2011 FIA Formula Two Championship

The 2011 FIA Formula Two Championship season was the third year of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The championship began on 17 April at Silverstone and finished on 30 October at the Circuit de Catalunya, after eight double-header rounds and all (excluding Silverstone) in support of International GT Open racing weekends.

2011 FIA Formula Two Championship
Previous: 2010 Next: 2012

For most of the season, the championship battle revolved around a returning driver Mirko Bortolotti (finished fourth in 2009 and rookie driver Christopher Zanella. Bortolotti took lead after win in the opening race of the season at Silverstone and did not leave him until the end of the season. The Italian secured his title and a prize test for the Williams F1 team in the home race at Monza with two races to spare.[1] Bortolotti scored seven wins in a season matching 2009 Champion Andy Soucek record and with win in 2009 at Brno the Italian took absolute win record in FIA Formula Two Championship.[2]

Zanella finished a second place in the standings with two wins, 123 points behind Bortolotti and just eight ahead of his nearest rival and another newcomer Ramón Piñeiro, who scored three wins. The fourth place went to Piñeiro compatriot and winner of the Silverstone's race Miki Monrás.

Drivers
No. Driver Rounds
2 James Cole[3] All
3 Armaan Ebrahim[4] 1–6
4 Mirko Bortolotti[5] All
5 Alex Brundle[6] All
6 Miki Monrás[7] All
8 Plamen Kralev[8] All
9 Mihai Marinescu[9] All
10 Max Snegirev[10] All
11 Jack Clarke[11] All
12 Kelvin Snoeks[12] All
13 José Luis Abadín[13] 1–3, 5, 8
14 Jolyon Palmer[14] 4
15 Ramón Piñeiro[15] All
16 Mikkel Mac[16] All
17 Will Bratt[17] 1–4
18 Tobias Hegewald[18] All
19 Christopher Zanella[19] All
20 Julian Theobald[20] 1–4, 6–7
21 Thiemo Storz[21] All
22 Johannes Theobald[20] 1–4, 6
23 Jon Lancaster[22] 2
24 Tom Gladdis[23] 1
25 René Binder[24] 6
26 Luciano Bacheta[25] 6–7
28 Benjamin Lariche[26] All
30 Tom Mun[27] All
33 Parthiva Sureshwaren[28] 1, 3–8
42 Jordan King[29] 3–5
77 Natalia Kowalska[30] 1–2
88 Fabio Gamberini[31] 4

Driver changes
Entering/Re–Entering FIA Formula Two Championship
  • José Luis Abadín graduated from European F3 Open to compete in the championship.
  • Mirko Bortolotti, Alex Brundle and Tobias Hegewald all returned to the championship, after competing in other series in 2010. Bortolotti and Hegewald moved back from the GP3 Series, while Brundle will rejoin from British Formula 3.
  • James Cole moved into the series from the British Formula 3 National Class. Max Snegirev also joined Formula Two from the Championship Class in British Formula 3.
  • Formula Renault NEC runner-up Mikkel Mac moved into Formula Two in 2011.
  • Miki Monrás switched from GP3 Series to compete in the championship.
  • Sung-Hak Mun joined the championship after racing in Formula BMW Pacific in 2010.
  • Thiemo Storz moved into the championship, having missed most of 2010 due to completing his schooling and competing in the last Formula Palmer Audi season.
  • After finishing sixth in the Italian Formula Three Championship, Christopher Zanella graduated into Formula Two in 2011.
Leaving FIA Formula Two Championship
  • 2010 champion Dean Stoneman had been due to compete with ISR Racing in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series in 2011, but withdrew after being diagnosed with testicular cancer.
  • 2010 runner-up Jolyon Palmer graduated to GP2, signing with the Arden International team. Palmer returned to Formula Two at the Nürburgring, in order to gain track time ahead of the GP2 races at the circuit later in the season.
  • Sergey Afanasyev, who finished third in 2010 moved to Auto GP with DAMS.
Mid-Season Changes
  • Jordan King, Jon Lancaster and Fabio Gamberini joined the series during the season. Lancaster contested the Magny-Cours round, after racing in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series during the 2010 season, while King is combining his Formula Two programme with Formula Renault UK. Gamberini, a front-runner in the European F3 Open series, competed at the Nürburgring.

Calendar

An eight-round calendar was published on 3 November 2010,[32] with an amendment made to the Magny-Cours date on 8 December 2010.[33] The series was not part of the support package of the World Touring Car Championship as it had been since the series' revival. With the exception of the opening round at Silverstone, the championship was a part of International GT Open meetings.[34]

Round Circuit/Location Country Date Pole Position Fastest Lap Winning Driver
1 R1 Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire  United Kingdom 16 April Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti
R2 17 April Miki Monrás Miki Monrás Miki Monrás
2 R1 Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours  France 14 May Alex Brundle Christopher Zanella Christopher Zanella
R2 15 May Christopher Zanella Miki Monrás Christopher Zanella
3 R1 Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps  Belgium 25 June Ramón Piñeiro Ramón Piñeiro Will Bratt
R2 26 June Will Bratt Tobias Hegewald Mirko Bortolotti
4 R1 Nürburgring  Germany 2 July Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti
R2 3 July Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti
5 R1 Brands Hatch, Kent  United Kingdom 23 July Tobias Hegewald Jack Clarke Jack Clarke
R2 24 July Mirko Bortolotti Ramón Piñeiro Ramón Piñeiro
6 R1 Red Bull Ring, Spielberg  Austria 27 August Ramón Piñeiro Mirko Bortolotti Ramón Piñeiro
R2 28 August Christopher Zanella Mirko Bortolotti Ramón Piñeiro
7 R1 Autodromo Nazionale Monza  Italy 1 October Mihai Marinescu Mihai Marinescu Mihai Marinescu
R2 2 October Mirko Bortolotti Mihai Marinescu Mirko Bortolotti
8 R1 Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló  Spain 29 October Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti
R2 30 October Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti Mirko Bortolotti

Championship standings

A driver's best 14 scores counted towards the championship, with any other points being discarded.[35]

Pos Driver SIL
 MAG
 SPA
 NÜR
 BRH
 RBR
 MNZ
 CAT
 Points
1 Mirko Bortolotti 1 2 6 3 2 1 1 1 5 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 298
2 Christopher Zanella 7 3 1 1 3 2 2 3 6 7 12 4 5 6 6 7 189
3 Ramón Piñeiro 5 11 5 9 7 12 14 10 2 1 1 1 4 2 3 2 185
4 Miki Monrás 3 1 4 4 9 4 4 8 4 9 Ret 11 17 3 2 4 153
5 Mihai Marinescu 4 5 Ret 5 8 5 Ret 11 Ret 4 3 3 1 Ret 5 3 138
6 Tobias Hegewald 6 4 2 8 4 Ret 12 4 3 5 15 6 6 9 4 11 121
7 Alex Brundle 19 Ret 3 2 5 7 Ret 5 Ret 17 4 Ret 3 4 8 5 112
8 Jack Clarke 8 6 13 10 19 6 3 7 1 3 5 Ret 8 7 7 9 110
9 Will Bratt 2 DSQ 8 7 1 3 7 2 92
10 Kelvin Snoeks Ret 8 10 Ret 10 9 6 19 Ret Ret Ret 5 11 8 9 6 40
11 Mikkel Mac 12 9 15 12 11 14 8 6 13 11 Ret 9 9 11 10 8 23
12 Thiemo Storz 14 14 9 15 6 10 9 15 Ret Ret Ret 14 7 Ret 11 16 19
13 Luciano Bacheta 7 10 10 5 18
14 Jordan King 17 8 5 9 Ret 10 17
15 Armaan Ebrahim 11 7 12 Ret 13 20 15 13 9 6 14 Ret 16
16 Benjamin Lariche 13 10 11 13 20 Ret 13 12 Ret 8 8 8 13 10 13 10 15
17 Jon Lancaster 7 6 14
18 Max Snegirev 9 Ret 16 14 14 13 11 18 7 Ret 11 7 16 Ret 12 12 14
19 Julian Theobald 17 Ret 17 Ret 15 15 16 Ret 6 12 Ret Ret 8
20 James Cole 15 13 18 17 16 16 18 14 8 12 9 18 14 15 14 15 6
21 Johannes Theobald Ret 16 14 11 12 Ret 10 Ret Ret 16 1
22 José Luis Abadín 16 18 Ret 16 18 11 10 15 15 13 1
23 Plamen Kralev Ret 17 Ret 18 Ret 18 17 17 12 13 10 15 12 13 16 17 1
24 Tom Gladdis 10 15 1
25 Parthiva Sureshwaren 18 Ret 21 19 DNS Ret 11 14 Ret 17 15 14 17 14 0
26 Sung-Hak Mun 20 19 19 19 Ret 17 19 Ret 14 16 13 19 Ret 12 Ret DNS 0
27 Natalia Kowalska Ret 12 Ret 20 0
28 René Binder 16 13 0
29 Fabio Gamberini 20 16 0
Jolyon Palmer DNS DNS 0
Pos Driver SIL
 MAG
 SPA
 NÜR
 BRH
 RBR
 MNZ
 CAT
 Points
ColourResult
GoldWinner
Silver2nd place
Bronze3rd place
GreenPoints finish
BlueNon-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
PurpleRetired (Ret)
RedDid not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
BlackDisqualified (DSQ)
WhiteDid not start (DNS)
Withdrew (WD)
Race cancelled (C)
Blank Did not participate (DNP)
Excluded (EX)

Bold – Pole
Italics – Fastest Lap
† – Retired, but classified

References
  1. "Mirko Bortolotti secures 2011 F2 Championship". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 2 October 2011. Archived from the original on 3 November 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  2. "Imperious Bortolotti takes F2 win record". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 30 October 2011. Archived from the original on 1 November 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2011.
  3. "James Cole graduates to F2". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 31 March 2011. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
  4. "Armaan Ebrahim returns for F2 title attack". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 18 February 2011. Archived from the original on 24 February 2011. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
  5. "Mirko Bortolotti returns to Formula Two". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 9 March 2011. Archived from the original on 25 March 2011. Retrieved 9 March 2011.
  6. "Alex Brundle rejoins F2 for 2011". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 21 January 2011. Archived from the original on 23 January 2011. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  7. "Miki Monras opts for F2 in 2011". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 7 March 2011. Archived from the original on 25 March 2011. Retrieved 7 March 2011.
  8. "Plamen Kralev confirms F2 return". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 10 March 2011. Archived from the original on 25 March 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
  9. "Mihai Marinescu commits to F2 for 2011". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 12 April 2011. Archived from the original on 17 April 2011. Retrieved 12 April 2011.
  10. "Max Snegirev switches from F3 to Formula Two". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 25 February 2011. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
  11. "Jack Clarke targets championship victory on F2 return". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 18 January 2011. Archived from the original on 21 January 2011. Retrieved 18 January 2011.
  12. "Kelvin Snoeks to make F2 return". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 4 March 2011. Archived from the original on 25 March 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  13. "Jose Luis Abadin graduates to F2". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 13 April 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  14. "Jolyon Palmer makes F2 return this weekend". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 30 June 2011. Archived from the original on 1 July 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  15. "Ramón Piñeiro joins Formula Two". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 13 April 2011. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
  16. "Mikkel Mac signs up for F2". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 14 April 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  17. "Will Bratt returns to F2". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 11 April 2011. Archived from the original on 13 April 2011. Retrieved 11 April 2011.
  18. "Tobias Hegewald switches from GP3 to F2". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 18 March 2011. Archived from the original on 26 March 2011. Retrieved 18 March 2011.
  19. "Christopher Zanella signs for F2 in 2011". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 1 April 2011. Retrieved 1 April 2011.
  20. "Julian and Johannes Theobald sign up for F2". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 11 April 2011. Archived from the original on 13 April 2011. Retrieved 11 April 2011.
  21. "Thiemo Storz to make Formula Two bow in 2011". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 27 January 2011. Retrieved 27 January 2011.
  22. "Jon Lancaster signs up to F2". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 11 May 2011. Retrieved 11 May 2011.
  23. "Tom Gladdis aiming for the front on F2 return". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 12 March 2011. Archived from the original on 25 March 2011. Retrieved 12 March 2011.
  24. "Binder to make F2 debut on home soil". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 19 August 2011. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  25. "Luciano Bacheta makes F2 switch". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 23 August 2011. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
  26. "Benjamin Lariche secures F2 return for 2011". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 20 January 2011. Archived from the original on 22 January 2011. Retrieved 20 January 2011.
  27. "Sung-Hak Mun confirms place on F2 grid". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 8 April 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2011.
  28. "Parthiva Sureshwaren returns for 2011 assault". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 10 March 2011. Archived from the original on 25 March 2011. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
  29. "Jordan King adds F2 programme". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 3 June 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2011.
  30. "Natalia Kowalska returns for a second season in F2". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 29 March 2011. Archived from the original on 5 April 2011. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  31. "Gamberini makes F2 debut at the Nürburgring". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 29 June 2011. Retrieved 29 June 2011.
  32. "World Motor Sport Council, 03/11/2010". fia.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 3 November 2010. Archived from the original on 5 November 2010. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  33. "FIA ratifies 16-race 2011 F2 calendar". FIA Formula Two Championship. MotorSport Vision. 8 December 2010. Archived from the original on 1 January 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2010.
  34. "INTERNATIONAL GT OPEN PROVISIONAL CALENDAR SEASON 2011" (PDF). International GT Open. GT Sport. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 March 2012. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
  35. "2011 Formula Two Sporting Regulations" (PDF). fia.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 10 December 2010. Retrieved 30 October 2011. 6.2: Points for the title will be awarded at each race...but a driver must only count his highest scores from the total of all the races in the Championship less two.
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