Report
F3: Fornaroli edges out Mini to take pole in Melbourne
Trident’s Leonardo Fornaroli left it late in an action-packed F3 qualifying session in Melbourne to take pole position, outlasting PREMA Racing’s Gabriele Mini for top spot.
The Italian pair had exchanged fastest times throughout proceedings but a red flag, caused by Fornaroli’s team mate Sami Meguetounif crashing into the barrier at the final corner, set the field up for one final attempt in the battle for pole.
TIMELINE: Ollie Bearman’s ‘whirlwind’ 24 hours in Jeddah that saw him go from F2 pole to F1 debut
Fornaroli then crossed the line to complete a lap of 1m 33.044s, while Mini – who had been on provisional pole – could only come within 0.019s off his rival’s fastest time.
Mini’s PREMA team mate, Dino Beganovic, also left it late to go up to third, the Ferrari Driver Academy member sealing a second row start alongside PHM AIX Racing’s Nikita Bedrin.
Williams Academy Driver and championship leader Luke Browning qualified fifth ahead of Alpine Academy prospect Nikola Tsolov for ART Grand Prix.
Bahrain Sprint Race winner Arvid Lindblad made it three PREMA cars in the top 10 as he qualified seventh, just ahead of his fellow Red Bull junior Oliver Goethe.
F1 EXPLAINS: How F1 ACADEMY aims to inspire young women to pursue careers in motorsport
ART’s home favourite Christian Mansell placed ninth while Hitech Pulse-Eight’s rookie Martinius Stenshorne rounded out the top 10.
Having qualified 12th, Mari Boya will line up in P1 for Saturday’s Sprint Race for Campos Racing with ART’s Laurens Van Hoepen joining him on the front row.
For a full in-depth report of the FIA Formula 3 qualifying session, visit the official championship website.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
News ‘Wasn’t like it was a love tap’ – Frustrated Ricciardo gives verdict after race 'ruined' by crash with Stroll in China
News Hamilton ‘grateful just to get points’ in China as Russell admits Mercedes have ‘work to do’ before Miami
TechnicalF1 Unlocked TECH WEEKLY: Haas's significant Shanghai upgrade – and what it says about Komatsu's approach as team boss
News ‘His time would be better spent focusing on the team’ – Horner criticises Wolff’s comments on Verstappen’s F1 future