.487s as Martins’ best lap was deleted, and Hadjar improved to 1m32.535s in third. Martins’ next-best effort, a 1m32.538s, put him fourth.
Everyone then headed back to the pits to replace their tyres, but Hitech GP’s Jak Crawford did not get to start his next run as his car was surrounded by fie extinguishers while in the pitlane.
Those who did return to track all bunched up and therefore denied themselves the opportunity to improve their pace straight away.
Campos’s Ralph Boschung found space on his own and went 10th fastest, then after the chequered flag Stanek snatched third fom Hadjar by 0.001s.
MP Motorsport’s Dennis Hauger also improved to qualify 11th, with team-mate Jehan Daruvala going 16th fastest.
Despite not improving, Pourchaire secured pole by 0.159s over rookie Bearman.
Qualifying results
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Gaps | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Theo Pourchaire | ART Grand Prix | 1m32.328s | 8 | |
| 2 | Ollie Bearman | Prema | 1m32.487s | +0.159s | 8 |
| 3 | Roman Stanek | Trident | 1m32.534s | +0.206s | 10 |
| 4 | Isack Hadjar | Hitech GP | 1m32.535s | +0.207s | 8 |
| 5 | Victor Martins | ART Grand Prix | 1m32.538s | +0.210s | 8 |
| 6 | Roy Nissany | PHM by Charouz | 1m32.542s | +0.214s | 8 |
| 7 | Jak Crawford | Hitech GP | 1m32.557s | +0.229s | 6 |
| 8 | Frederik Vesti | Prema | 1m32.599s | +0.271s | 8 |
| 9 | Richard Verschoor | Van Amersfoort Racing | 1m32.640s | +0.312s | 9 |
| 10 | Ralph Boschung | Campos Racing | 1m32.655s | +0.327s | 9 |
| 11 | Dennis Hauger | MP Motorsport | 1m32.749s | +0.421s | 9 |
| 12 | Arthur Leclerc | DAMS | 1m32.752s | +0.424s | 9 |
| 13 | Enzo Fittipaldi | Carlin | 1m32.809s | +0.481s | 8 |
| 14 | Jack Doohan | Virtuosi Racing | 1m32.848s | +0.520s | 8 |
| 15 | Ayumu Iwasa | DAMS | 1m32.883s | +0.555s | 8 |
| 16 | Jehan Daruvala | MP Motorsport | 1m33.120s | +0.792s | 9 |
| 17 | Roy Nissany | PHM by Charouz | 1m33.188s | +0.860s | 9 |
| 18 | Juan Manuel Correa | Van Amersfoort Racing | 1m33.210s | +0.882s | 9 |
| 19 | Amaury Cordeel | Virtuosi Racing | 1m33.269s | +0.941s | 8 |
| 20 | Zane Maloney | Carlin | 1m33.401s | +1.073s | 9 |
| 21 | Clement Novalak | Trident | 1m33.474s | +1.146s | 9 |
| 22 | Josh Mason | PHM by Charouz | 1m34.385s | +2.057s | 8 |