DAMS driver Dan Ticktum took a maiden FIA Formula 2 victory on home soil at Silverstone as Callum Ilott spun out in Sunday’s sprint race.
Williams Formula 1 development driver Ticktum led from start-to-finish from pole position in the reverse grid encounter, but only just clung on to the win by 0.3s after a late charge from ART’s Christian Lundgaard following a safety car period.
Lundgaard moved to within 12 points of the title lead with second place after Robert Shwartzman finished outside of the points for the second successive race and Callum Illott caused the late safety car period by spinning out.
Ilott’s race had already started badly. As Ticktum led away at the start and Lundgaard moved up two places to second, Virtuosi’s Ilott spun Yuki Tsunoda’s Carlin machine around, receiving a 5s time penalty.
With time to make up, Ilott pushed hard passing MP Motorsport’s Felipe Drugovich for fourth into Stowe, before passing both Louis Deletraz and Lundgaard to run second.
Ilott’s Virtuosi team-mate Guanyu Zhou was also flying behind, pulling off a breathtaking double overtake on Hitech’s Nikita Mazepin and Drugovich on Hangar Straight to take fifth place.
As Ilott tried to chase down his British countryman Ticktum, he pushed too hard and spun at Club, stalling his car which brought out the safety car.
Several drivers opted to pit for fresh tyres, including Lundgaard, who dropped to fifth.
The race resumed with three laps to go, and Lundgaard using his fresh tyres to immediately make up ground by taking fourth from Mazepin.
On the penultimate lap he picked off Zhou, and the win looked on when he overtook Deletraz at the beginning of the last lap.
But despite closing in on Ticktum he couldn’t find a way by before the chequered flag.
Deletraz finished third while Carlin’s Daruvala – another to pit for fresh tyres – took fourth after making up several places before the end.
Mazepin took fifth ahead of Drugovich, with Nobuharu Matsushita (MP Motorsport) finishing seventh and Jack Aitken (Campos) the final points-scorer in eighth.
Guanyu Zhou dropped to ninth after a spin following the safety car, with the Prema duo of Mick Schumacher and Shwartzman a distant 13th and 14th.
Feature image credit: @fia_f2 official twitter
[contact-form-7 404 "Not Found"]Feature image credit: @fia_f2 official twitter
