The Hungarian Formula 2 Grand Prix served another thrilling weekend of racing at the Hungaroring. As the action-packed weekend unfolded, Ollie fought hard - collecting a podium in the weekend’s Sprint.
Qualifying
The session got off to a shaky start when Roman Stanek’s spin and crash into the barrier on Turn 11 brought out the red flags. After the restart, Ollie managed to break the top five, putting his Prema fourth fastest - before sliding to seventh in qualification on the grid for Sunday’s Feature Race.
Sprint Race
The Hungarian track, renowned for its twisty layout and lack of straights, posed a challenge for all of the drivers as they struggled to cool tires in the balmy July warmth. Ollie started the Sprint Race in fourth position and immediately demonstrated his determination by climbing to third by the end of the first lap.
Lap 3 saw the battle between Kush Maini and Ollie intensify with Maini taking fourth place from Ollie, before a Virtual Safety Car momentarily neutralised the race. On the restart, Pourchaire too passed Ollie, pushing him into fifth place where he stayed for several laps.
With just four laps left, Ollie made a remarkable move on Maini, overtaking the Campos Racing driver around the outside after being stuck behind for a while. By Lap 26, with a possible podium in his grasp and Pourchaire within DRS range, Ollie was ready to pounce. He seized the opportunity when his tires would allow, executing a daring overtake at Turn 1.
In a post-race interview, Ollie said of the overtake, “I saw in the last five or six laps that Theo was quite weak on the braking at Turn 1 so I went for it, and it paid off.” The late lunge on Pourchaire secured third place for Ollie and Prema.
Feature Race
Sunday’s Feature Race had its fair share of ups and downs for Ollie. Starting in seventh place on medium compound tires, he faced tough competition from surrounding drivers on the soft compound. Unfortunately, Ollie dropped to ninth within the opening lap after being passed by Hauger and Fittipaldi.
As the race progressed, Ollie showed his tenacity and skill, making his way back up to sixth by the halfway point of the race. However, the pitstop later in the race saw him rejoining the track in thirteenth place. Despite his determination, Ollie crossed the finish line in 12th, narrowly missing out on earning championship points.
Despite not collecting points in the Feature Race, Ollie collected a valuable six points from his impressive third-place finish in the Sprint Race. Ollie’s third-place podium at the Hungaroring means Aventum donates a further £400 to MNDA, of which he is the ambassador, taking our total pledged this year to £6,400.
With the Hungarian Grand Prix in the rearview mirror and Ollie sixth in the driver championship, all eyes are now on to the next race. Join us for Round 11 of the season, at the iconic Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium, 28-30th July.
