Monaco madness! 11 car pile up at turn 1 in F2
Formula 2 car parts were all over streets were Monaco at the Saint Devote turn after an 11 car pile up at turn 1.
Victor Martins was involved in a multi-car pile-up in F2 on Sunday at Monaco. Photo: AFP
Image: AFP
Contact between Formula 2 drivers Victor Martins and Alex Dunne at Turn 1 on the opening lap of the Monaco Grand Prix triggered an 11-car pile-up and brought out the red flag immediately.
The crash occurred when Rodin Motorsport’s Alex Dunne T-boned ART Grand Prix driver Martins, sending him hard into the wall at the Saint Devote corner. Martins had managed to edge ahead of pole-sitter Dunne, but the Irish driver refused to yield and crashed into him, sparking chaos behind.
Richard Verschoor – third in the current F2 driver standings – was also eliminated after slamming into the rear of his teammate Dunne during the pile-up.
Marshals were on the scene immediately, launching recovery efforts and performing triage to assess which cars could still continue. The congestion at Turn 1 was so severe that one of the Trident Racing cars briefly went airborne on impact.
On-board footage from Martins' car clearly shows he was ahead of Dunne while taking the apex, only to be shunted into the barrier. Frustrated, Martins threw his hands up at Dunne in a gesture that unmistakably conveyed, "What the hell?"
In a rare twist for Monaco, starting from the back of the grid could have offered a genuine shot at victory amid the chaos.
At the restart, Invicta Racing's Leonardo Fornaroli emerged in the lead, having navigated the mayhem and built on his P3 grid position. But the drama was far from over.
With just 14 drivers remaining, Dino Beganovic crashed into the wall at the Casino section, prompting yet another safety car period.
Jak Crawford of Dams Lucas Oil inherited the lead after catching up to the safety car. The race was effectively neutralised from that point as marshals cleared the second major incident. Crawford ultimately emerged as the surprise winner – a very lucky driver who walks away from the Monaco madness with a victory on his résumé.