Marcus Armstrong was in full control in Zandvoort, winning his third Sprint Race of the 2022 Formula 2 season. The Hitech Grand Prix driver got the better launch from the front row and claimed the inside line from pole-sitter Clement Novalak.
From that point on, the New Zealander was untroubled, even through a late Safety Car period that set up a final lap shootout for the victory. Novalak’s P2 finish was his first podium result of the year. Red Bull junior and PREMA Racing man Dennis Hauger returned to the podium for the first time since his Baku Feature Race victory, finishing third.
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The fight for the win was all but over by Turn 1. Armstrong hooked up the second phase of his launch to move alongside MP Motorsport driver Novalak into Turn 1. Novalak’s defence opened the door for Hauger after Juri Vips was blocked by the Frenchman ahead. Into Turn 3, Hauger dived to the inside to take third position from the Hitech Grand Prix driver.
Championship leader Felipe Drugovich finished where he started, crossing the line P10. Closest rival Theo Pourchaire had another day to forget and missed out on points after an early race mistake. The Frenchman attempted a pass on David Beckmann into Turn 1 for P14 but locked up and ran through the gravel. He ended up 20th by the chequered flag.
Elsewhere, Liam Lawson scored another top-five finish, recording a P4 finish after a Lap 1 pass on Vips into Turn 11. Vips had to accept sixth at the end ahead of Ayumu Iwasa, who made a final-lap pass on Richard Verschoor after the Safety Car. Williams Academy driver Logan Sargeant rounded out the points scorers in eighth.
The Formula 2 Feature Race is set for lights out at 1020 local time on Sunday.
For more on the F2 Sprint Race in Zandvoort, check out the full report on the official Formula 2 website.
