Kush Maini secured Formula 2 Sprint Race podium for Invicta Racing while Gabriel Bortoleto brought home points after tyre trouble.
Saturday’s Formula 2 race at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya was a Sprint in name, but not in nature. Patience was paramount over 26 laps of the high-speed layout, as the Invicta Racing drivers battled blistering temperatures and extreme tyre degradation.
Starting from Sprint Race pole position, Kush was presented with the perfect opportunity to fight for the top spots, and he did just that. Gabriel, meanwhile, started in sixth but had designs on moving towards the front.
Sprint Race start
As the lights went out, Kush struggled for traction and slipped back into the pack, while Gabriel made progress and the pair went side by side into Turn 1. The Brazilian driver eventually overtook his team-mate at Turn 3, but the battle was not yet over. Kush made his way back past at Turn 7 to regain the position.
At the end of Lap 1, Kush was running in fourth and Gabriel just behind in fifth, but positions quickly changed again as Kush dove to the inside of Turn 1 to take third from Juan Manuel Correa. Gabriel followed shortly after with a scintillating move around the outside of Turn 4.
With Correa dispatched on the second lap, the Invicta Racing duo settled into a rhythm, running line astern and did their best to preserve tyre life until half race distance. On Lap 13, Kush began to close in on second-placed Ritomo Miyata and began to pile on the pressure. Ultimately, the strategy worked, with Miyata earning himself a time penalty for track limits, which elevated Kush into a net second place and Gabriel into what would become third.
A fight to the finish
Kush would hold position in the closing stages, but further back Gabriel’s tyres were losing grip. On the penultimate lap, they cried enough, and Correa got back past denying the #10 driver a podium. Then, on the final lap, Paul Aron and Jack Crawford followed suit, relegating Gabriel to sixth.
Three points were Gabriel’s reward in what became a bitterly frustrating race for the Formula 3 champion. Kush, on the other hand, gained eight valuable championship points and claimed his third podium of the season.
Sprint Race Results
Gabriel Bortoleto: P06, three points
Kush Maini: P02, eight points
Quotes
GABRIEL BORTOLETO: “I’m so disappointed to miss out on the podium in that way. I held on as long as I could, but in the end, it wasn’t enough. If the race were one lap shorter, we would’ve made it a double podium for the team. Tonight, we will reset and look to maximise the Feature Race. Starting from fourth, we should be in a position to challenge for the podium again.”
KUSH MAINI: “I’m satisfied with that result after a really challenging race. I was on the back foot after a bad start, but managed to regain some of those positions in the early laps. You had to be so careful with the tyres to not overheat them and a lot of people really struggled with that. Of course, tomorrow is where we can score big points so we’ll be aiming to move forward in the Feature Race.”
ANDY ROCHE, TEAM PRINCIPAL: “Today was a positive day for Invicta Racing overall, despite the disappointment for Gabriel late on. He still took some useful championship points from today and Kush got back onto the podium which was great to see. Our pace was encouraging, so I think we have everything we need to fight at the front in tomorrow’s race.”
