Dino Beganovic’s Formula 2 season has gathered serious momentum. The Swede won for the second race weekend in a row and left Baku with two more podium finishes – despite battling illness.
Ferrari-junior Dino Beganovic continues his strong run of form in Formula 2.
After claiming his first victory of the season in Madrid two weeks ago, the 22-year-old struck again as Formula 2 staged three races in Baku.
Beganovic won Friday’s Sprint Race, repeating his victory from the same race on the streets of Baku last year.
Just a few hours later, the Swede was back behind the wheel. Starting eighth, he fought his way up to third place in the weekend’s first Feature Race.
It meant two podium finishes on the same day.
– Two podiums in one day doesn’t happen very often. I’m very proud of how we’ve approached and executed these last few races, Beganovic said.
Beganovic battled illness during the races
The results came despite Beganovic being far from his best physically.
According to the Swede, there were even doubts ahead of Friday’s races over whether he would be able to compete.
– Friday was actually pretty horrible for me. I wasn’t feeling well at all and wasn’t sure whether I would even be able to complete the races.
– To go from that situation to winning the Sprint Race and then taking another podium a few hours later is something I’ll remember for a very long time.
From the wall to the points
The third and final race of the weekend proved more difficult.
Beganovic had hit the wall in qualifying and managed only one flying lap. As a result, he started from 12th on the grid. The DAMS driver worked his way through the field and was fighting for a top-five finish on the final lap.
He eventually crossed the line in seventh place.
– We’ve had three competitive races here in Baku. The starts have been good and so have the restarts after the Safety Car. We had to fight our way back after qualifying didn’t quite go the way we wanted, Beganovic said.
Fifth in the Formula 2 championship
Beganovic has now finished 1st, 1st, 3rd and 7th in his last four races.
The results also move him up to fifth place in the Formula 2 championship with 137 points.
Rafael Câmara leads the standings with 207 points, seven ahead of Nikola Tsolov. Two race weekends remain this season, with the next round scheduled to take place in Qatar from November 27–29.
