Gabriel Bortoleto will start ahead of his title rival Isack Hadjar for the Abu Dhabi Feature race after Victor Martins set the fastest lap in Formula 2 Qualifying.

Bortoleto looked the quickest of the championship contenders and Paul Aron, who still has a shot at the F2 title, put his Hitech car in third.

Hadjar will line up from fourth but will start ahead of Bortoleto in the Sprint race on Saturday.

With neither driver taking pole and grabbing the extra points available, the gap remains at just half a point between the duo.

Advantage Bortoleto after F2 Qualifying

Victor Martins was the first to set an early benchmark, going top with a time of 1:36.245 with Paul Aron close behind by 0.317s.

Title contender Bortoleto slotted himself between the duo with a time of 1:36.479s, and Hadjar’s first lap was only good enough for 14th.

Replays showed that multiple drivers were approaching the final corner very slowly, which affected Hadjar’s outlap.

On the drivers’ second attempts, Kimi Antonelli improved to second before Martins improved on his initial time with a 1:36.191s.

Aron momentarily jumped ahead of Bortoleto but the Brazillian driver set the fastest lap to take provisional pole off the ART driver with a 1:36.050s.

His rival Hadjar finally showcased his true pace and jumped up to fifth, exactly four-tenths off Bortoleto, as he exclaimed over the radio that he felt he could claim pole.

The other Invicta Racing car of Kush Maini set a lap time good enough for third behind Martins in second at the halfway mark of the qualifying session.

With 11 minutes left, the drivers piled out of the pits for their final runs.

Martins was the first to improve significantly, going fastest with a lap time of 1:35.745s.

Hadjar leapt ahead of Bortoleto and up into second, 0.128s off pole as he showed his frustrations over the radio, claiming the lap was “not good enough”.

Bortoleto crucially improved to go second, ahead of the Campos Racing car, and only just missed out on provisional pole in Abu Dhabi by 0.035s.

Rafael Villagomez brought out the red flag soon after with four minutes and 19 seconds left as the stewards decided there was enough time left for more laps to be completed.

Bortoleto also felt disappointed after his lap, questioning why his team decided to wait so long to send him out, pointing out they could have been impacted by the red flag.

When the session resumed, it was clear the 20-year-old was heard by his team as they sent him out before Hadjar.

Bortoleto went first and narrowly avoided improving on his fastest lap as most of the drivers struggled to go quicker.

However, Aron did improve to go third, splitting the championship contenders as Hadjar also failed to improve on his final lap.

This meant Martins would start from pole position for the Feature race on Sunday after setting the fastest lap time of 1.35.745s.

Hadjar was left speechless after he missed out on pole and despite qualifying ahead of his title rival, Bortoleto complained about being too slow in the final corner.

Dino Beganovic impressed yet again, setting a lap time good enough for fifth behind Hadjar.

Maini ended up in sixth and Pepe Marti in seventh, crucial positions for their respective teams – Campos and Invicta.

Ritomo Miyata finished in eighth, Joshua Durksen in ninth and Amaury Cordeel rounded off the top 10.

Cordell will therefore start Saturday’s Sprint race from pole position ahead of Durksen on the front row.

After the session, Maini was handed a three-place grid penalty for impeding DAMS Lucas Oil driver Jak Crawford.

This bumps him down the starting order to eighth for the Sprint race after he was set to start from fifth place.

Beganovic, Hadjar and Aron all move up one place to fifth, sixth and seventh respectively.

READ MORE: Isack Hadjar and Gabriel Bortoleto prepare for F2 title showdown

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Victor Martins will remain with reigning champions ART Grand Prix for his sophomore season in Formula 2 in 2024, the team has announced.

The Frenchman’s association with ART stretches back to clinching his first championship in single-seaters when he won the Formula Renault Eurocup title in 2020.

Prior to that, Martins had sustained much success in karting at both national and international levels, before racing a single-seater for the first time in French F4 late in 2016.

The Frenchman progressed into Formula 3 after his Eurocup triumph and scored a solitary win in his first year in the category to wound up fifth overall with MP Motorsport.

Martins became reunited with the ART side to encounter his second crack at the third-tier category and added a further two wins as he secured the 2022 Drivers’ crown.

The 22-year-old remained with the French squad for his foray into F2, where he took one victory to end fifth in the standings as ART scooped the Teams’ Championship.

With nine podiums, three pole positions and six fastest laps, Martins was also the highest-placed rookie on the grid, earning him the Anthoine Hubert Award for 2023.

Martins is currently a member of the Alpine Academy and he made his Formula 1 testing debut last May when he drove the Enstone team’s A521 car at Monza in Italy.

“Together with ART Grand Prix, we have a mutual past that is made up of passion and success,” said Martins. “One which has seen the crowning of several titles, I hope to add another in 2024, a decisive season for my development.

“But I will not have my eyes solely focused on the standings: I want to correct mistakes from last year, manage the championship over time and always strive to obtain the best possible result, whether the circumstances are favourable or complicated.

“There is no shortage of serious competitors in this discipline. There is also an element of unknowns with a new car, but I trust ART Grand Prix to make the most out of it. The team supplies me with all the support I need, just like Alpine, and I am holding all the cards I need to achieve my objectives.”

Martins will partner British star and Williams prospect Zak O’Sullivan, who came runner-up in F3 last season and will replace outgoing champion Theo Pourchaire.

ART Team Principal Sébastien Philippe added: “The collaboration between ART Grand Prix and Victor dates back to 2020 when he was successfully crowned the Formula Renault champion. We did a good job and have grown together since then.

“Therefore, I didn’t envisage not continuing our adventure with him. His first year in Formula 2 was very good and very informative. It allowed him to constantly fight for pole positions and victories.

“In 2024, our common objective will logically be to erase any small mistakes from last season and win the title.”

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Alpine will give Formula 2 driver Victor Martins his first Formula 1 test at Monza alongside Alpine reserve driver Jack Doohan.

Reigning Formula 3 champion, Martins, will drive the team’s A521 which ran in the 2021 Formula 1 season.

Martins will join Alpine’s F1 reserve driver Jack Doohan for the test in Italy, with the Frenchman taking driving duties on Monday and Doohan running in the car on Tuesday.

“I am super excited to get my first taste in a Formula 1 car in Monza on Monday,” Martins said. “It will be the first time I will work closely with the Alpine team at a track and to be able to have my first opportunity in an F1 car with them is pretty special. I aim to get a lot of track time and enjoy it all.

“I am really grateful to get this first chance thanks to Alpine and all the team. I have had my seat fit and we have completed some simulator work for it, which is all very exciting. Now I am just looking forward to getting out on track and maximise the opportunity to learn as much as possible.”

Martins currently sits 15th in the F2 drivers’ standings but took to the podium twice this season in the opening three races. The 21-year-old has been a member of the Alpine Academy since 2018 and made a brief exit before returning to the Alpine line-up in 2020 after winning the Formula Renault Europcup title.  

“We are looking forward to having Victor test in the A521 in Monza and giving him his first run in a Formula 1 car,” said Alpine Academy director Julian Rouse.

“He has spent time in Enstone preparing for his test, running in the simulator, and having his seat fit. During his time in the Alpine Academy he has had some fantastic achievements, one of which being the current FIA Formula 3 Champion. Now he has progressed to Formula 2 and showing huge potential there it is definitely the right moment to see him test in an F1 car. We are pleased as an Academy to continue to support Victor in his development and extend opportunities when they arise.”

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Victor Martins stormed to pole position for the second round of the Formula 2 season, with the reigning Formula 3 champion dominating the field in a session that was shortened by a red flag.

Martins found himself in the mix straight away, fighting for the top of the time sheets with Ferrari juniors and fellow rookies Arthur Leclerc and Oliver Bearman.

In the end, it was the ART driver who set the fastest time, with a commanding margin of 0.744s over Bearman, who in turn managed to stay ahead of Martin’s teammate and championship leader Theo Pourchaire by only a thousandth of a second.

All 22 drivers were out on track early in the session, taking two warmup laps to get enough heat into the supersoft tyres as well as the brakes.

Roman Stanek was the first to set a competitive lap time, with times quickly coming in after and Leclerc eventually taking the lead with a lap time of 1.42.629 before the first red flag came out.

It was Richard Verschoor who, with 18 minutes left on the clock, caused the interruption, the dutchman spun into turn 22, causing his Van Amersfoort to stall and losing the engine, meaning he could no longer take part in the session.

After a brief red flag period to clear the stricken car, both ARTs and Carlins came out of the box on a used set of softs, before aborting the lap and returning to the pits.

After a quiet few minutes, which saw only Juan Manuel Correa and Jak Crawford on the track, the remaining cars came spilling out of the pitlane.

With 10 minutes left on the clock, drivers followed the same warm up procedure as during the early stages of the session.

With the high track evolution coming into play, it was Bearman who managed to find himself at the top of the timing sheets before Martins set a dominating lap, pushing the Ferrari junior down to second, before a second red flag came out.

Leclerc pulled over in turn 22, after seemingly having made contact with the wall on his flying lap. With only two minutes left on the board, the session would not be restarted, causing Dennis Hauger to miss out on completing his flying lap, which left the MP driver down in 15^th.

Pourchaire, who was on pole last time out in Bahrain by a similar margin, slotted into third behind Bearman, while Jack Doohan will join him on the second row on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Jehan Daruvala found himself in fifth, ahead of the highest-ranked Red Bull junior Ayumu Iwasa in sixth. Mercedes junior Frederik Vesti will slot into seventh, ahead of Kush Maini.

Last round’s Sprint Race winner Ralph Boschung and Hitech’s Jak Crawford round out the top ten, with Crawford set to start from pole for tomorrow’s Sprint race.

The 20-lap Sprint Race will take place tomorrow, at 18:10 local time, with the Feature Race set for Sunday, at 16:15 local time.

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Formula 3 champion Victor Martins has been rewarded for his 2022 campaign with a seat in Formula 2 with ART for this year.

Martins claimed two Feature Race wins last season as the ART driver won the title on a bizarre day in Monza, beating Zane Maloney and Oliver Bearman to the crown.

The 21-year-old Frenchman is to remain with his native team for this year as he climbs onto the final rung of the racing ladder before Formula 1.

READ MORE: Barter signed to Campos’ F3 squad for 2023

“The 2023 season will be exciting and motivating. After a successful year with ART Grand Prix, I was not considering taking the next step with any other team,” he said in a press release.

“I can’t wait to discover the Formula 2 championship, which is tough and competitive, with such a professional and experienced team. 

“The tests made it possible to remove what little doubts I might have had about my adaptation because I felt comfortable and confident. 

“My objective will therefore be to do everything possible to win the title in my first year. With ART Grand Prix, I have all the tools to have big ambitions.”

Martins joins nine other drivers on last year’s F3 roster in moving up to F2 this year.

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Two of Alpine’s Formula 1 junior drivers have announced their racing plans for the upcoming season.

Caio Collet and Victor Martins will both remain in the FIA Formula 3 Championship, with the former sticking with MP Motorsport for a second campaign.

Martins, however, moves to ART Grand Prix, having spent time with the team at post-season testing last year.

Martins ended the 2021 F3 campaign fifth in the Drivers’ standings, taking one victory and a further five podiums across the season.

He will join Gregoire Saucy and Juan Manuel Correa at the squad for the upcoming year.

“I am very happy to be able to collaborate with ART Grand Prix once again,” said Martins. “This time for the 2022 FIA F3 Championship, following on from a 2020 season [in Formula Renault Eurocup] that was filled with common successes. 

“I am excited for this opportunity and to start this new adventure together. Our goals are big, and we are ready to achieve them.

“I have already done a lot of work this winter to start the season well prepared from the first few laps behind the wheel. I can’t wait to get back in the car!”

Collet’s 2021 season saw him take two podiums in F3 and a ninth place finishing position in the standings.

The Frenchman will have Alexander Smolyar as a team-mate this year, with MP Motorsport’s third driver yet to be announced.

“I’m very happy to continue in FIA F3 with MP Motorsport and the enduring support of the Alpine Academy,” said Collet. 

“We were strong in 2021 – and that was while taking on many accomplished drivers in an intensely competitive championship. 

“With the knowledge that I have gained in my first season, I’m very much aiming to improve on last year’s results. I’m also looking forward to again racing in the special atmosphere of the Grand Prix weekends, and in front of the F1 teams.”

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