Rafa Camara crossed the line in the Hungarian Grand Prix Sprint Race in fourth, taking his best Formula 2 Sprint result.
The Brazilian driver started the Sprint race in ninth and, on the opening lap, climbed to sixth. He remained close to those in front for the entire race and stayed within the DRS range. That allowed him to benefit from the collision between Sebastian Montoya and Nikola Tsolov.
The two were running in second and third when they collided, pushing Camara up two places.
The Ferrari junior got close to the back of Laurens Van Hoepen in third. However, Camara was unable to make a move that stuck and had to settle for fourth.
Camara told Formula 2 that he was ‘happy’ with the results, saying: “That is our best result in Sprint races, so it’s good to take it today.
“Also, we still have some good points to fight for tomorrow, and we have a good opportunity starting from P2. So I’m happy with that. Now we learn what we can do better for tomorrow and try to put everything together.”
With more laps and a mandatory pit stop, the Feature Race will face different challenges. The entire field saw close running, but it was difficult to overtake. Camara himself sat in the DRS train the majority of the running.
“It was a bit boring,” Camara said when asked what he could learn from the Sprint, “I stayed quite a long time in the DRS train, but for sure there will be good learnings for tomorrow.
“There are things that we can see on the data, from speaking with my engineer, and then we can also see what we can improve on the car.”
Camara looks to Feature
Beyond the data and logistics side, the Invicta driver urged that there are always improvements to be made on the driving side.
“Also my driving, there is always something we can do better. But it’s a long race; I was just waiting to see if there were any mistakes and then try to take the opportunities. I’m happy with what we did.”
When looking at the start, Camara emphasised the value of clean air, especially on a track like Hungary where cars are tight and following each other.
“It’s always good to be in clean air, especially for the tyres; you can control them a bit better,” he said.
“But we take it where we can and then try to maximise the situation. If we are P2, it’s fine. In both races that I won this year, I actually went down to P2 on the first lap. So we’ll see what will happen, but just focus on ourselves, do our best and eventually the result will come.”
Tomorrow has the added complication of potential rain, which with the mandatory pit stop could add a layer of strategy to the Feature Race.
Camara starts the Feature Race ahead of all of his championship rivals. The gap closed after the Sprint Race with Tsolov retiring. The Brazilian admitted that it would be nice to close the gap further in the Feature, but he’s focused on himself.
“For the championship, it would be good for us to close the gap,” he said. “But I think it will not change anything in our lives, what we do, what we’re working for.
“But tomorrow, starting from P2 gives us a good chance of scoring points and to close the gap. In the same way, we know how the Feature Race is and we know that we cannot relax.
“Let’s see how it will be tomorrow. Last year it was raining in F3, and that went well. I think whatever the conditions will be, like I said, we’re preparing the best way we can, and we will be ready for what will happen.
“I think maybe it’s a bit calmer if it’s dry and it’s just a normal race. But whatever will happen, we will do our best.”
Camara has been on a strong run of form in the last few rounds, starting to come back from the earlier difficulties he faced. The Invicta driver will be looking to take the lead of the Feature into Turn 1 and hold it.
READ MORE: Nikola Tsolov handed five-place grid penalty following F2 Sprint Race incident in Hungary
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