Ayumu Iwasa converts pole to a win to take his second victory of the season
MelbourneThe Feature Race of FIA Formula 2 Round 3 Australia took place on Sunday, 2 April. Top qualifier Ayumu Iwasa started from pole position.
With an ambient temperature of 16°C and a track temperature of 28°C, the formation lap got underway at 11:35am. With a strong getaway, Iwasa maintained his lead on the opening lap. Having opened up a one-second gap over the rest of the field on the first lap, Iwasa continued to lead the way in a steady state. On Lap 8, there was an accident at the back of the field, and the Safety Car was brought on. After initially starting on soft tyres, Iwasa returned to the pit at this time to change to mediums. The pit work went well, and the Japanese driver kept the lead amongst the cars which changed tyres with the same strategy, returning to the race in 5th overall.
The race resumed on Lap 13, and Iwasa was running 5th. As two of the top contenders made contact and dropped out on Lap 14, Iwasa moved up to 3rd. On Lap 20, he passed the car in 2nd which had lost pace and took over the spot. On Lap 26, the Safety Car came on again due to an accident in the following pack. At this point, the leader pitted for a tyre change and Iwasa took the lead. The Safety Car period was extended as another accident occurred. After taking some time to clear the track, the race resumed on Lap 31, which left only three laps to the end of the race.
Accelerating at the perfect time, Iwasa held his lead on the restart. He then maintained his gap to the rest of the field and comfortably took the chequered flag. With his second win of the season following the Sprint Race in Saudi Arabia in the previous round, Iwasa has added 27 points to his tally, including two points for his top position in the qualifying, to take first place in the series standings with 58 points.
The result was the best for me and the team. I'm happy that we were able to show our potential as a team by getting everything right, including tyre management and pit work. As for the car, the speed problem we had suffered from in the previous rounds has been improved, and I would say it was the best performance this time. The accident in the Sprint Race was unfortunate, but the fact that I was able to run alone afterwards was also a good thing that led to this result.I’ve moved up to first place in the championship, but in my opinion, it’s important that the team came out on top. I feel that if you think about the teams’ championship together with your team-mates, results for the drivers' championship naturally follow. With the aim of becoming stronger as a team we will continue to improve as much as possible.
