Round 4 Post Qualifying Press Conference

FIA Formula 2: Welcome to Imola where it’s time for the post-Qualifying press conference with the top three from today’s Qualifying session. In third place we have ART Grand Prix’s Victor Martins. In second place, Sebastián Montoya of PREMA Racing and earning his first ever Pole in Formula 2 and the Aramco Pole Position Award, Dino Beganovic of Hitech TGR. Dino, congratulations, your first pole in F2, how happy are you with that one?

Dino Beganovic: Super happy to get my first Pole. Sort of a home Grand Prix from me as I live not far from here in Maranello, wearing the red Ferrari colours and feeling the support of the Tifosi. So, to do it here is very special, but also coming off a tougher start to the season in Bahrain and Jeddah it is nice to come back to Europe like this and start my season here.

FIA Formula 2: Did you have any idea of the impending Red Flag as you were finishing your lap at all?

Beganovic: Yeah, I saw it on the big screen and I was just praying it wouldn’t come out before I finished my lap. I had flash backs to Monaco last year, but I managed to cross the line in time.

FIA Formula 2: Now you’ve got a pole under your belt, what does that do for your confidence this season?

Beganovic: Especially after coming off a difficult start to the season if definitely helps and it’s more of a relief to get it done here in Imola and early in the season. It definitely boosts me and the team to keep pushing in that direction.

FIA Formula 2: Now the focus on the Sprint begins, what are you expecting tomorrow?

Beganovic: I don’t know what to expect yet, but we will go into the race trying to learn as much as possible for Sunday. Trying to give us the best package we can have on Sunday and look for the big points. Obviously try to move forward tomorrow and maximise our result.

FIA Formula 2: Well done today. Sebastián, P2 today, also your best result so far in F2. You were so close to pole, just talk us through the session from your view.

Sebastián Montoya: Interesting session I would say. The first run wasn’t what we wanted but we were able to make small changes to the car. In the first lap it felt quite good, like it had gone in the right direction. Not the perfect lap, a few mistakes here and there, so it is a little frustrating to miss out on pole by 0.003s but still quite content with the result, I will take what I can get and P2 is not that bad. It was an interesting session. The track was a bit difficult, and you don’t have a lot of time to maximise a lap. You find so much lap time from the first set to the second set of tyres that you have to push. I think everyone was on the limit and the Red Flag in Jeddah impeded me but this time it helped me, so I am quite happy about it. As Dino said, for me the result at the beginning of the year have been difficult, bad luck here and there, the speed wasn’t where we wanted in Bahrain, in Jeddah we were quick, but the Red Flag didn’t help us. Happy with the result and looking forward to the rest of the weekend.

FIA Formula 2: Your first sector looked very quick, and the lap seemed to build from there. Just how tough is it to put in a fast lap around this track?

Montoya: It’s an old-style racetrack, so if you go a little bit over the limit, you go off track. My first sector was quite strong, Sector 2 I made a small mistake and by Sector 3 the tyres were dropping off. So, I was actually looking forward to Lap 2 to see what I could do, but obviously the Red Flag came out. Just quite happy with it, happy with the team and the job they are doing and the car they have given me. Just need to keep working on it.

FIA Formula 2: It’s been a tough start to the year for PREMA, but this is much more like what we’re used to seeing. Do you think the team has made improvements since Jeddah or is this just a cleaner weekend so far?

Montoya: For sure they have made improvements. Even from Bahrain to Jeddah we made a big improvement. In Jeddah we found a lot and even from Saturday to Sunday, the race pace we found quite a lot. I was quite content with the work they are doing. We want to start how we are ending the weekends with that speed. Coming back to the European races, I think there are tracks we know a lot better. Also being a rookie and my teammate is a rookie, it gives us more confidence as well. We are quite happy with the job the whole team is doing, they are doing a really good job preparing us for the race weekend and we just need to do the job on track.

FIA Formula 2: Good job Sebas, Victor thanks for your patience. A super close session again today but it wasn’t quite in your favour. We saw you shaking your head in the car in the pitlane, was pole possible today?

Victor Martins: Until the Red Flag came out. Actually, from the beginning of the season we have not been that lucky in Qualifying, but we always manage to do a good lap on the first run or after the Red Flag in Jeddah for example we managed to get P2. It’s always frustrating because it was 28 thousandths in Jeddah, it’s now six thousandths. It feels a bit like everything is against me but definitely I am still happy. The first run was really strong. I was three tenths clear of P2. We know from last year it wasn’t our strongest track coming into the weekend. For sure being able to deliver that kind of pace in qualifying is really good for confidence in the Feature and for the next tracks but definitely happy with the team, and what they are giving me to achieve this.

FIA Formula 2: You’ve been quick every single weekend so far this year over a flying lap. Does that give you confidence going into the Sprint tomorrow and the Feature Race?

Martins: For sure I think I have everything in my hands to always fight for Pole Position. At least this qualifying I was three times P2 and now P3, so I hope it is not going in that direction but definitely I always feel that I have the car to fight for pole and that is something that you need when you go on track. For the races it is just keeping calm, trying to do a good start. We know that we have a softer compound compared to last year with the Softs for tomorrow so there will be interesting things to look at. Maybe if we have some opportunities to overtake, we will go for it. To maximize the weekend, it is going well but the big job is Sunday.

FIA Formula 2: Pole looks to be a matter of time this year, is there a win on the table though to make up for things this weekend?

Martins: If I take Jeddah I was more in the position where you don’t take the risk to go for Prime-Option for example, so sometimes it's just a matter of where you are. You can maybe to an opposite strategy. For sure the goal will be, if at some point we are in this position, to maximise this kind of strategy. But starting P3 on Sunday, it will be just to do the same again, and to have a clean race. Think 10 times before doing something and looking forward to it. I’m sure I will again have the car to perform and finish with good points this weekend.

FIA Formula 2: Thanks very much