DAMS Lucas Oil showed solid pace as Jak Crawford picked up points in both races in Round 11 of the 2024 FIA Formula 2 Championship at Monza.

Crawford battled into the top-10 from 13th on the grid during an exhilarating Sprint Race, making numerous overtakes to secure sixth, while Juan Manuel Correa finished in 17th.

In Sunday’s Feature Race, Crawford navigated his way through a chaotic start to gain seven places on the opening tour, pitting on Lap 8, just before a Safety Car. The intervention allowed drivers from behind to jump the Aston Martin Driver Development Programme member, although he showed great determination to make his way back through the field to finish ninth.

In the #8 car, Correa was third of the alternate strategy runners, fighting hard with those around him, but retired on Lap 17 with a technical issue.

Jak Crawford: “I’m pleased to score points in both races across the weekend and happy we could turn it around after a tricky Friday. The race pace was strong again, especially on Saturday, allowing me to battle my way up to P6. On Sunday, we got unlucky pitting a lap before the Safety Car, meaning we lost a handful of places, but P9 was still a respectable result.”

Qualifying: 14th |  Sprint Race: 6th (+3 points)  |  Feature Race: 9th (+2 points)

Juan Manuel Correa: “It was a tough weekend from the outset as we’ve been managing a straight-line speed issue. Due to this, the pace wasn’t there and alongside damage suffered in the Feature Race it led to the retirement. I’m hopeful that we can fix this problem before Baku and enjoy a more successful round there.”

Qualifying: 18th  |  Sprint Race: 17th |  Feature Race: DNF

Charles Pic, Team Owner: “I’m happy that we achieved points finishes in both races with Jak, but we know that there are still improvements to be made. Qualifying was tricky, however, Jak showed strong race pace to be in the top-10, and without a poorly timed Safety Car today it could’ve produced an even better finish. With JM, we were managing a straight-line speed issue throughout the round, which affected his performance and with the front-wing damage picked up on Sunday it was safer to retire the car. We’ll analyse and look to come back even stronger for Baku in two weeks time.”

Image: Dutch Photo Agency