FIA F2 2023 Review: Iwasa Fourth Overall with Three Wins, Meets Super License Requirements

Iwasa has been based in Europe as part of the Honda Formula Dream Project (HFDP), winning the French F4 Championship in 2020, moving up to the FIA F3 Championship in 2021, and the FIA F2 Championship in 2022, where he won two GPs and was fifth overall. In his second season, Iwasa was in contention for the title.

First Sprint Win, Leading the Points

In sprint race at the season-opener in Bahrain, Iwasa finished fourth earning five points. He finished eighth in the feature race for a solid start to the season.

In Round 2, Saudi Arabia, Iwasa qualified sixth. On the reverse grid for the sprint race, he started from fourth and was second by the first turn, took the lead on lap 2, and won a close battle to take the lead and his first sprint race win. Iwasa finished fourth in the feature race and moved up to third overall.

In the following round, Round 3 in Australia, Iwasa took pole position. After a good start in the feature race, Iwasa defended his lead and finished the first lap ahead, then later pitted and returned to the race in fifth. Steadily improving his position, Iwasa moved up to the lead  just in time for the safety card. In the end, he made a clean restart with three laps to go and took the checkered flag. With his second win of the season, Iwasa took the overall lead with 58 points.

In Round 4, Azerbaijan, Iwasa had problems and finished outside the points, dropping back to third overall. Round 5 in Italy was cancelled due to heavy rain. Round 6 was held on an street course in Monaco. Starting from second on the grid in the sprint race, he moved to the top by lap 6, and although there were times when he was challenged, he eventually crossed the finish line 6.6s clear with his lead intact for his third win of the season.

In the feature race in Round 8, Austria, Iwasa was 16th on the grid, but charged through the field to finish second, just 0.4 seconds behind the leader. He was also on the podium in second place in the sprint race in Round 10, Hungary, and his strong performance continued up to the summer break.

Challenging the Title in the Closing Rounds

By the summer break (after Round 11, Belgium), Iwasa was third overall. With three rounds remaining, he was 34 points behind, still in contention.

In a turbulent 12th round in the Netherlands, Iwasa failed to score. In the sprint race of the following round, Italy, machine problems forced him to retire, but he made up for it in the feature race, starting 15th and finishing runner-up. He was still third overall going into the final round of the season.

In the final round in Abu Dhabi, Iwasa finished eighth in the sprint race. In the feature race, the last race of the season, competition was fierce right from the start, and Iwasa completed the first lap in fourth position. 25 laps in, when all teams had finished their tire changes, Iwasa was third. In the final stages of the race, his could not increase pace, dropping a spot to fourth across the finish line.

Although Iwasa finished fourth for the season, he had met the requirements for a super license, a prerequisite to compete in F1. Steadily moving towards the premier class, Iwasa announced he will be competing in Super Formula for the 2024 season.

Race Report

Rd.01 Bahrain：Ayumu Iwasa starts from 7th and after struggling with tyres, completes the race in 8th

Rd.02 Saudi Arabia：Ayumu Iwasa completes the race in 4th and is now 3rd in the championship

Rd.03 Australia：Ayumu Iwasa converts pole to a win to take his second victory of the season

Rd.04 Azerbaijan：Iwasa starts the race in 17th and finishes 13th

Rd.06 Monaco：Starting from 9th Ayumu Iwasa Finishes the Race in 10th. He Misses Out on a Top Position with an Unsuccessful Tyre Strategy

Rd.07 Catalunya：Ayumu Iwasa starts and finishes 4th, holding off a strong challenge from the rest of the field towards the end to take 12 points

Rd.08 Austria：Starting from 16th Ayumu Iwasa finishes on the podium in 2nd. He narrowly misses the top spot after closing in on the leader on the final lap

Rd.09 Great Britain：In a turbulent race with three SCs, Ayumu Iwasa makes a good start from 3rd to take the lead, but being unable to pick up pace, he finishes 5th

Rd.10 Hungary：Iwasa starts the race 6th and finishes 4th to secure points

Rd.11 Belgium：Starting from 16th place, Ayumu Iwasa regretfully retires due to an accident on the opening lap

Rd.12 Netherlands：Starting from 12th, Iwasa finishes 13th after going off the track in an attempt to overtake

Rd.13 Italy：Starting from 15th, Iwasa makes a leap to finish on the podium in 2nd in a turbulent race with five SC interventions He defends his 3rd place in the championship

Rd.14 Abu Dhabi：Ayumu Iwasa finishes 4th after starting from 5th to conclude the 2023 championship in 4th overall

Standings