Jake Hughes won the second FIA Formula 3 race of the Italian Grand Prix weekend after another titanic battle that saw plenty of drama involving all three PREMA drivers.
The Brit took the lead on Lap 10 when he got ahead of Liam Lawson into Turn 1. Seconds later saw the beginning of all the chaos that has shaped up the title race completely.
Championship leader Oscar Piastri found himself in a mess after colliding with Clement Novalak, damaging both cars and ending the Australian’s race.
With rival Logan Sargeant making a comeback drive up as high as fourth from 26th on the grid, it looked as though he was going to reclaim the lead in the Drivers’ Standings going into the final round next weekend.
However, the American came together with team-mate and yesterday’s race winner Frederik Vesti at the Ascari chicane with four laps remaining. Both drivers were forced to retire in the pits which marks the first time in the new era of FIA Formula 3 that PREMA failed to score.
Following the drama, Hughes led Lawson over the line for his second win of the season.
Theo Pourchaire finished on the podium again at Monza with third ahead of team-mate Alex Smolyar in fourth, who also got the points for the fastest lap.
Lirim Zendeli, Alex Peroni, Pierre-Louis Chovet, Roman Stanek, Olli Caldwell and Richard Verschoor rounded out the top ten.
The gap at the top of the Drivers’ Standings is the same as it was at the beginning of Sunday morning, as Oscar Piastri leads by eight points of Logan Sargeant in second.
Liam Lawson and Theo Pourchaire have closed up to the top two with podium finishes from today’s race. David Beckmann and Frederik Vesti’s non-scores mean that both are in need of miracles to have any chance of snatching the title.
The top six drivers could mathematically still win the 2020 FIA Formula 3 Championship, as the final round takes place next weekend in Mugello.
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