Friday’s Qualifying at the Baku City Circuit produced high drama and heavy consequences as the FIA stewards issued several F2 Baku penalties. Drivers lost fastest laps, grid positions, and valuable starting spots after red flag incidents disrupted the session. Amaury Cordeel, Victor Martins, Roman Stanek and Joshua Duerksen were notable names penalised.
Cordeel crashes and loses fastest lap
Amaury Cordeel slammed into the barrier at Turn 13, bringing out a Red Flag. Stewards ruled that the Rodin Motorsport driver caused the stoppage under Article 33.5 of the FIA Formula 2 Sporting Regulations.
The stewards reviewed video footage and heard from both Cordeel and a representative from the Rodin team. They determined that he was the sole cause of the stoppage, forcing others to abandon their laps. As a result, his fastest lap was deleted, leaving him without a representative time inside the 107% cut-off. Despite that, stewards allowed him to start both races.
Martins crashes at Turn 3 and drops to P13
Victor Martins lost control at Turn 3 and crashed, causing another Red Flag. The ART Grand Prix driver admitted his error when meeting with the stewards. After reviewing footage, they confirmed he caused the stoppage and deleted his fastest lap. The penalty dropped Martins from fourth to 13th in the classification, a huge blow to his weekend.
Roman Stanek penalised for unsafe rejoin and collision
Invicta Racing’s Roman Stanek endured a costly afternoon. The Czech driver ran wide at Turn 1 and collided with Van Amersfoort Racing’s John Bennett as he attempted to rejoin the track. The incident triggered a Red Flag and disrupted multiple drivers’ laps. The stewards deemed Stanek wholly responsible, deleting his fastest time and demoting him from ninth to 12th.
In a separate hearing, they issued him a five-place grid penalty for both races, ruling that his unsafe rejoin caused avoidable contact with Bennett.
Duerksen penalised for unsafe rejoin
Joshua Duerksen also picked up a penalty after rejoining unsafely in front of Laurens van Hoepen’s Trident while the Dutchman was on a flying lap. Stewards determined the AIX Racing driver created a dangerous situation. Normally, that incident earns a three-place grid drop, but because it occurred under Yellow Flags, they reduced the sanction to one place for both races.
Penalties shake up the Baku grid
The string of F2 Baku penalties reshuffled the order ahead of the Sprint and Feature Races. Martins must now fight from outside the top 10, while Stanek’s dual sanctions push him further down the field. With Cordeel starting from the back and Duerksen dropping a place, the revised grid promises unpredictable racing on Baku’s unforgiving streets.
Final 2025 F2 Baku Qualifying classification
- Jak Crawford
- Leonardo Fornaroli
- Gabriele Minì
- Alexander Dunne
- Luke Browning
- Pepe Martí
- Martinius Stenshorne
- Sebastian Montoya
- Dino Beganovic
- Rafael Villagomez
- Richard Verschoor
- Roman Stanek
- Victor Martins
- Joshua Duerksen
- John Bennett
- Kush Maini
- Arvid Lindblad
- Oliver Goethe
- Ritomo Miyata
- Laurens Van Hoepen
- Cian Shields
Not Classified: Amaury Cordeel
