Red Bull reserve driver Liam Lawson sought to cap off the final round of the Formula 2 season in style, holding his nerve to take a commanding fourth Sprint Race victory in Abu Dhabi ahead of Trident’s Richard Verschoor and Aston Martin reserve driver Felipe Drugovich.
Things weren’t quite so smooth sailing initially, as he found himself unable to get past reverse grid pole-sitter Verschoor off the line, whilst a huge collision between Jehan Daruvala and Enzo Fittipaldi brought out an early red flag for barrier repairs.
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Waiting patiently after the restart, Lawson pounced on Lap 10 and never looked back, reaching the chequered flag a staggering 7.9s clear of the Dutchman.
Meanwhile, 2022 champion Drugovich used all his tyre management experience to his advantage to overtake both Dennis Hauger and Amaury Cordeel for third, with PREMA Racing’s Hauger also finding his way through on the Belgian late on.
In his quest to secure the Super Licence points needed to guarantee his promotion to F1 with Williams for 2023, Logan Sargeant survived several nervous moments on the opening lap to take sixth ahead of Alpine junior Jack Doohan and Roy Nissany.
With third to seventh separated by only 12 points, Sargeant goes into the final Feature Race of the year four points clear of Carlin team mate Lawson on 138 and 134 points each, with Doohan, Daruvala and Fittipaldi close behind. In the Teams’ fight, MP Motorsport hold a seven-point lead over ART Grand Prix and third-placed Carlin.
Iwasa has the opportunity to cap off his rookie season with victory in the Feature Race when he lines up on pole on Sunday at 1300 local time.
For the full report, head to the official Formula 2 website.
