Rodin Motorsport driver Alex Dunne clinches pole position for the Formula 2 Feature Race in Monaco with a stunning last-gasp lap in qualifying.
The championship leader pipped Victor Martins’s lap time right at the death with a 1:21.142s, just 0.003s quicker than the ART Grand Prix racing driver.
The Frenchman will start the Feature from second on the grid, Leonardo Fornaroli third for Invicta Racing.
Martins led the sole Free Practice session, with Luke Browning and Fornaroli following in second and third, respectively.
As is tradition on the tight, twisty streets of Monte Carlo, F2 qualifying is divided into two groups.
Group A features the even-numbered cars, while Group B is made up of the odd-numbered entries.
Pole position will be awarded to the fastest driver overall from both qualifying groups, with the quickest driver from the slower group lining up alongside in second.
The rest of the grid will be formed by alternating positions between the two groups based on lap times.
For Saturday’s Sprint Race, the reverse grid pole will go to the fifth-fastest driver from the slower group, joined on the front row by the fifth-placed qualifier from the faster group.
Group A
With 16 minutes on the clock, Group A trundled out of the pits for their warm-up laps – the likes of Arvid Lindblad, Richard Verschoor and Martins all taking part.
The Frenchman was on it straight away, setting purple sector times as he completed his lap to go top with a 1:21.792s.
Gabriele Mini for Prema Racing was the closest driver to Martins in the opening half of the session, but over a second off the ART driver’s lap time.
Lindblad managed his tyres into the optimal range and went quickest in the first sector before losing time to Martins through the middle sector.
At the end, his lap was good enough for second, closer to the provisional polesitter than anyone else.
Verschoor briefly moved up to third before Mini reclaimed the position, while Roman Stanek and Joshua Dürksen settled into fifth and sixth with their respective lap times.
The Campos Racing driver of Linbdblad finally dethroned Martins for pole, but only for a few seconds as the Dutchman snatched it away from the British driver.
However, Martins once again found time around the circuit to go almost four tenths quicker than Verschoor with a 1:21.145s.
Durksen improved beforehand to go fourth, Kush Maini into sixth for DAMS Lucas Oil.
Lindblad again found went quickest in the first sector, but a lock-up into Nouvelle Chicane ruined his penultimate attempt.
As the chequered flag fell for Group A, drivers completed their final laps, with Mini the first to improve, moving up to third.
Maini followed, climbing to fourth, while Martins was unable to better his benchmark time.
Lindblad was the last to make a move, slotting into third, but fell short of Martins’ session-leading 1:21.145s – setting the benchmark for Group B.
The session concluded with Verschoor in second, Lindblad third, Mini fourth, Maini fifth, and Dürksen sixth.
Group B
In the second and final 16-minute session, Group B hit the track to complete qualifying, featuring championship leader Alex Dunne alongside Fornaroli, Pepe Marti, and Jak Crawford.
Before drivers could fully get into the groove, the red flag was waved after Rafael Villagomez ended up in the barriers at Anthony Noghes.
Replays showed Dunne attempting to pass the Van Amersfoort Racing at the final corner, going down the inside, but the Mexican driver was left with nowhere to go.
With momentum disrupted, the remaining 15 drivers returned to the track, including a concerned Dunne, left to await his fate as he came under investigation following qualifying.
Fornaroli was quick off the mark, setting fastest sector times before shooting to the top for the first representative lap time.
He was soon dethroned by Sebastian Montoya, going a tenth quicker in his Prema Racing car.
The Italian hit back with a 1:22.187s to go first before Dunne went four tenths quicker to snap up provisional pole.
Montoya climbed back up to second, a tenth off the Irishman’s time, as Browning jumped up the order to third place for Hitech.
Dunne was still over six-tenths short of Martins’ best lap, with a 1:21.781s with just over three minutes left of the session.
On his next flying lap, the McLaren junior went purple in the first two sectors before clocking a 1:21.437s.
Crawford finally joined the battle, briefly moving up to third for DAMS – only for Browning to immediately snatch the spot back.
Montoya also found time, but remained a few tenths shy of Dunne’s benchmark at the top.
With the clock running out, Dunne found even more time as Martins began to sweat on the pitwall.
The Rodin driver continued to improve throughout the lap and marginally bettered the ART driver’s time to steal pole position.
Martins was forced to settle for second place with Fornaroli starting on the second row for Sunday’s race.
Verschoor takes fourth on the grid for the Feature, Montoya in fifth after ending his qualifying session with a spin into the barriers.
Lindblad takes sixth, Crawford seventh, Mini eighth, Browning ninth and Maini 10th to snap up the reverse-grid pole for the Sprint.
READ MORE – Alex Dunne claims victory with fine display in F2 Feature Race at Imola
