Leonardo Fornaroli Takes Maiden Pole in Thrilling Showdown

It was a thrilling battle for pole position between Leonardo Fornaroli and Victor Martins, with Fornaroli ultimately claiming his first Formula 2 pole. The Invicta Racing driver set a blistering time of 1:44.008, edging out Martins by over a tenth, while Hitech TGR’s Luke Browning secured third, giving fans their moneys worth.

Leonardo Fornaroli in Epic Battle With Victor Martins

The session started with Martins, driving for ART, setting the early pace with a 1:45.110, establishing the benchmark. Alexander Dunne, representing Rodin Motorsport, was only 0.002s slower, slotting into second. However, Leonardo Fornaroli quickly took control with a 1:44.642, knocking both of them down the order. His teammate, Roman Stanek, used a slipstream to secure fourth, while PREMA Racing’s Gabriele Minì and Sebastián Montoya rounded out the top six.

With half the field opting to wait, the first 11 cars returned to the pits, while the remaining drivers ventured out for their initial attempts. Josep María Martí was the quickest of the second group, improving to second with a time just 0.223s behind Fornaroli. Richard Verschoor followed in third, with Browning, Martins, and Dunne completing the top six.

As the clock ticked down to the final minutes, everyone rejoined for one last push. Martins briefly regained the top spot with a 1:44.163, but Fornaroli wasn’t done yet—he surged back to P1 to secure his maiden pole position in Formula 2. Browning completed the top three, followed by Dunne and Stanek. Verschoor, Sami Meguetounif (TRIDENT), Rafael Villagómez (Van Amersfoort Racing), Dino Beganovic (Hitech TGR), and Joshua Duerksen rounded out the top 10.

The Formula 2 Sprint Race is scheduled to begin at 17:15pm local time, with Duerksen starting from reverse grid pole for AIX Racing.