Roman Stanek Takes Pole in Season Finale

Roman Stanek clinched his second Formula 2 pole of the season, beating Jak Crawford in the final qualifying session of the year in Abu Dhabi.

Crawford, who is battling three other drivers for second in the championship, set the early pace with a 1:37.633 on the first runs, leading Joshua Duerksen and Sebastian Montoya. Montoya briefly moved to the top with an improved lap, only for Crawford and then Duerksen to better his time.

Crawford’s fastest lap was later deleted for track limits, dropping him to fourth at the halfway mark. Newly crowned champion Leonardo Fornaroli split Duerksen and Montoya in second, while Invicta Racing teammate Stanek climbed to fifth.

Arvid Lindblad, recently announced as a 2025 Formula 1 driver with Racing Bulls, had both of his first laps deleted but rebounded with a clean 1:37.247, taking provisional pole with six minutes remaining. That time was soon beaten by Oliver Goethe whose lap was later deleted before Dino Beganovic matched Goethe’s benchmark to the thousandth.

Montoya returned to the top once more, but Crawford edged ahead by 0.007s, only for Stanek to deliver a stunning 1:36.836, nearly two-tenths clear of the field.

Crawford recovered to within 0.087s on his final run to secure second, while Fornaroli jumped from sixth to third at the flag. Beganovic improved again to take fourth ahead of Montoya, with Goethe putting in a legal lap late on to secure sixth.

Victor Martins qualified seventh, followed by Duerksen, while Nikola Tsolov earned his second consecutive top-10 start, pipping Campos teammate Lindblad to ninth.

Crawford’s three rivals for runner-up in the championship all missed the top 10:
• Alex Dunne – 11th
• Richard Verschoor – 12th
• Luke Browning – 17th

From F1 news to tech, history to opinions, F1 Chronicle has a free Substack. To deliver the stories you want straight to your inbox, click here.

For more F1 news and videos, follow us on Microsoft Start.

New to Formula 1? Check out our Glossary of F1 Terms, and our Beginners Guide to Formula 1 to fast-track your F1 knowledge

More F1 Reading

• Colton Herta makes F2 decision after difficult season amid F1 ambitions
• Lando Norris launches LN4 Fusion junior team and driver development programme
• Who Is Arthur Leclerc?
• What Is The Difference Between Formula 1 And Formula 2 Cars?

Written by

James Rees

A passionate motorsport journalist from Wales, with over 30 years of love for the sport. A dedicated father of three, working as a content manager, covering the fast-paced world of Formula 1, Formula 2, Formula 3, Formula E, and IndyCar.

More articles by James Rees →