Browning leads the way for Hitech on Day 2 of Sakhir pre-season test

Luke Browning set the fastest time on the second day of running at the Sakhir pre-season test, with the Hitech Pulse-Eight driver edging out MP Motorsport rival Alexander Dunne to take the top spot.

Browning completed a lap of 1:46.819 to go fastest overall in the afternoon session, which followed a morning segment headed up by Jenzer Motorsport’s Charlie Wurz.

MORNING

With much improved conditions compared to day one, plenty of teams opted to head straight out onto the track looking to rack up as many laps as possible.

After a busy hour of action in Sakhir, ART Grand Prix driver Nikola Tsolov had set the benchmark time of 1:49.071. However, he was being kept honest by his rival Browning, who was 0.264s behind in second place.

As the drivers laid down more rubber on the racing line, they found more grip and the times were improving fast as MP Motorsport’s Kacper Sztuka rocketed to the top of the timesheets, with a lap of 1:48.453.

Mari Boya then became the first to dip below the 1:47s, when the Campos Racing driver completed a lap time of 1:46.964. It was proving a difficult one to beat as PREMA Racing’s Gabriele Minì, his nearest challenger, was over three-tenths away.

The lead then swapped hands by the slimmest of margins with 30 minutes left as Jenzer Motorsport’s Charlie Wurz made great use of the clear track to go top by just a thousandth of a second.

It proved to be the fastest time of the morning session as no other driver matched Wurz’s 1:46.963. The checkered flag brought to a close a busy first segment were multiple drivers completed over 30 laps, Van Amersfoort Racing’s Tommy Smith did the most with 34.

AFTERNOON

VAR’s Sophia Floersch led the way out of the pitlane to kick off the afternoon as drivers got right back to it and continued to add to their lap count.

PREMA Racing were quick out of the blocks as Gabriele Minì went straight to the top of the leaderboard. His time of 1:51.070 was over three-tenths faster than his teammate Dino Beganovic in second.

With an hour gone, Sebastián Montoya went quickest for Campos Racing, eclipsing Minì’s attempt by a 1.657s, setting a lap of 1:49.413.

There was more good news for Campos as Mari Boya went within 0.052s of Montoya’s effort, while Oliver Goethe settled into third. However, down at Jenzer, Max Esterson pulled his car over to the side of the road at Turn 11 bringing out the first Red Flags.

As the day wound down to a close the drivers began to set the timesheets alight with green and purple sectors, the fastest time now changing hands on multiple occasions. But in the end, Browning’s lap of 1:46.819 proved good enough to beat Dunne’s best effort by 0.066s.

It was a busy day for every driver in the paddock, but the most laps in the afternoon were completed by the Trident trio. Leonardo Fornaroli, Santiago Ramos, and Sami Meguetonif all completed 47 tours of the Sakhir circuit each.

2024 FIA FORMULA 3 CHAMPIONSHIP - SAKHIR PRE-SEASON TEST, DAY 2, MORNING SESSION

2024 FIA FORMULA 3 CHAMPIONSHIP - SAKHIR PRE-SEASON TEST, DAY 2, AFTERNOON SESSION