They didn’t come down for nothing!
As in 2019, the year they battled against each other for the title of German F4 champion, Théo Pourchaire (19) and Arthur Leclerc (22) found themselves next to the podium this Sunday at the end of the first major race of F2. Laid on the track of Albert Park, in Melbourne.
A good second in a rainy qualifying session, 48 hours earlier, Pourchaire le Grassois had not scored the previous day during a sprint (reversed starting grid), and was forced to retire on 20 of 22 laps.
This time, he earned his rank of resident of the Riviera at the Sauber Academy. Despite being startled at first by fellow Frenchman Victor Martins, the Perfume City native perfectly manages the deterioration of his rubber over the course of 33 episodes. Enough to cross the finish line on the heels of the untouchable Pullman, Ayumu Iwasa: second at 0’888.
Winner in Bahrain and then unfortunate in Saudi Arabia (no points scored), Pourchaire now sits second in the hierarchy, eight lengths behind the Japanese leader, and is a member of the Red Bull sector.
The rookie of the F1 waiting room, Leclerc the Monegasque, has climbed his first podium there. Seventh in qualifying, and fourth in the sprint, Charles’ brother benefited from a sprint event that occurred after the second safety car intervention when he was fifth.
At the beginning of the second half, Martins hit the Norwegian Dennis Höger right under his eyes. The two men go into the background. A windfall was collected to collect 15 points for third place.
Thus, Arthur Leclerc returned to the top five in the championship (fifth at 25 points behind his teammate Iwasa). Best newbie please!
