Written by Vyas Ponnuri
It's the final weekend before Formula 2 heads off into a five-week hiatus before returning at Monza for the Italian round of the season at the end of August. Two drivers head into this weekend on the back of largely contrasting campaigns, with Jak Crawford experiencing a stellar campaign in sixth for DAMS, while Zane Maloney has slid down from the lead to fourth in the standings.
It's been a resurgent season for both drivers, who were ousted from the Red Bull Junior Team at the end of 2023, and have found spaces elsewhere. Crawford was snapped up by the Aston Martin F1 team to be their junior driver, while Maloney has found his space in the Sauber Driver Academy, driving with the colours of the Kick Sauber F1 team on his car.
The Bajan driver began the year strong, sweeping the first weekend of Formula 2's brand new era at Bahrain, winning both the sprint and the feature races.
A unique pattern in his podium finishes saw the Rodin Motorsport driver net two wins, two runner-ups and two third place finishes this year, with each set of results coming in successive races. He took two wins at Bahrain, third in the feature race at Australia and then at the sprint in Imola, and two successive runner-up finishes in the sprint and feature races around Silverstone earlier in July.
While these scores have helped Maloney sit fourth in the standings, it's been a downward ascent for the Sauber junior driver. His poor run of form in between rostrum appearances mean Maloney has dropped down to fourth in the standings.
A string of below-par rounds have seen the man from Barbados lose ground to main protagonists Paul Aron and Isack Hadjar, while Invicta's Gabriel Bortoleto has managed to move up into third, ahead of the Rodin Motorsport racer.
Even still, you'd wonder if the brace of runners-up finishes around Silverstone were a welcome return to form, and whether Maloney could think about the championship battle once again. As he approached this weekend, the Bajan driver felt he never lost the championship fight, always believing he was in a good place all season:
"Yeah, (I) don't think I ever lost the championship fight. You aren't at this stage when it's very unrealistic, I think I'm always in that fight," Maloney responded.
He then referred to his podium appearances all season, and delved into the races when he wasn't on the podium.
"Like you said, the podiums have come right after each other.
"But if you dig into every detail of why we haven't been on the podium when we haven't, sometimes you would understand at first that it's from my side, or the pace, and other times, it was out our control."
Maloney then gave the instance of approaching the weekend in the same manner as he has all season, referring to instances when he expected podiums but didn't get points, and that he has been in a good place all year:
"I'm approaching this weekend the same (manner). Last weekend, it was clear two podiums were on the cards, and we came away with zero points.
"I say that we are in a good place. The pace is strong, the mentality is strong within the team, it has been even when we won both races in Bahrain.
"So, we're looking forward to getting on a sheet of paper (a points score). It means nothing without that (the points scored), and other than the sheet of paper, everything is going well," Maloney responded, looking to bring home the points to continue his strong showing this year.
On the other hand, Jak Crawford's season has seen a gradual uptick in form as the year has progressed.
The American driver started the season right behind Maloney with second in the Bahrain sprint, but his season didn't quite hit the same highs as the Rodin driver. Two top-five finishes in Jeddah were followed by lower points scores in Albert Park and Imola, before he was taken out by Kush Maini in the Monaco feature race.
Barcelona has proved the turning point for the Aston Martin junior, with victory in the feature race helping him turn over a new leaf, and catapult Crawford well into the top ten of the standings, at that.
He took another victory on track at Silverstone two rounds later, but a penalty for an unsafe release in the pits dropped the DAMS racer to third, with Hadjar inheriting the win.
In between was a stellar drive from the pit lane to tenth at the Red Bull Ring, with Crawford running well into the race on hard tyres before strapping on a fresh set of boots to get him a singular point by the chequered flag.
When asked about his recent change in form this season, Crawford drew upon multiple reasons being responsible for his charge this season.
"I think there are many reasons for (improved form)," Crawford said. "First of all, being in my second season (of Formula 2), I have a bit more experience, knowing what to expect from the track, the car, and the tyres. These are a big help as well," the DAMS racer said, drawing upon his second season in the series as a factor in his improved performance.
The American pointed to his growth on the personal side, as well as an improved understanding of the car helping him perform better this year:
"It's also down to personal growth, sort of on the technical side (as well), understanding how the car is driven, so that will help as well.
"I feel like I've always been fast, but this year, I've been able to put it together (on the track)," Crawford concluded.
So far, the two have qualified in the top ten, with Crawford putting in a strong lap to qualify fourth, while Maloney was able to take a sixth-position start for the race on Sunday.
During the shortened seven-lap sprint, the DAMS racer was able to put his greater understanding of the car to full effect, moving past Andrea Kimi Antonelli at the start, before out-tractioning rookie Franco Colapinto into turn one later on to take fifth on the road, before the red flag was called and the race not resumed.
Maloney finished one place ahead of Crawford, in fourth, having moved ahead of Colapinto ahead to take home the position, and two vital points along the way to further his campaign.
With both drivers starting fourth and sixth for the feature race, you wonder if they will be able to mount a stern challenge towards the trio ahead, and put their names into the hat for victory on Sunday.
Tune in to the feature race at 10:00 track time (09:00 BST) to find out how they — as well as 20 other drivers fare, before the season heads into a five-week lull.
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