PREMA Racing wrapped up FIA Formula 2 qualifying at the Belgian GP with a top-10 finish today at Spa-Francorchamps as Gabriele Minì clocked the eighth fastest lap. The Italian was a leading competitor among a tight pack and held third place on his first run on new tyres. When drivers switched to their second tyre set, he had to deal with traffic as track positioning became key. He eventually maximized what he had with P8, only a couple of tenths away from a potential front row.
Sebastian Montoya took his first laps with a FIA Formula 2 car at the famed venue and progressively improved his feel with the car/track combo. The Colombian-American took 16th place in the end and is now looking forward to making advancements in the races as he gains confidence.
He will be starting both races from Row 8, while Minì, due to a grid penalty carried over from Silverstone, will start from P8 in both the Sprint and the Feature Race.
“Tough qualy, especially with the speed we’ve had recently, it’s not exactly where we want to be. We just need to keep working and understanding what we were missing and what we can do better. I enjoy this track, and we usually have a great race pace, so I look forward to the races. Let’s make some overtakes. Sunday looks interesting with some rain coming, let’s take it race by race and see what happens.”
“I think qualifying has been much more positive compared to the last events. We started really well with two strong laps that put us into the top three. In the last lap, we were just two tenths off the front row, but I ended up getting blocked and not having a slipstream. It’s a bit of a shame, but still a remarkable improvement. We will be starting both races from P8, and I think we can fight.”