FIA F2 Championship, Sakhir, Race Preview
The countdown is almost over. The FIA Formula 2 Championship will be back underway at Sakhir for round 1 out of 14 for 2023, opening a nine-month season. Trident Motorsport cannot wait to field its completely new line-up featuring two drivers that already know the team well.
The FIA Formula 2 Championship will begin its 2023 season at the desert track of Bahrain, which has traditionally opened the calendar after serving as the venue for preseason testing. For 2023, the collective session was held from February 14th to 16th.
This year, the FIA Formula 2 Championship will run in 13 different countries, with Italy taking the center stage thanks to two iconic races at Imola and Monza. Organizers have received numerous applications to host an F2 event as the championship is a key step for drivers to reach Formula 1. 2023 will be particularly demanding, from the February test to the Yas Marina finale, which will be followed, more than nine months after round 1, by postseason testing.
Trident Motorsport, its technical staff and the drivers have a fully-commitment approach and are looking forward to finally competing to understand the values of the field. The double race format will be maintained for the season, with the Feature Race scheduled on Sunday and the Sprint Race on Saturday. The latter will feature a reverse top-10 grid.
Trident Motorsport is running with a brand new line-up consisting of Clément Novalak and Roman Staněk. For the Frenchman, this is a return to the Trident Motorsport family after competing in the 2021 FIA Formula 3 Championship and finishing the season in third place with four podiums. The 22-year-old Avignon native made his FIA Formula 2 Championship debut in 2022, finishing 14th and grabbing a podium at Zandvoort. On the other hand, Roman Staněk will make his FIA Formula 2 Championship debut. The 19-year-old Czech is coming from fifth place in the 2022 FIA Formula 3 Championship, a season that saw him compete for the title under the Trident Motorsport banner.
In the last championship, Staněk highlighted his effort with one victory, four podiums, a pole position and two fastest laps. He got a chance to step into an F2 car in the postseason test at Yas Marina last November and then continued by entering the preseason test in Bahrain.
The drivers and the team's technical department were highly-committed to their high-quality preparation program. It is now time to get to the track in a series that is reaching an unprecedented level of competition.
Giacomo Ricci, Team Manager: "We are looking forward to a new season that promises to be very exciting for Trident Motorsport and its two new drivers. We will have a completely new line-up with good potential and we expect steady growth throughout the season. Some technical issues prevented us from bringing the entire program to a conclusion in testing, but our level of preparation is adequate. I think Novalak and Stanek can make a good combination with complementary characteristics. They have been part of our family for a long time and know our way of working. This is certainly a positive element: the team will give its best to support them and help them to achieve their goals."
The FIA Formula 2 Championship cars will go on track for the first time on Friday at 12:05 for the 45-minute free practice session. Qualifying will be held on the same day at 19:30. The Sprint Race will start on Saturday at 16:15, while the Feature Race will be at 13:20 on Sunday. All the action will be broadcasted live by the Sky Sports F1 network. Times are local, two hours ahead of Central European Time.