F2 Grand Prix de Monaco – Free Practice: Victor Martins sets the fastest time in Monaco
Victor Martins dominated the Monaco free practice session on Thursday, setting the fastest time of 1:21.715 more than seven tenths ahead of the chasing pack. The ART Grand Prix Frenchman was ahead of Luke Browning and Leonardo Fornaroli.
Formula 2 has arrived in Monaco for the fifth round of the 2025 season. On the Monte-Carlo circuit, Victor Martins dominated the Thursday free practice session from start to finish, setting the fastest time of 1:21.715 at the wheel of his ART Grand Prix car.
The Frenchman left his opponents no chance, widening a gap of more than seven-tenths over his pursuers. The only driver to break the 1:22 mark, Martins gradually lowered his times throughout the session. Starting with a reference time of 1:24.014, he then clocked a 1:23.230 before dropping below 1:23 with a 1:22.623 midway through the session.
At the beginning of the session, Alexander Dunne took the lead with a time of 1:25.666, ahead of Sami Meguetounif (Trident) by less than a tenth. Gabriele Minì (Prema Racing) then completed the top three. Jak Crawford (DAMS) then lowered the benchmark before Martins ultimately took control.
Luke Browning (Hitech) and Leonardo Fornaroli (Invicta Racing) completed the top three, both over six-tenths behind the leader. The British driver, a member of the Williams academy like Martins, proved to be the most consistent among the pursuers. Fornaroli, on the other hand, encountered some difficulties with a spin but recovered well at the end of the session.
Dino Beganovic, who had secured pole position at Imola, finished 5th ahead of Richard Verschoor (MP Motorsport). Arvid Lindblad (Campos Racing), Roman Stanek, and Crawford placed in the top 10, while Minì, after showing potential early in the session, finished 4th.
The session experienced a few interruptions, including a red flag caused by Amaury Cordeel, who hit the barriers at turn 1 with his Rodin Motorsport. The incident did not disrupt Martins’ performance, as he finished strongly with his reference time in the final minutes, pushing Minì back, who had briefly taken the lead just before.
Alex Dunne, new leader of the championship after his victory at Imola last week, only finished 8th in this practice session. The Irishman from Rodin Motorsport, who has 64 points in the championship compared to 58 for Browning and 55 for Verschoor, will need to step up during the qualifying this Friday to defend his position in the overall standings.
Free practice rankings
| N° | Driver | Équipe | Times | Écart | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Victor Martins | TeamART Grand Prix | 1:21.715 | 22 | |
| 2 | Luke Browning | Hitech GP | 1:22.331 | +0.616 | 22 |
| 3 | Leonardo Fornaroli | Invicta Racing | 1:22.468 | +0.753 | 25 |
| 4 | Gabriele Minì | Prema | 1:22.480 | +0.765 | 22 |
| 5 | Dino Beganovic | Hitech GP | 1:22.794 | +1.079 | 23 |
| 6 | Richard Verschoor | MP Motorsport | 1:22.802 | +1.087 | 21 |
| 7 | Arvid Lindblad | Campos Racing | 1:22.873 | +1.158 | 24 |
| 8 | Alex Dunne | Rodin Motorsport | 1:22.948 | +1.233 | 25 |
| 9 | Roman Stanek | Invicta Racing | 1:23.136 | +1.421 | 22 |
| 10 | Jak Crawford | DAMS | 1:23.268 | +1.553 | 22 |
| 11 | Oliver Goethe | MP Motorsport | 1:23.274 | +1.559 | 23 |
| 12 | Ritomo Miyata | ART Grand Prix | 1:23.285 | +1.570 | 20 |
| 13 | Sami Meguetounif | Trident | 1:23.373 | +1.658 | 24 |
| 14 | Sebastian Montoya | Prema | 1:23.417 | +1.702 | 23 |
| 15 | Kush Maini | DAMS | 1:23.540 | +1.825 | 20 |
| 16 | Rafael Villagomez | Van Amersfoort Racing | 1:23.547 | +1.832 | 23 |
| 17 | Amaury Cordeel | Rodin Motorsport | 1:23.857 | +2.142 | 18 |
| 18 | Joshua Duerksen | AIX Racing | 1:24.084 | +2.369 | 13 |
| 19 | Pepe Marti | Campos Racing | 1:24.127 | +2.412 | 22 |
| 20 | John Bennett | Van Amersfoort Racing | 1:24.407 | +2.692 | 24 |
| 21 | Max Esterson | Trident | 1:25.592 | +3.877 | 13 |
| 22 | Cian Shields | AIX Racing | 1:25.763 | +4.048 | 22 |
