F2: Bortoleto takes last gasp pole position ahead of Bearman in Imola

Gabriel Bortoleto left it late in the day to take pole position for Invicta Racing during a dramatic Imola F2 qualifying session that was heavily impacted by track limits violations.

The Brazilian driver – sporting a special Ayrton Senna inspired helmet this weekend – completed a 1m 27.065s on his final lap to take top spot, edging out PREMA Racing’s Oliver Bearman by 0.055s.

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Red Bull junior Isack Hadjar was in fine form for Campos Racing and wound up in third place, ahead of the second PREMA car of Andrea Kimi Antonelli and AIX Racing rookie Joshua Durksen.

Bearman and Antonelli provisionally lost their times for exceeding track limits, but the stewards reinstated their laps, along with several other drivers, following the conclusion of the session.

This means Rodin Motorsport’s championship leader Zane Maloney qualified in sixth place ahead of Trident’s Roman Stanek and Hitech Pulse-Eight’s Paul Aron.

MP Motorsport’s Williams Academy driver Franco Colapinto took P9 ahead of the second Hitech car of Amaury Cordeel in 10th. This also means the Belgian will line up on reverse grid pole in tomorrow’s Sprint Race.

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Lights out for the Sprint Race is 1415 local time on Saturday.

To read an in-depth report of the Formula 2 qualifying session, head to the official website here.