Bortoleto clinches F2 title as Hadjar stalls and Duerksen wins finale · RaceFans

Gabriel Bortoleto was virtually assured of winning the 2024 Formula 2 championship within seconds of the final race starting, as rival Isack Hadjar stalled and failed to get away.

After 33 laps, second place for Bortoleto secured his second title in as many years. As with his Formula 3 success last year, he clinched this crown as a rookie.

Joshua Duerksen won the race ahead of Bortoleto in second, with Richard Verschoor taking the final podium spot in third after passing Victor Martins on the last lap. Hadjar finished a lap down in 19th place.

The two championship contenders had lined up together on the grid, Bortoleto in second and Hadjar in third. But when the lights went out, Hadjar stalled his Campos and was immediately swallowed up by the pack, dropping to the rear. Hadjar was pushed into the pit lane and was able to rejoin the race after being fired up, but was now a lap down, his hopes of the title virtually over.

After passing pole winner Victor Martins at the start, Bortoleto led the early laps on his super soft tyres before pitting for medium tyres. Joshua Duerksen and Martins managed to get ahead of the champion-elect in the pit cycle, while sprint race winner Pepe Marti assumed the lead, heading a group of drivers on the hard tyres.

Marti was caught and passed by Richard Verschoor into turn six, taking the lead of the race. Verschoor eventually pitted with six laps remaining and rejoined sixth on fresh super-softs, handing the true race lead to Duerksen.

Bortoleto caught and passed Martins to take second place, but had to try and make up the two seconds to Duerksen to challenge for the lead. Duerksen missed turn seven after running off at turn six, to Bortoleto’s bemusement, but the AIX driver did not allow Bortoleto to get within a second of him to take his second win of the year and first feature race victory.

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Bortoleto finished 1.7 seconds behind the winner to clinch the championship. The McLaren junior driver will take his place on the Formula 1 grid next year at Sauber, joining others who won the two major feeder series titles consecutively: Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, Mercedes’ George Russell and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.

Verschoor completed the podium in third after passing Martins at the start of the final lap. The pole winner had to settle for fourth ahead of Oliver Bearman, whose F2 career ended with a fifth-place finish. His team mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who will accompany him into F1 next year, missed both this weekend’s F2 races due to illness.

Marti finished sixth with Dino Beganovic in seventh ahead of Amaury Cordeel, Oliver Goethe and Ritomo Miyata. Paul Aron, who started from the pit lane as punishment for Hitech’s alterations to his Drag Reduction System, missed out on the final point by less than a tenth of a second.

The final race of the season also confirmed Invicta as teams champions.

Formula 2 Abu Dhabi race two results

Formula 2 champions (modern era)

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