The Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine concluded the eighth of its ten double-header events of the season at Monza, with Andrea Kimi Antonelli claiming the top step of the podium in Race 2.
Representing the Prema Racing team, Antonelli showcased his excellent form starting from this morning’s qualifying session, where he secured his fourth pole position in the international series. This performance demonstrated his ability to quickly put behind him the penalty from yesterday’s race, which deprived him of victory due to an early use of the push-to-pass system. It marked the fourth win for the Italian driver, further solidifying his lead in the championship standings. His closest rival, Martinius Stenshorne (R-ace GP), was forced to retire after a collision with Joshua Duerksen (Arden Motorsport), causing both drivers to exit the race and bringing out the first safety car of the event.
Taking the second step of the podium was Rafael Camara, contributing to a fantastic double win for the Prema Racing team. The Brazilian driver delivered an impressive performance, climbing from fourth position to eventually take the lead, even overtaking Antonelli in the closing stages of the race. Camara came close to victory, but the red flag due to a collision at “Lesmo 2” that damaged the barriers, involving Tom Lebbon (Arden Motorsport) and Pierre Alexandre Provost (G4 Racing), prematurely ended the race and prevented him from sealing the win. Completing the podium was Tim Tramnitz (R-ace GP), who skillfully remained within the lead group throughout the race. Lorenzo Fluxa also performed well, driving the third Prema Racing car into close contention for a podium finish after an impressive comeback from the eighth position on the grid. Following the Spanish driver was Laurens Van Hoepen (ART Grand Prix), who finished the race in fifth place ahead of RPM‘s debutant, Noah Strømsted. The Danish driver delivered an outstanding performance and was also the fastest rookie on the track.
Securing the seventh position was Kas Haverkort (Van Amersfoort Racing), while rounding out the top 10 were Owen Tangavelou (Trident Motorsport), Marcus Amand (ART Grand Prix), and Sami Meguetounif (MP Motorsport).
Andrea Kimi Antonelli: “To be honest it was quite unexpected. I was a bit lucky with the red flag, but you never know, maybe I could have fought back. It was a really tough race, with the slipstream it was really hard, Rafa was really fast. Quite unexpected finish, but I’m happy to bring home P1 and to extend the lead in the championship. A lot of points in the bag, I’m a bit disappointed for my mistake yesterday, because could have been even more. It was a good fight back today.”
Rafael Camara: “We had a nice fight. We both were quite fast, also Lorenzo behind. Could have been maybe full podium for us. The Team did a really good job. Unfortunately, yesterday was not our day, but we had the pace. Today we assured we had the pace to fight. Unfortunately, there was a red flag at the end. We had a great fight, I’m quite happy with myself, I think I did a pretty smart race I would say. It is what it is.”
Tim Tramnitz: “Quite a busy race, especially at the start, where I lost a couple of positions, and then I managed to get them back. I was catching the two Prema drivers in front at the end, but then they started fighting as well. I saved all my push to pass, it’s a shame the red flag came out, I would have been ready to fight! It has been a good year so far, the consistency is quite good. Some DNF, like yesterday, costed us a lot of points, but I think in the end things are going quite well. I’m happy to be back on the podium, after a difficult day yesterday.”
The international series will return to action in approximately one month at the Zandvoort circuit (October 14-15) for the penultimate event of the year.
