Vesti and Verschoor top Day 2 of pre-season running in Sakhir

Frederik Vesti and Richard Verschoor put themselves at the top of the timing sheets during the second day of pre-season testing around the Bahrain International Circuit.

With the field opting to focus their attentions on race simulations throughout the morning session, Vesti set his fastest time of 1:44.234 at just over the half-hour mark. It remained unbeaten to the chequered flag.

Taking advantage of the cooler afternoon conditions, Verschoor claimed the quickest time of pre-season testing so far. His 1:42.140 effort narrowly secured the top spot by 0.008s ahead of rookie Victor Martins and over two tenths clear of Dennis Hauger.

MORNING

The prime tyres were the compound of choice for Day 2’s morning running. Race runs were top of the teams’ agenda, with the 24˚C conditions similar to what they’ll experience in Round 1’s Feature Race.

Quickest out of the box, Frederik Vesti immediately went up into P1 with a 1:47.123. The Dane wasn’t done, lowering his time by almost two seconds in the early stages of running. Breaking the 1:44s barrier, the PREMA Racing driver’s efforts withstood the test of time, and he finished comfortably clear of the rest of the pack by 1.947s.

There was only one brief interruption, as Trident’s Roman Stanek stopped at Turn 6 with an hour and a half remaining.

In the final 30 minutes of the session, Amaury Cordeel slotted into P2 as personal bests came thick and fast. The Virtuosi Racing driver was shuffled down to fifth by the end behind Ralph Boschung, Arthur Leclerc and Théo Pourchaire.18 drivers totted up over 30 laps, with Kush Maini posting the most with 50 laps on the board.

AFTERNOON

Vesti once again got running underway in Sakhir, but it was Richard Verschoor in the #22 Van Amersfoort Racing car that posted the first representative time of the afternoon with a 1:45.366. He found himself narrowly ahead of Vesti and his teammate Juan Manuel Correa when Pourchaire brought out the second Red Flag of the day almost an hour into their running.

When the session resumed, Enzo Fittipaldi lowered the benchmark slightly to 1:45.135. Bolting on a fresh set of option tyres, ART Grand Prix’s Victor Martins broke comfortably clear of the field, holding a 2.456s advantage.

As dusk drew in, Verschoor returned to the top of the timing sheets, posting the fastest time of testing so far with a 1:42.140 and pipping Martins by 0.008s.

A final Red Flag was brought out for Clément Novalak with nine minutes remaining, as Day 2 drew to a close with Dennis Hauger slotting up into third ahead of Arthur Leclerc and Ralph Boschung.

2023 FIA FORMULA 2 CHAMPIONSHIP – SAKHIR PRE-SEASON TEST, DAY 2, MORNING SESSION

2023 FIA FORMULA 2 CHAMPIONSHIP – SAKHIR PRE-SEASON TEST, DAY 2, AFTERNOON SESSION