‘The drivers are at such a high level’ – Boschung not surprised by rookie stars in Monte Carlo

One of just four drivers to have driven the streets of Monte Carlo in Formula 2 machinery prior to the weekend, Ralph Boschung had said in the leadup to the event that he didn’t expect his experience to play too great a part due to the quality of the rookies. So naturally, the Campos racer wasn’t surprised to have been proven right.

The likes of Théo Pourchaire, Oscar Piastri and Liam Lawson all impressed on their first appearances at the circuit, with the former taking pole and winning the Feature Race.

“As I expected, the rookies did a great job,” said Boschung. “I honestly think that it was only really in practice where you could have a slight advantage in terms of experience.

“The field is so strong that it doesn’t really matter if you have experience or not. For sure it is a help, but the drivers are at such a high level that it’s difficult to make a difference.”

The Campos Racing driver scored his best ever Qualifying position in the second tier on Thursday, with sixth, before going on to take his best race finish in the Sprint Race on Friday, narrowly missing out on a podium, finishing fourth behind Roy Nissany.

Despite being in touching distance of P3, the Swiss wasn’t willing to take any risks.

“I had my best quali result on Thursday, which was an achievement in itself, but then my best race result in F2 as well on Friday,” said Boschung. “Honestly, I am very happy. I was a little bit conservative throughout the race just because I really wanted to get points and not have a DNF. It got very close at the end.

“I was not ready to take a big risk, but I was ready to put a bit of pressure on (Roy Nissany), to see if he made a mistake. This was actually successful into Turn 1, but I think I went on the throttle a bit too late, because I feel like I could have gotten him at the exit.”