First and second drivers separated by 0.001s in final session with top 13 within one second

Mihai Marinescu went quickest by a mere 0.001s during today’s (Thursday) fiercely contested Formula Two test at Portimão, which saw the top 13 drivers lapping inside one second in the final session.

The 23-year-old just edged out Kevin Mirocha with a best time of 1:33.871s to go top for the day with current championship leader Luciano Bacheta third and Markus Pommer, who topped the day’s previous three sessions, in fourth. Parthiva Sureshwaren completed the top five.

The morning’s first two sessions both saw drivers having to contend with light rain and their first chance to sample the new Yokohama wet tyre. 21-year-old Pommer topped both these sessions comfortably followed by the first dry session after the lunch break to make it three from three.

In the day’s last 55-minute stint, where drivers were able to use their overboost, it was Pommer who once again looked the most threatening early on and the first to break into the 1:33s. He was closely followed by Marinescu and Bacheta, celebrating his 22nd birthday, before the Romanian then went even quicker with Mirocha lapping an incredible 0.001s adrift and leaving the top four drivers separated by just one tenth of a second.

A second red flag then interrupted running in the final stages but no one was able to better Marinescu’s pace with his best time 1.322s quicker than the pole from 2010.

Swiss teenager Mathéo Tuscher, who had looked quick all day, ended sixth quickest overall ahead of Plamen Kralev, one of his best qualifying performances, and Alex Fontana in eighth. David Zhu and Hector Hurst completed the top 10 ahead of tomorrow’s first free practice session for rounds three and four at the Algarve circuit, which gets underway at 10:10 (local time).

Formula Two Results: Portugal test – overall times.

1. Mihai Marinescu, 1:33.871s
2. Kevin Mirocha, +0.001s
3. Luciano Bacheta, +0.078s
4. Markus Pommer, +0.099s
5. Parthiva Sureshwaren, +0.422s
6. Mathéo Tuscher, +0.460s
7. Plamen Kralev, +0.606s
8. Alex Fontana, +0.615s
9. David Zhu, +0.689s
10. Hector Hurst, +0.766s

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Drivers applaud innovative new feature at Silverstone

Last weekend’s opening rounds of the 2012 FIA Formula Two Championship at Silverstone saw the introduction of an innovative new overboost system, leading to some of the series’ closest racing.

The new ‚F1-style‘ system shares similarities with the DRS feature used in Formula One. Each driver has up to eight shots of overboost available to them – increasing power output of the F2 car from 425bhp to 500bhp for a period of six seconds – but can only use them if they’re within one second of the car ahead.

Two activation zones, named Boost Zones (BZ), were introduced around the 5.901km track with the first being the run into Stowe corner and the second through the Wellington Straight into Brooklands. The system becomes active after the first lap and lasts until the final lap of the race with a maximum of two boosts per lap.

British driver Luciano Bacheta took full advantage of the new system as he secured a superb double win – both times overtaking the leader in the closing stages of the race. Just 0.912s separated him and second-place Christopher Zanella at the finish in the opening round – one of the smallest margins in the championship’s history. Alex Fontana was another driver who put it to good use, with the Swiss passing Mihai Marinescu in race one through Woodcote in the dying seconds to secure his maiden podium.

The system was one of several new features introduced for the 2012 F2 season including new Yokohama tyres and carbon brakes. The improvements saw the cars lap around two seconds faster than the 2011 machine.

Drivers were quick to hail the new system following the weekend. Double race-winner Bacheta said: “I really liked it. The previous system meant drivers could cover up mistakes but that’s no longer the case. You have to very clever how and when you use it as once you get past someone you need to have the pace to stop them re-taking you.”

Fontana, the reigning European Open F3 champion, added: "I like it and how it makes the series closer to F1. Before, you could defend by also boosting when someone tried to boost past, you which you can’t do now. I also like how it’s limited to eight shots so you have to think carefully about when to use them and to work it with the state of your tyres."

F2 newcomer Daniel McKenzie, who finished fifth and fourth respectively over the weekend and raced in Formula Renault 3.5 last year, said: "It’s a cracking system and possibly the best feature I’ve experienced in all previous single seaters. It doesn’t make overtaking easier as you still need to get close to the car in front and also still time your move. It also makes overtaking safer as it stops drivers making lunges."

The next rounds of the 2012 FIA Formula Two Championship take place on 27-29 April in Portugal with full coverage, including live streaming, on the F2 website and also live on Motors TV.

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British driver Luciano Bacheta completed a superb double victory during today’s (Sunday) second FIA Formula Two race at Silverstone.

On home soil the 21-year-old pressured pole-sitter Mihai Marinescu throughout before making his move on the penultimate lap to take the chequered flag for a clean sweep of the honours and an early championship lead. Marinescu finished second with Alex Fontana completing an impressive maiden F2 weekend with another visit to the podium in third.

As the drivers lined up on a bitterly cold Silverstone circuit, light rain began to fall ahead of the formation lap with the threat of further rain looming. As the lights went out it was the Romanian who made the best start to lead with Bacheta slipping into second and Fontana in third. Just behind Daniel McKenzie lost out to Kevin Mirocha to be lying in fifth, while a lap later Mathéo Tuscher got the better of Dino Zamparelli around the outside of Brooklands for sixth spot. Zamparelli then had his mirrors full of Christopher Zanella while up front the leading pair of Marinescu and Bacheta began to pull away from third placed Fontana.

A mistake by Mirocha through the last few sections on lap seven allowed McKenzie to get by along with Tuscher with the Pole losing yet more ground, first to Zamparelli through The Loop, and then Pommer at Luffield. The midfield battled continued to rage this time Pommer going side-by-side with Zanella and squeezing past at Luffield on lap 13 for P7.

Up front the leading duo were now six seconds clear of the rest of the field as Bacheta started to close in on Marinescu, waiting for the best time to make his move and take advantage of the series‘ new Boost Zones.

On lap 20, the Brit saw his chance and took the 23-year-old going into Brooklands to take the lead and keep enough of a margin to avoid being retook a lap later. Marinescu, who didn’t put a foot wrong throughout the race, claimed second with Fontana, who endured a relatively isolated race, in third.

McKenzie hung on to finish fourth ahead of a charging Tuscher who has impressed on his F2 debut, while fellow newcomer Zamparelli came home in sixth. Pommer and Zanella finished seventh and eighth respectively with China’s David Zhu and Hector Hurst completing the top 10.

Speaking afterwards an elated Bacheta said: "The experience from yesterday definitely helped. I was just biding my time. I pushed a lot harder in the beginning than I wanted to just to stay in a second of Mihai all the time. He was so quick. He didn’t put a tyre wrong. And it was tough to keep up. I kept chipping away then the gap levelled. I was saving the boost for the final stages but in the end I didn’t have to use it. I used it on the last but one lap at Brooklands. Mihai was looking in the mirror knowing I had the boost. We still need to work a little bit on our qualifying pace but I’m happy with our race pace and I couldn’t have asked for a better two results!"

The next rounds of the 2012 FIA Formula Two Championship take place on 27-29 April in Portugal with full coverage, including live streaming, on the F2 website and also live on Motors TV.

F2 Results: Silverstone – Race two results:

1. Luciano Bacheta, 21 laps
2. Mihai Marinescu, +1.137s
3. Alex Fontana, +6.279s
4.Daniel McKenzie, +7.232s
5. Mathéo Tuscher, +8.202s
6. Dino Zamparelli, +13.461s
7. Markus Pommer, +16.943s
8. Christopher Zanella, +18.093s
9. David Zhu, +18.562s
10. Hector Hurst, +20.676s
F2 Championship Standings – After round two:

1. Luciano Bacheta 50pts
2. Mihai Marinescu, 30pts
3. Alex Fontana, 30pts
4. Christopher Zanella, 22pts
5. Daniel McKenzie, 22pts
6. Matheo Tuscher, 18pts
7. Markus Pommer, 10pts
8. Dino Zamparelli, 10pts
9. Hector Hurst, 7pts
10. David Zhu, 2pts

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Brit just edges out Christopher Zanella for superb maiden F2 win

Luciano Bacheta just edged out Christopher Zanella to secure a superb maiden victory on home soil during today’s (Saturday) thrilling opening FIA Formula Two race at Silverstone.

Starting from P3, Zanella had stormed into the lead on lap one getting past both Bacheta and pole pole-sitter Mathéo Tuscher, who ran wide at Becketts and then Brooklands to drop down the order. The Swiss racer, using fresh rubber having carried over a set from pre-season testing, than began to pull away and looked to be on course for his third F2 win.

Marinescu, now in second place, then began to catch the 22-year-old and by lap eight was less than one second behind and putting the Romanian in the new overboost zone.

Third place Bacheta was also now closing in on the leading pair making a three-way battle for the lead, separated by just 1.5s. As the race progressed Bacheta continued to close in on Marinescu, taking some pressure off Zanella, and was able to get passed the Romanian with a great move going into Brooklands for second place.

The 21-year-old then set about closing in on Zanella and had narrowed the gap to 0.237s with just a few laps remaining, carrying better speed through the slower corners and taking a tighter line through Luffield. He then made his move along the Wellington straight and on the inside going into Luffield to take the lead. Despite Zanella having one overboost left, he was unable to re-pass him handing Bacheta a superb maiden F2 win.

There was more drama to come as fourth place Alex Fontana, who had been closing in on Marinescu all race, then made a move into Woodcote in the dying stages of the race going side-by-side to steal third place and the final podium spot on his F2 debut.

Just behind, Daniel McKenzie impressed to finish fifth after making up two places with Tuscher recovering to finish sixth and Hector Hurst in seventh. Pommer, who was forced to start from the back of the field after spinning in qualifying, drove remarkably through the field to claim a deserved eighth spot ahead of Dino Zamparelli, who was suffering electrical issues in the latter stages with Kourosh Khani rounding out the top 10.

Speaking afterwards a delighted Bacheta said: "My heart sank when I had that start, because I dropped down to fourth by the first corner which I wasn’t very happy with. I stayed out of trouble and started to get into the rhythm of the race, as we were stepping into the unknown in the first race of the year without many long runs in practice. I knew it would be easier to overtake when the tyres were falling away towards the end. I would have been happy with third in the first race of the year, but I saw myself starting to catch the guys in front, so just waited and tried to force them into a mistake."

Tomorrow’s (Sunday) second qualifying session gets underway at 09:30 (local time), with full coverage on www.formulatwo.com

F2 Results: Silverstone – Race one:

1. Luciano Bacheta, 21 laps
2. Christopher Zanella, +0.912s
3. Alex Fontana, +5.267s
4. Mihai Marinescu, +6.154s
5. Daniel McKenzie, +6.240s
6. Mathéo Tuscher, +13.249s
7. Hector Hurst, +15.089s
8. Markus Pommer, +15.433s
9. Dino Zamparelli, +16.215s
10. Kourosh Khani, +19.231s

Spanish racer takes place on Silverstone grid this weekend

Spaniard José Luis Abadin has confirmed he is to return to the FIA Formula Two Championship following a promising part-season last year.
The 25-year-old contested selected F2 rounds in 2011, establishing himself as a regular top 15 finisher against a competitive field. His best weekend came at Brands Hatch where he recorded his maiden points finish with 10th after starting from 18th on the grid.
Prior to F2, Abadin competed in the Master Formula Junior series before moving up to Spanish F3 in 2008. He stayed in the category, renamed the European F3 Open Series, for the following two seasons, finishing seventh overall in 2010. He also claimed third in the series‘ 2009 Copa de España class, taking three wins in the process.
Abadin said: "I’m absolutely thrilled to come back to F2. It’s a great championship, very professional and very competitive. Last year was tough for me due to budget issues so it will be important for me to get good results this season and Silverstone is the best place for me to start showing my potential."
Formula Two Series Director Jonathan Palmer said: "José Luis showed real potential in his first season of F2 last year, particularly at Brands Hatch where he drove very well to claim a maiden points finish. With a full campaign ahead of him I expect José to make great strides and become a regular points scorer although it won’t be easy – the field is extremely competitive this year!"
To view José Luis Abadin’s driver profile visit www.formulatwo.com  . The opening rounds of the Formula Two season take place at Silverstone this weekend on 14-15 April.

Formula Pilota China champion joins the F2 field at Silverstone

Swiss racer Mathéo Tuscher will take his place on the 2012 Formula Two grid this weekend at Silverstone, stepping up to the series after securing last year’s Formula Pilota China title.

The teenager has quickly established himself as one of his country’s rising stars, winning his first karting championship in 2006 and enjoying four more years of success at national karting level.

In 2011, he made the step up to single seaters with the Formula Pilot China series, where he took the title on his debut season by securing an impressive eight wins, nine podiums and four pole positions.

Last year he sampled the Williams designed F2 car during winter testing in Barcelona where he finished 10th overall on his first outing having topped the third session. More recently he finished an excellent fifth quickest during the official pre-season test at Silverstone, ending just a fraction off the more experienced front runners.

Tuscher said: "I’m very excited to embark on the 2012 F2 championship. It’s an unbelievable opportunity for me and I am very thankful to my sponsors, parents and team for their support and guidance. Last year I was racing in Asia, wining the Formula Pilota championship, this year I am thrilled to discover the European circuits. F2 offers a unique challenge combining six grand prix circuits with a fantastic car equipped with an overboost facility, which I love, and a level playing field for all drivers. My aim this season will be to improve my skills, and win the best rookie award."

Jonathan Palmer, Formula Two Chief Executive, added: "I watched Mathéo during both the winter test sessions and last month’s Silverstone test and was instantly impressed at how quick he was for someone so young, and for his first time in the Williams F2 car. Having raced predominately in Asia in less powerful single seaters, F2 provides him with the perfect platform in which to develop his career on a level – and very competitive – playing field whilst learning some of Europe’s top circuits and I have no doubt he’ll prove just what a talent he is."
For more information on Formula Two visit the official website at www.formulatwo.com

McLaren Autosport Awward finalist to make debut at Silverstone

British driver Dino Zamparelli has confirmed his place on the grid for the 2012 FIA Formula Two Championship.

The BRDC Rising Star has proven himself to be one of his country’s most exciting prospects ever since he won the Ginetta Junior Championship title on his car racing debut in 2008 with 10 wins and five podiums.

The following year he progressed to single seaters with the Formula Renault BARC Championship where he finished third overall, winning three races and collecting a further six podiums from just 13 races.

In 2010, Zamparelli was forced to sit on the sidelines but he returned to the Renault series in 2011 to claim championship victory, earning him a place as a McLaren Autosport BRDC Award finalist and his first taste of the Williams designed JPH1B F2 car, which he sampled during the driver assessment process.

18-year-old Zamparelli said: “I’m delighted to be on the grid for F2 this weekend. Since January we’ve been working very hard to find the budget so it’s great to see all that hard work pay off. The F2 test last month went well and it was good to get behind the wheel again as it‘s been a while. I feel like I’m mentally and physically prepared now and will be pushing for top three this weekend, although I go into every race trying to win. I have every chance of winning the championship too but we’ll just have to take it step-by-step.”

Jonathan Palmer, Formula Two Chief Executive, added: “I’m delighted to see Dino step up to Formula Two this year. Dino was a well deserving 2011 McLaren Autosport BRDC finalist and tested the F2 car at Silverstone as part of the evaluation. He has worked really hard with very modest funding and achieved outstanding results on his way up. F2 is ideal for such a driver and will provide Dino with an equality of opportunity that he simply could not afford anywhere else.”

For more information on Dino Zamparelli and the Formula Two series visit www.formulatwo.com