Ferrari junior driver Oliver Bearman secured his first pole position of the Formula 2 season in qualifying at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.
After a dismal start to the season in Bahrain for Prema last weekend, where Bearman and team mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli qualified on the ninth row, the team bounced back in qualifying. Bearman secured his fourth feature race pole position in F2 by two hundredths of a second.
Kush Maini, who was quickest in qualifying last week before being disqualified for a technical infringement, was narrowly beaten to second place.
Jak Crawford will start Saturday’s feature race third alongside Alpine junior Victor Martins. Enzo Fittipaldi took fifth on the grid.
Underlining Prema’s improved form, Mercedes junior driver Antonelli took sixth, just two tenths off his pole-winning team mate.
Dennis Hauger, Red Bull junior Isack Hadjar, Richard Verschoor and Paul Aron completed the top ten. Aron will therefore start Friday’s sprint race from pole position.
It was a poor session for championship leader Zane Maloney, winner of both races in Bahrain, who qualified 16th for both this weekend’s encounters.
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Amaury Cordeel was the slowest qualifier, taking 21st on the grid. His five-place grid penalty for colliding with Oliver Bearman is therefore likely to have no effect.
Rafael Villagomez failed to participate in the session due to damage sustained in a crash with the wall in practice. He requires approval from the stewards to take part in the races.
Formula 2 Saudi Arabian qualifying results
| Position | Car | Driver | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Ollie Bearman | Prema |
| 2 | 9 | Kush Maini | Invicta |
| 3 | 7 | Jak Crawford | DAMS |
| 4 | 1 | Victor Martins | ART |
| 5 | 14 | Enzo Fittipaldi | Van Amersfoort |
| 6 | 4 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Prema |
| 7 | 11 | Dennis Hauger | MP Motorsport |
| 8 | 20 | Isack Hadjar | Campos |
| 9 | 22 | Richard Verschoor | Trident |
| 10 | 17 | Paul Aron | Hitech |
| 11 | 21 | Josep Maria Marti | Campos |
| 12 | 23 | Roman Stanek | Trident |
| 13 | 12 | Franco Colapinto | MP Motorsport |
| 14 | 2 | Zak O’Sullivan | ART |
| 15 | 10 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Invicta |
| 16 | 5 | Zane Maloney | Rodin |
| 17 | 8 | Juan Manuel Correa | DAMS |
| 18 | 25 | Taylor Barnard | PHM |
| 19 | 24 | Joshua Duerksen | PHM |
| 20 | 6 | Ritomo Miyata | Rodin |
| 21 | 16 | Amaury Cordeel | Hitech |
| 22 | 15 | Rafael Villagomez | Van Amersfoort |
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Formula 2
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