Jak Crawford won the Formula 2 Monaco Sprint Race after a chaotic race in which a multi-car pile-up at the first corner instigated the first of two red flags.
Pole-sitter Alex Dunne and Victor Martins came together at the start, which created a knock-on effect behind them, which saw seven cars retire on the spot.
The red flag began a near-hour delay, with Leonardo Fornaroli looking the likely victor after the restart, but when Dino Beganovic crashed late-on, another red flag ensued with Crawford the quickest to pit, jumping from fourth to first.
Fornaroli had to settle for second, with Luke Browning fourth. Arvid Lindblad was fifth, with Kush Maini sixth.
Roman Stanek was seventh, Rafael Villagomez eighth, with Oliver Goethe and John Bennett completing the top 10.
Chaotic start sees title leader out at Turn 1
The race got underway with Martins getting the jump on a slow Dunne, and on the entrance to Sainte Devote, the Irishman held his car in, but, inevitably, there was no room, and punted the ART into the barrier on the opposite side.
Dunne and Martins the first two dominoes to be flicked, the cars behind fell like them in sympathy, bringing out an immediate red flag.
Mini, Verschoor, Esterson, Miyata and Marti all retired as a consequence, as the clean-up job ensued from the marshals. The race would now be run with 30 minutes remaining, as opposed to the original 42 laps.
After a 50-minute delay, racing resumed under a rolling start with Fornaroli now in the lead from Montoya, Lindblad and Crawford.
The American fell behind by the hairpin, leaving the front three to pull clear. There was not even one lap yet without carnage, as Durksen tapped the back of Kush Maini’s DAMS – the second time in the lap – towards Rascasse.
The front wing of the AIX now under his front-left, the Dutchman speared straight off into the wall, bringing out a Virtual Safety Car.
It would last for only one lap as Fornaroli got racing underway again, with Montoya half-a-second behind in second.
Goethe pitted, with Meguetounif, Beganovic and Bennett all following suit.
Second red flag sees Crawford benefit
Crawford set the fastlest lap of the race with 20 minutes remaining, as the American looked to close the gap to the leading trio. Further back, Meguetounif, who endured a poor pitstop, muscled his way past Cian Shields at the Nouvelle chicane, following Bennett, who performed the same manouevre just ahead of them.
Goethe was now on the charge, taking fastest lap in 10th place, as Fornaroli had a 0.6s lead from Montoya, as Cordeel and Stanek battled for seventh place.
With 15 minutes remaining, Fornaroli opened-up another two tenths on Montoya, with Crawford still unable to make any significant indent on the front three.
The Virtual Safety Car came out a second time, with Beganovic parked nose-first into the barrier at Casino Square, having brushed the Sainte Devote barrier moments before.
It turned into a full Safety Car, as the leaders pitted rapidly. Crawford now found himself in the lead, as Fornaroli narrowly missed clouting the a course car upon exit of the pitlane.
With the dent in the Casino Square unable to be buffed-out, the red flag was raised, with now just four minutes of the race remaining.
Crawford, having seemed out of contention from the restart, found himself the winner, with Lindblad the one of the three leading cars to miss out on a podium.
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