Collision forces Zane Maloney out of feature race in Hungary

21st July 2024

Pole sitter Paul Aron causes the Barbados driver’s premature end after misjudged manoeuvre

Zane Maloney suffered a tough break during the feature race in Hungary after being forced out on lap 7 by Hitech Pulse-Eight driver Paul Aron, writes Damian Hall.

Despite an incredible start, which saw the Barbados-born driver gain four places from 8th by the time the field reached turn 1, all his hard work was undone on lap 7 while exiting turn 2.

Aron, who had started the race in pole position but lost it at turn 1, attempted to pass Red Bull Junior driver Dennis Hauger. He went to the inside of turn 2 and collided with the rear of Maloney’s number 5 machine. The impact spun Maloney around, causing his car to stall and ending his race prematurely.

It’s particularly difficult news as Maloney’s alternative strategy of starting on the prime compound (hard) tyres, could have paid off.

Even with less grip available at the start compared to the soft compound tire competitors around him, he showed dominance on the run down to turn 1.

He had bravely positioned himself on the inside of the first turn, which then became the outside of turn 2. He momentarily faced a challenge for his position but cleverly chose to stay on the outside, giving him the inside advantage for turn 3, thereby cementing his position.

This incident leaves the Rodin Motorsport driver without points for the weekend, causing him to drop slightly to 4th in the championship standings with 101 points – 39 points behind the current championship leader Isack Hadjar.

Formula 2 now moves on to Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium from July 26-28.

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