Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Motorsport
Motorsport
Sport
Megan White

F2 Abu Dhabi: Lawson wins red-flagged sprint race

The Carlin driver swept past his Trident rival on lap 10 to take the lead before roaring into the distance, crossing the line 7.9s clear of Verschoor, who took his fourth podium of the year.

2022 champion Felipe Drugovich rounded off the podium, having started seventh before a late charge saw him snatch third just two laps from the end of the race.

Poleman Verschoor held the lead from Lawson and VAR's Amaury Cordeel off the line, while further back Theo Pourchaire clipped the rear of Jack Doohan's Virtuosi-run car, leaving rubber marks on his nose.

Logan Sargeant lost several places in the opening corners, falling from fifth to ninth as Doohan, Felipe Drugovich, Pourchaire and Roy Nissany made up places.

The race was red-flagged midway through lap one after Enzo Fittipaldi and Jehan Daruvala collided and ended up in the wall at the exit of Turn 3.

The Prema driver lost the rear on cold tyres and collected the rear of the Charouz man, ending both their races.

After a lengthy delay for repairs, the field was reshuffled slightly for a rolling start, with the order returned to that before the red flag incident. Sargeant was returned to sixth, with Doohan, Nissany and Pourchaire behind him.

The order held off the line, with Doohan and Sargeant battling for sixth as the American successfully defended his position.

Verschoor came under pressure from Lawson soon after, with the gap down to 0.5s by lap nine.

He swept past the following tour at Turn 6, and though Verschoor attempted to regain the place three corners later, he was unable to do so.

Sargeant suffered two lock-ups in as many corners on lap 12, allowing Doohan to close in as he suffered from flat spots on his tyres.

Meanwhile, Drugovich was closing on fourth-place runner Dennis Hauger (Prema), and took his place on lap 17 up the inside down to Turn 9.

He was catching on Cordeel with three laps remaining and made it past at Turn 5 on lap 21 to take third as Cordeel locked up.

Hauger then made it past the Belgian driver the following lap and though he was forced to give the position back after running wide, a second attempt was successful to secure fourth.

Sargeant and Doohan finished in sixth and seventh, with Nissany rounding off the points finishers in eighth.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.