The 2012 FIA Formula Two Championship was the fourth and the last of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The season started on 14 April at Silverstone and finished on 30 September at Monza. The 2012 calendar saw the addition of two new races.[1]
In the opening round at Silverstone, the first pole of the season was claimed by Mathéo Tuscher, the youngest driver to have taken part in the series.[2] Tuscher was overtaken by Christopher Zanella on the first lap of the opening race; Zanella was later joined by Mihai Marinescu and Luciano Bacheta out front, with Bacheta eventually prevailing over Zanella with series debutant Alex Fontana in third.[3] Marinescu claimed pole position for the second race,[4] but could not stop Bacheta taking his second win of the weekend; Fontana again completed the podium, behind Marinescu.[5]
Drivers
edit| No. | Driver | Rounds |
|---|---|---|
| 3 |  Max Snegirev[6]
|
2–5, 7–8 |
| 4 |  Luciano Bacheta[7]
|
All |
| 5 |  Parthiva Sureshwaren[8]
|
1–4 |
| 6 |  Vittorio Ghirelli[9]
|
4 |
| 7 |  David Zhu[10]
|
All |
| 8 |  Plamen Kralev[11]
|
All |
| 9 |  Mihai Marinescu[12]
|
All |
| 10 |  Alex Fontana[13]
|
All |
| 11 |  Kourosh Khani[12]
|
1–2, 4–5 |
| 12 | Mathéo Tuscher[12]
|
All |
| 13 |  José Luis Abadín[12]
|
1 |
| 14 | Mauro Calamia[12]
|
1–6 |
| 15 |  Victor Guerin[14]
|
2 |
| 18 | Dino Zamparelli[12]
|
All |
| 19 | Christopher Zanella[15]
|
All |
| 20 | Daniel McKenzie[16]
|
All |
| 22 |  Axcil Jefferies[17]
|
3–8 |
| 23 | Samuele Buttarelli[12]
|
1 |
| 24 |  Kevin Mirocha[12]
|
All |
| 27 |  Markus Pommer[18]
|
All |
| 33 |  Harald Schlegelmilch[19]
|
8 |
| 35 | Hector Hurst[20]
|
All |
| 51 |  Richard Gonda[21]
|
7 |
Driver changes
edit- Entering/Re–Entering FIA Formula Two Championship
- Samuele Buttarelli switched from Auto GP to the championship.
- Formula Renault ALPS driver Mauro Calamia graduated into Formula Two in 2012.
- European F3 Open champion Alex Fontana graduated to the series.
- After competing in the first three rounds of the Auto GP World Series, Victor Guerin joined the series ahead of the Portimão round.[14]
- Daniel McKenzie moved into the series from the Formula Renault 3.5 Series.
- After competing in the GP2 Series in 2011, Kevin Mirocha switched to the FIA Formula Two Championship.
- After finishing seventh in the German Formula Three Championship, Markus Pommer graduated into Formula Two in 2012.
- Formula Pilota China champion Mathéo Tuscher and eighth-placed David Zhu moved into the championship.
- Formula Renault BARC champion Dino Zamparelli as well as fourth-placed Kourosh Khani and thirteenth-placed Hector Hurst all joined the championship.
- Leaving FIA Formula Two Championship
- Alex Brundle joined Carlin in the GP3 Series.[22]
- Jack Clarke and Benjamin Lariche switched to sportscar racing, joining the European Le Mans Series and FIA GT1 World Championship respectively.[23][24]
- Armaan Ebrahim moved to the United States to compete in Firestone Indy Lights.[25]
- Jordan King switched to the Formula Renault Eurocup with Manor MP Motorsport.[26]
- Jon Lancaster graduated to the GP2 Series with Ocean Racing Technology.[27]
Race calendar and results
editAn eight-race calendar was published by the FIA World Motor Sport Council on 7 December 2011.[1]
Calendar changes
edit- As in 2011, the series will take place over sixteen races at eight rounds, but the overall length of the calendar has been shortened from seven months to six.
- Two new rounds are to be introduced for the 2012 season, with races due to take place at Circuit Paul Ricard and the Hungaroring.
- After being removed from the 2011 calendar, the series will return to the Autódromo Internacional do Algarve in Portugal.
- The races at the Red Bull Ring, Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours and Circuit de Catalunya will be discontinued to make way for new and returning races.
Championship standings
edit
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- Spa Race 2 ran only four laps, and the race was red-flagged because of rain and crashes on Lap 3 that resulted in a caution. The race was subsequently red-flagged, and under the count-back rule in red flag situations, the race lasted only three laps for a total time of 9:38.007, much less than the 30 minutes required in the 40-minute race, so only half points are awarded as the race did not reach the 75% required for full points.
References
edit- ^ a b "Formula 2 to visit five current grand prix circuits in 2012". Autosport. Haymarket Publications. 7 December 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2011.
- ^ "Tuscher secures superb pole for opening Silverstone race". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 14 April 2012. Archived from the original on 19 April 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
- ^ "Luciano Bacheta wins thrilling Silverstone opener". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 14 April 2012. Archived from the original on 16 April 2012. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
- ^ "Marinescu secures pole for second Silverstone race". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 15 April 2012. Archived from the original on 17 April 2012. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
- ^ "Bacheta completes superb Silverstone double". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 15 April 2012. Archived from the original on 17 April 2012. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
- ^ "Max Snegirev returns for remainder of F2 seasont". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 23 April 2012. Archived from the original on 29 April 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
- ^ "Luciano Bacheta returns for F2 title assault". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 20 January 2012. Retrieved 20 January 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Parthiva Sureshwaren secures F2 return for 2012". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 13 February 2012. Archived from the original on 21 April 2012. Retrieved 13 February 2012.
- ^ "Vittorio Ghirelli joins Spa F2 test line-up". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 19 June 2012. Archived from the original on 3 January 2013. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
- ^ "David Zhu confirms place on F2 grid in 2012". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 7 March 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Plamen Kralev confirms place on 2012 F2 grid". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 13 March 2012. Retrieved 13 March 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b c d e f g h "2012 F2 season gets underway!". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 13 April 2012. Archived from the original on 16 April 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
- ^ "Alex Fontana graduates to Formula Two". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 9 March 2012. Archived from the original on 16 May 2012. Retrieved 9 March 2012.
- ^ a b "Victor Guerin joins F2 grid for Algarve". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 24 April 2012. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
- ^ Allen, Peter (27 March 2012). "Zanella dreams of Williams test after confirming F2 return". The Checkered Flag. BlackEagleMedia Network. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
- ^ "Daniel McKenzie switches from Formula Renault 3.5 to F2". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 15 March 2012. Retrieved 15 March 2012.
- ^ "Axcil Jefferies makes F2 debut at the Nűrburgring". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 24 May 2012. Retrieved 24 May 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Markus Pommer steps up to F2 in 2012". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 19 March 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
- ^ "Harald Schlegelmilch joins F2 grid for season finale". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 21 September 2012. Archived from the original on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 21 September 2012.
- ^ "Hector Hurst to make Formula Two debut in 2012". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 7 March 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
- ^ "Richard Gonda joins F2 field at Hungaroring". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 8 September 2012. Retrieved 8 September 2012.
- ^ "Brundle joins Carlin for GP3". Carlin. Capsicum. 3 February 2012. Archived from the original on 6 June 2015. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ "Le Castellet: The Participants". europeanlemansseries.com. 23 March 2012. Archived from the original on 16 December 2012. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
- ^ Mercier, Laurent (2 April 2012). "Nogaro: Les équipages affichent complets..." [Nogaro: Crews are complete]. endurance-info.com (in French). Endurance-Info. Archived from the original on 6 April 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2012.
- ^ "Fan Force United signs Ebrahim". Firestone Indy Lights. IndyCar. 3 January 2012. Archived from the original on 9 January 2012. Retrieved 3 January 2012.
- ^ Rubino, Jacopo (27 January 2012). "Manor molla la serie britannica e si allea con MP Motorsport" [Manor leaves British series and joins forces with MP Motorsport]. stopandgo.tv (in Italian). Stop&Go. Archived from the original on 29 December 2014. Retrieved 27 January 2012.
- ^ "Jon Lancaster joins Ocean for GP2". Autosport. Haymarket Publications. 6 March 2012. Archived from the original on 9 March 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2012.