Written by Ellie Nicholls
Richard Verschoor will start from first in Sunday’s feature race after narrowly clinching his second Formula Two pole position in a disrupted and chaotic qualifying in Baku.
Image credit: Formula 2 via X
Track evolution played a major part in the timings throughout the session, and as drivers began to set their initial lap times, it was purple sector after purple sector on the timing board, with Verschoor and Victor Martins setting the pace in the early stages.
With just over four minutes remaining, the session came to a stop due to a highly unusual incident at turn one. As the drivers returned to the track to prepare for their final laps, mechanical issues for both Campos cars caused them to head straight into the barrier just a few moments apart- prompting the red flag to be flown.
As qualifying resumed, drivers did not have enough time remaining to properly prepare the tyres for a push lap. This resulted in a desperate scramble for track position in the closing stages, as drivers aimed to place themselves in the best possible spot to gain a tow from the car in front.
Zane Maloney and Kimi Antonelli showed strong pace, with both drivers setting purple sectors thanks to the advantage of a slipstream. As they crossed the line, first Maloney and then Antonelli shot to the top of the timing screen - but both drivers were unable to match the form of Verschoor, who claimed pole position by just 0.017s from Antonelli.
“I always love to be on the street tracks. Monaco was my first pole in F2, and this was my second, so I'm happy to get that this year.” shared Verschoor. “I just like to be on the street tracks and I always like to push the boundaries and I'm not very afraid of pushing.”
A disappointing Friday for Campos, contrasting Trident’s strong form. Image credit: Formula 2 via X
It was a very successful Friday afternoon for Trident, with Verschoor set to start from pole in the feature race and rookie Christian Mansell starting his first race in Formula Two on reverse pole position after finishing 10th in qualifying.
The team will be eager to convert their strong qualifying pace into a good points haul this weekend after what has been a fairly difficult season for the Italian outfit.
“Baku is normally a crazy race, and you never know where you're going to end up. Anything can happen. That’s why P1 is nice, but I still want to do a good race.” explained Verschoor, setting expectations for the weekend ahead.
“For Christian [Mansell], I think he did a super good job. I'm very happy for him and let's see how it goes tomorrow from pole.”
Antonelli, meanwhile, was forced to settle for second place- matching his season-best qualifying result in Australia, but not quite reaching the maiden pole position he had been aiming for.
Antonelli qualified just 0.017s short of pole position. Image credit: Formula 2
“I'm a bit disappointed. The session was good, but of course P2 with such a small gap is always a bit frustrating.” said Antonelli. “I managed to build up lap by lap and secure a good lap on set two, which wasn’t easy because the red flag came out pretty early on during the first push."
“Since Melbourne, I’ve improved mainly in the race craft, and the starts as well. Obviously in Baku, looking at the past, it's always a crazy race. We'll see what's going to happen, but for sure starting in the front row will help.”
After setting the pace early on in the session, Victor Martins ultimately qualified in third place- achieving his best result since Silverstone despite having some issues throughout the day on Friday.
“My first lap before the red flag was not good. I was feeling really weak in the car and I think I didn't maximise everything for the last lap.” shared Martins. “In [free practice] we were struggling a bit with a few points. I think this is a good starting point for the weekend.”
“I would say there's no expectations [going into the races], you just need to prepare yourself, be ready for everything, every condition. If there is a safety car, if there is a red flag- you just need to be prepared for everything.”
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