Maini ready to kick-start 2025 campaign with Sprint victory in his sights

Kush Maini is hopeful that his reverse grid pole position in Monte Carlo will turn into a victory on Saturday in the Principality and give him and DAMS Lucas Oil a season-boosting result.

So far in 2025, Maini confessed he has not had the season he envisaged since joining the French outfit but says there are positive signs even if there aren’t results to show that yet.

He also believes that a Sprint victory could be exactly what he and the team needs going into the rest of the European leg of the F2 season.

“Pace has never been a question mark. Jeddah, Imola - it's always been there. Stuff hasn't come together in a while now, but I hope this is the change for the better and I really enjoy working with my team. We get along really well. And I feel for sure like the best is yet to come.

“I think I just need to get my championship and kick-started and hopefully build from there. The last two years, I've always been in a very strong position early on and then fallen off so hopefully this year's the opposite.”

Reflecting on the Qualifying session, Maini says that he felt he was able to get a clean run in and was thankful that traffic didn’t prevent preventing him from getting a laptime in.

The Alpine Academy driver says he handled the issue of clear air well with the team, enabling them to secure a top 10 start in both races.

“Honestly, last two years - 2023 actually, I was on for a really good lap, purple, and then traffic, and last year as well, I was outside the top 10. So it was scary going into qualifying, because there's a lot of stuff that can be out of your control. But I think our session was very clean, and there were no real issues there.

READ MORE: QUALIFYING: Dunne takes Monte Carlo pole away from Martins by 0.003s

“It was tricky overall. This time we were P5 but obviously with the groups split, P10 in the end. It's not been the easiest start to the year. I feel Jeddah, we were very strong, and some things went out of our control, and then Imola, obviously my mistake. So it's just nice to finally, finally, just be in the top 10 and really get our championship started.”

Looking ahead to the Sprint Race on Saturday, Maini will have a clear view into Turn 1, a coveted perspective around the streets of Monaco.

The Indian driver says he will be aiming to execute an error-free race, with overtaking opportunities so limited around the circuit.

“I think clean air in Monaco is king. You can really just enjoy driving and do a good race, manage everything. The main thing is now the start. Just get the start right and then focus on hitting your marks. It’s still a long way to go. I’m just happy and grateful that at least we're in the top 10. Anything can happen in Monaco.

“No race is ever straightforward. There's a lot of things that can happen, and we need to be on top of everything. Brake management and the start itself for example.

“It's a very tight circuit, so being focused the whole time and taking nothing for granted, but it's definitely one of the tracks where it's tougher to overtake, so that is a positive."