Stenshorne tops qualifying but Haverkort gets FREC pole at Zandvoort

Photo: Diederik van der Laan / Dutch Photo Agency

R-ace GP’s Martinius Stenshorne was fastest in qualifying for the first Formula Regional European Championship race of the weekend at Zandvoort.

The Norwegian, looking to close the gap to championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli, topped Group B by 0.06 seconds over ART Grand Prix’s Laurens Van Hoepen.

However a four-place grid penalty carried over from the previous round at Monza means he will start fifth, while Van Amersfoort Racing’s Kas Haverkort lines up in pole spot after he emerged on top of a thrilling battle in Group A which was on track first.

Prema’s Antonelli and R-ace GP’s Tim Tramnitz had been exchanging fastest times throughout the session, then Haverkort put in a flying lap at the end to pip Antonelli by 0.026s.

After Friday’s rain and strong winds, Saturday morning brought cold but clear conditions to the Dutch circuit.

Tramnitz set the early pace, and with six minutes to go he led Antonelli by 0.085s with a 1m32.673s lap.

Haverkort went fastest in all three sectors and set a 1m32.047s, then as track conditions improved and drivers could get more temperature into their tyres, Antonelli became the first to lap sub-1m32s next time around.

Though Tramnitz closed to within 0.12s of him he was unable to improve further on his final lap. Instead, it was Haverkort who met the chequered flag with a 1m31.868s lap to return to the top.

Race Performance Motorsport’s Maceo Capietto continued his strong weekend with fourth ahead of Prema’s Lorenzo Fluxa and Monolite Racing’s debuting Nikita Bedrin, with an improved showing from R-ace’s Matias Zagazeta earning him seventh in the group.

Stenshorne jumped to the top of the times in Group B on his fourth lap, before being demoted first by ART GP’s Marcus Amand and then MP Motorsport’s Sami Meguetounif.

Prema’s Rafael Camara briefly held the top spot but was replaced by van Hoepen who set a 1m32.157s time with just under six minutes to go. Meguetounif moved back ahead, with debuting team-mate Javier Sagrera briefly holding third.

Van Hoepen was clearly revelling in conditions at his home circuit, with his team also appearing to have made strong progress, as he posted a 1m31.936s to go top and opened the possibility of an all-Dutch front row.

However, Stenshorne was still improving, posting a 1m31.841s on his eighth lap and then improving again to top the combined classification of the two groups.

Trident’s Roman Bilinski was an encouraging third fastest in Group B, ahead of Camara and Meguetounif. G4 Racing’s Alessandro Giusti  had to settle for sixth, with Amand and Sagrera in seventh and eighth.

Qualifying results