Formula 2 report: Crawford closes in with crucial Baku win

Wednesday, 24 September 2025 at 12:16

Aston Martin junior Jak Crawford has reduced the deficit to Formula 2 championship leader Leo Fornaroli to just 19 points with a huge win in Sunday’s Baku Feature Race.

Pole sitting Crawford actually fell behind Fornaroli and Gabriele Mini off the line. But he quickly fought back, taking second from Mini at the first attempt, a lap later.

Under an early safety car, he then jumped Fornaroli in the pits and brilliantly held off a charging Josh Durksen (when it seemed inevitable he’d lose the place on Baku’s long straight) for a huge victory.

On a weekend that saw title rivals Alex Dunne, Richard Verschoor, and Luke Browning struggle, it seemed like a pivotal moment in this year’s F2 title race. In the post-race press conference, Crawford was unequivocal: this weekend was win or bust.

Crawford said: “Yeah, it is huge for us, two points for pole, fourth yesterday, and first today in the Feature Race, where the good points are. We know what we need to do if we want to win the Championship; it was such a crucial weekend for us.

“We could have very easily been out of the fight, and now we are properly back in it, closer to Leo,” he added. “Looking forward to a bit of a break and a good last few rounds.”

Crawford shows composure and gets a touch of luck

Fornaroli got ahead of Crawford on the run to Turn 1 to start the race

It would’ve been easy for Crawford to capitulate after losing two places off the start in the Formula 2 Feature Race. Oscar Piastri’s absolute mare of a start in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix just goes to show how easy it is to get things wrong around the streets of Baku.

However, Crawford kept his composure, slotting back into second behind Fornaroli—and he was soon rewarded. McLaren junior Martinius Stenshorne, who was fighting Pepe Marti for fourth on an outstanding Feature Race debut, hit the barriers, bringing out the safety car.

On the restart, Browning went off (in a disastrous moment for his title chances), while Mini and Crawford dueled for the lead. Fornaroli then ran into Dunne, forcing him off at turn one. The Italian almost avoided a penalty by gapping his rivals; Dunne’s race was pretty much over.

Having burned up his tyres fighting Crawford, Mini later plunged down the order, allowing Durksen to inherit second and hone in on the lead. Yet, despite closing to just a few tenths with three laps to go, the Dutchman was unable to pass.

Thanks to some very clever defensive driving, Crawford held on for his fourth victory of the season. With Fornaroli failing to win for the first race weekend since Austria, the American has timed his title charge perfectly for an end-of-year showdown in the final two rounds.

Beganovic earns first Formula 2 win in Baku Sprint

Beganovic won the Sprint Race and finished third in the Feature but did he have a chance at pole?

Ferrari junior Dino Beganovic probably couldn’t believe his luck when Sprint polesitter Rafael Villagomez bogged down off the line and spun out at turn one. All three Red Bull juniors—Marti, Arvid Lindblad, and Oli Goethe—then tripped over each other, causing a safety car.

As Crawford fought Verschoor and Fornaroli jumped Mini lower down the order, Beganovic took off, leaving Sebastian Montoya and Stenshorne behind. Impressively, Stenshorne took second from Montoya at turn three, but his charge ended in a breakdown the very next lap.

Yet another restart saw Crawford jump Mini for P4 and Dunne overtake Browning—but the Irishman had a huge lock-up at turn one, handing the place back. Browning then sent it past Montoya (who later suffered a breakdown of his own) to secure a one-two for Hitech, their first since Mugello five years ago.

After the race, euphoric Hitech team boss Clive Hatton said he was “over the moon” with his team’s performance, which eventually saw Beganovic win by a big 6.2-second margin.

Hatton added: “Dino has not had the easiest time up until now. He works hard and does a lot of simulator [work], so he deserves it.

“Dino had the race under control and in hand from the start once he got ahead at Turn 1. He just controlled it from there between managing the gaps to his safety car restarts. He did those flawlessly, and he was able to pull a gap after each restart and got outside of DRS to the guys behind.”

Ones to watch with two rounds to go

Duerksen fought his way through the field despite sustaining front wing damage early in the race

With two Sprints and two Feature Races to go, there’s a total of 78 points still on the table. Technically, at least, that leaves six drivers in contention for this year’s crown. Realistically though, Marti and Dunne (who’s now 58 points back) have too much left to do.

Verschoor—who has led for much of the year—lies 37 points off the lead, while Browning’s mediocre Baku weekend means he’s now 27 points behind. With a 19-point lead, Formula 3 champion Fornaroli is the big favourite, but Crawford almost halved his lead this weekend alone.

Lindblad, who’s strongly linked with a Racing Bulls seat for next season, and impressive debutant Stenshorne, are also ones to watch during the final two rounds. We’re now entering another hiatus in the F2 calendar, with the action returning in Qatar from November 28-30, 2025. [Quotes by Formula 2].