Formula Regional Asian Championship Abu Dhabi Race 3 review and results 24.01.2022: Formula Regional Asian Championship Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi Race 3 Cem Bolukbasi, Hadrien David and Leonardo Fornaroli all received grid penalties for the start of Race 3, but that did not affect the front rows with Gabriele Minì lining up

Formula Regional Asian Championship
Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi


Race 3



Cem Bolukbasi, Hadrien David and Leonardo Fornaroli all received grid penalties for the start of Race 3, but that did not affect the front rows with Gabriele Minì lining up on pole with Red Bull Junior Team American Jak Crawford alongside, and Race 2 winner Gabriel Bortoleto and Isack Hadjar on row two.



As the lights went out, Minì was slow to get away allowing Crawford to shoot into the lead, but back on row 10, Bolukbasi had stalled. While some drivers were able to take evasive action to avoid the stricken car, Abu Dhabi Racing by Prema’s Amna Al Qubaisi and Pinnacle Motorsport’s Salih Yoluç were caught up in the melee. None of the drivers were hurt in the incident, but it brought out the red flag and a lengthy stoppage as the track was cleared.



That gave Minì a second chance at converting his pole position into a win and, at the restart behind the safety car and with 27 minutes on the clock, the Hitech GP driver expertly controlled the field. Behind Minì, Hadjar pulled alongside Crawford with Bortoleto joining the party.



A bold move around the outside of Hadjar saw Bortoleto snatch third in the order, before the furious Frenchman reclaimed the position moments later. The battle behind allowed Minì to increase his lead to almost three seconds as Crawford continued his pursuit and Hadjar’s attempts at closing in were thwarted by an unrelenting Bortoleto.



Behind the top four, Rookie Pepe Marti had made strong progress from his P7 grid position, the Pinnacle Motorsport driver holding Paul Aron at bay, who was soon under fire from Arthur Leclerc. Leclerc got by Aron, but Marti was also on the move and up to fourth and clear of the Monegasque with just minutes remaining. Leclerc went one better before the flag, diving past Bortoleto to cross the line fifth.



Minì took the win with a 2.659 margin over Crawford, with Hadjar taking the final podium place and Marti finishing top Rookie in fourth overall ahead of Sebastian Montoya and Evans GP Academy’s Levente Révész, after Joshua Dufek was handed a post-race 10 second time penalty.



In the Master Cup class, Abu Dhabi Racing by Prema’s Khaled Al Qubaisi and BlackArts Racing’s Thomas Luedi fought tooth and nail for the class honours, a thrilling end to the weekend for the on-track arch rivals.



Formula Regional Asian Championship
Yas Marina Circuit - 5281mtr.
21 - 23 January 2022
Final result Race 3
Yas Racing Series: Round 2 - 2022



1 4 Gabriele MinÌ Hitech Grand Prix 1 -- 15 laps -- 35:35.212 1:53.030 10 133.55
2 52 Jak Crawford Abu Dhabi Racing by Prema 2 2.659 35:37.871 1:52.864 11 133.39
3 6 Isack Hadjar Hitech Grand Prix 3 3.121 35:38.333 1:52.788 11 133.36

4 23 Pepe Marti Pinnacle Motorsport R 1 4.340 35:39.552 1:52.615 12 133.28
5 28 Arthur Leclerc Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited 4 5.891 35:41.103 1:52.901 10 133.19
6 18 Gabriel Bortoleto 3Y Technology UAE 5 6.703 35:41.915 1:52.987 7 133.13
7 3 Paul Aron Abu Dhabi Racing by Prema 6 8.638 35:43.850 1:53.347 15 133.01
8 16 Lorenzo Fluxá 3Y Technology UAE 7 9.217 35:44.429 1:52.866 11 132.98
9 17 Hadrien David 3Y Technology UAE 8 9.658 35:44.870 1:52.851 14 132.95
10 46 Sebastian Montoya Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited R 2 11.605 35:46.817 1:52.873 14 132.83
11 10 Dino Beganovic Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited 9 12.759 35:47.971 1:53.243 15 132.76
12 11 Levente Révész Evans GP Academy R 3 22.772 35:57.984 1:53.775 7 132.14
13 14 Nicola Marinangeli Evans GP Pty Ltd 10 23.032 35:58.244 1:53.536 7 132.13
14 88 Hamda Al Qubaisi Abu Dhabi Racing by Prema R 4 24.493 35:59.705 1:54.158 9 132.04
15 55 Ayato Iwasaki Pinnacle Motorsport R 5 25.551 36:00.763 1:54.121 11 131.97
16 7 Joshua Dufek Hitech Grand Prix R 6 29.430 36:04.642 1:53.483 12 131.74
17 21 Brice Morabito BlackArts Racing R 7 31.192 36:06.404 1:54.181 10 131.63
18 15 Oliver Goethe 3Y Technology UAE 11 46.663 36:21.875 1:53.280 11 130.70
19 66 Khaled Al Qubaisi Abu Dhabi Racing by Prema M 1 47.443 36:22.655 1:55.469 15 130.65
20 9 Thomas Luedi BlackArts Racing M 2 48.934 36:24.146 1:55.375 11 130.56
21 78 Frederick Lubin Evans GP Pty Ltd R 8 -- 14 laps -- 35:55.616 1:53.712 11 123.47
22 5 Leonardo Fornaroli Hitech Grand Prix R 9 -- 13 laps -- 32:01.847 1:53.537 12 128.60


Not Classified Classification limit (75% of 15 Laps) = 12 Laps


DNC 77 David Morales Evans GP Academy R -- 1 laps -- 3:45.784 84.20
DNC 74 Cem Bolukbasi Evans GP Pty Ltd
DNC 99 Amna Al Qubaisi Abu Dhabi Racing by Prema
DNC 34 Salih YoluÇ Pinnacle Motorsport M
DNS 27 Dilano van´t Hoff Pinnacle Motorsport R


STEWARDS DECISION NO. 75: CAR 7 - 10 SECONDS TIME PENA LTY

Fastest time : 1:52.615 in lap 12 by nbr. 23 : Pepe Marti




RSTime by TimeService.nl



Nikki Kemp, photo FARC