
Alex Dunne produces stunning Formula 2 drive in Barcelona to regain championship lead
Ireland's Alex Dunne overcame two grid penalties to finish second in the Barcelona sprint race and regain the championship lead in the Formula 2.
The Offaly native was among seven drivers eliminated from the main race in Monaco last weekend as he was involved in a significant collision on the opening corner.
Rodin Motorsport's Dunne was given a 10-place grid penalty for the sprint race, and a further three-place grid penalty after running into the back of another car when entering the pits during Friday's free practice session.
That meant he would have to start Saturday's race in 19th place but he produced another remarkable drive to climb to second, finishing just behind MP Motorsport's Richard Verschoor.
His runners-up place in Spain now moves the 19-year-old to the top of the standings with 76 points ahead of Sunday's feature race, where he will have that aforementioned three-place grid penalty.
Dunne is just four points clear at the top of the leaderboard, just ahead of Luke Browning (Hitech TGR) on 72 points.

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Irish Examiner
16 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Alex Dunne regains Formula 2 Championship lead with two great performances in Spain
Offaly racer Alex Dunne has regained the lead of the FIA Formula 2 Championship with two great performances in Spain over the weekend. The Clonbullogue driver was outstanding in Saturday's Sprint Race where he came from 19th on the grid to claim second. It quickly erased last week's disappointing outing in Monaco, where the 19-year-old McLaren development driver was blamed for first corner collision that later resulted in a ten-place grid penalty for the sprint race in Spain. Beginning the Barcelona race from P19, he made up five places on the opening lap and later enjoyed a slice of fortune when the safety car was deployed. Dunne and Dutch driver Richard Verschoor pitted for soft tyres and on the re-start they carved their way through the pack. With the tyre advantage, Verschoor took the chequered flag, a mere 0.3 seconds ahead of Dunne, who moved back into the championship lead - four-points clear of British driver Luke Browning. In Sunday's feature race, Rodin Motorsport driver Dunne started from P8 and eventually finished fifth as Briton Arvid Lindblad converted his pole position into a maiden Formula 2 feature race victory - and a home win for his Spanish team Campos Racing. Dunne annexed a bonus point for registering the fastest lap of the race, his next outing is at the Austrian GP at the end of the month. In championship terms, he's three points ahead of Verschoor with Lindblad, five points further behind in third. Dunne revealed that he was subjected to a barrage of online abuse following the Monaco incident, that forced him to delete all of social media content from his phone.


Irish Times
17 hours ago
- Irish Times
Alex Dunne regains lead in Formula 2 drivers' championship
Ireland's Alex Dunne has retaken the Formula 2 drivers' championship after a solid showing at the Spanish Grand Prix by the Rodin Motorsport driver. The 19-year-old from Co Offaly came second in Saturday's sprint race at Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona, earning him nine points which saw him overtake Hitech TGR's Luke Browning in the drivers' standings. Holding a four-point championship lead heading into Sunday's feature race, Dunne started from fifth on the grid and remained P5 by the chequered flag, earning him a further 11 points from the weekend. Dunne, who is part of McLaren's driver development programme, now holds a three-point lead over MP Motorsport's Richard Verschoor, who finished Sunday's race P3, while race winner Arvid Lindblad jumped to third on 79 points. READ MORE Rodin Motorsport sit fifth in the team standings, currently led by Spanish team Campos Racing. Dunne has taken two feature race wins so far this season, coming in the second and fourth rounds in Sakhir and Imola respectively. Eight race weekends remain in the 14-event F2 season, which will finish alongside the F1 championship in Abu Dhabi on the first weekend of December.


RTÉ News
18 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Alex Dunne stays top of F2 standings after fifth place finish in Barcelona
Ireland's Alex Dunne (Rodin Motorsport) continues to lead the FIA Formula 2 championship, the main support class to F1 race weekends, after a fifth-place finish in today's F2 feature race in Barcelona. Dunne started the second race of the weekend in Spain in eighth place on the grid, following a three-place penalty for an incident in the free practice session in which he collided with Victor Martins. The Offlay teenager eventually finished fifth with Britain's Arvid Lindblad converting pole position into his maiden Formula 2 feature race victory, also giving his Spanish team Campos Racing their first win on home soil in the Championship. Dunne, who is part of McLaren's driver development programme, picked up a bonus point on offer for registering the fastest lap of the race. Up ahead Lindblad was never threatened, leading home PREMA Racing's Sebastián Montoya who finished second and MP Motorsport's Richard Verschoor in third, after a late safety car was withdrawn on the final lap. Dunne's fifth place came after his incredible drive in Saturday's sprint race, where he swept aside grid penalties to climb from the back of the grid in 19th place to finish second and take the overall championship lead after six rounds. The Offalyman did had wait to see if the race stewards took any retrospective action for an alleged yellow flag infringement late on in the feature race, but he was exonerated and kept his fifth place finish and with it, the championship lead. The 19-year-old sits atop the F2 series standings ahead of this month's Austrian Grand Prix on 87 points, three clear of Richard Verschoor with Lindblad a further five points back in third. Speaking after his astonishing sprint race second placed finish Dunne said: "I think we've seen over the past couple of weekends that the pace is more than there, but sometimes you just need to accept that you are where you are, instead of trying to go for more. That is something we need to dial in a bit more in the coming weekends"