The F2 circus travelled further into the Middle East this weekend, now settling at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Saudi Arabia. The MP team prepared for the second round after ending the first weekend with 14 points.
After the practice session on Thursday, it seemed it was going to be an exciting weekend for the MP team, with Dennis setting the fastest lap on the grid. Later that day, it was time for qualifying. Dennis managed to qualify at P7, with Franco not going as quickly as he could’ve gone because of some repairs on his suspension. It was a 13th position for him.
There was all to race for during the two sessions on Friday and Saturday, starting with the Sprint Race on Friday. Both MP drivers managed to take multiple positions during the race after a hectic start. Franco overtook a total of five drivers, after being stalled on the grid. This meant a P13 for the Argentinian. Dennis started fourth, because of the reversed qualifying grid. At the halfway point of the race, Dennis took the third position of Hadjar, which already put him on the podium. But in the 18th lap of the race, Dennis overtook Aron for P2 in the sprint race. A great result to begin with, but due to post race penalties, Dennis was promoted to P1 and got his first win of the 2024 F2 season!
The Feature Race on Saturday can be labelled as a one with big ups and downs. The biggest letdown came in the fifteenth lap when Franco tapped the wall with the right side of his car, which caused the car to spin in the first corner of the track. Franco wasn’t able to continue the race. Dennis fought until the end of the race for P5 with Antonelli where he came out on top in the penultimate lap. But then, in the final corners, Dennis made a move in between Crawford and Cordeel and crossed the finish line on P3! A second podium for our Norwegian driver and also taking the third position in the general standings.
In two weeks, we will be travelling to Melbourne for the third race of the F2 season, starting on the 22nd of March.
Standings after the second round:
P3 Dennis – 31 points
P12 Franco – 8 points
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