F2 rookie Mini dramatically stripped of pole after impeding competitors

Gabriele Mini has been stripped of his first F2 pole position at the Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne after allegedly impeding his competitors. Frenchman Victor Martins has inherited the pole in Australia.

The PREMA driver was sent to the stewards after he allegedly impeded DAMS Jak Crawford, who already had a grid penalty trusted upon him before the start of the session. Mini, the 2024 Formula 3 runner-up, was given a three-place grid penalty, so will now start the feature race from fourth place. MP Motorsport's Richard Verschoor starts from P2 after more grid penalties shook up the order.

Formula 2 works with a reversed grid in the top ten for the sprint race. Therefore, 10th from qualifying starts in pole position with the original polesitter starting from P10. This means that the Italian will start the sprint race from seventh place.

Red Bull talent Arvid Lindblad had a supporting role in qualifying for both the sprint and main race at Albert Park. The young driver, who has frequently earned praise from Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko, secured 14th place in his debut race. Now, all eyes are on what he can deliver in Saturday’s sprint race and Sunday’s main event. Like all the other sessions so far in Australia, it's an early start or a late night for fans around Europe. The sprint race starts at 03:15 GMT on Saturday night.