Jak Crawford delivered a timely reminder of his qualifying abilities at Silverstone, securing third place in a heated F2 qualifying session that saw Victor Martins claim pole position for the British GP weekend.
The American driver’s performance marked a significant return to form after a challenging period that included a disappointing P14 qualifying result at the Austrian GP just one week prior. Crawford’s third-place grid position at the British GP represents only his third top-three qualifying result of the 2025 F2 season, but it comes at a crucial time as the championship battle intensifies.
Strong pace despite early struggles
Crawford showed promise from the opening stages of the 30-minute qualifying session, initially posting a time of 1:41.108 on his first flying lap. However, as is typical at Silverstone, track evolution played a significant role throughout the session, with lap times tumbling as conditions improved.
The session was not without drama for Crawford and his rivals. Track limits proved to be a constant challenge, with several drivers having their times deleted for exceeding the boundaries. Wind conditions also caught drivers off guard, particularly at Copse Corner where a tailwind disrupted the expected balance.
Crawford’s breakthrough came during the final 10 minutes of the session when he set purple sectors across all three segments of the lap, posting a time of 1:39.971. This impressive lap briefly elevated him to the top of the timesheets before the session’s final exchanges saw further improvements from his rivals.
The question of consistency
The British GP qualifying result comes at a pivotal moment in Crawford’s F2 season. With Richard Verschoor leading the Championship standings with 104 points and Alex Dunne in second with 90 points, every session carries added significance for drivers looking to mount a title challenge.
Crawford’s recent form has been characterised by strong race performances coupled with inconsistent qualifying results. Following the session, when asked about his satisfaction with third place, Crawford was candid about recent struggles. “You know, coming off the triple header where we didn’t have great qualifying, still in the top 10, but not great qualifying,” he admitted. “And as well last week in Austria, which was outside the top 10 in P14, it’s definitely great to be back in the top three.”
When pressed about the reasons for his up-and-down qualifying form, Crawford acknowledged ongoing challenges. “Yeah, just struggling to find a consistent way, I think,” he said. “You know, we find every weekend quite different and always different challenges, of course.”
“I mean, it’s the same for everyone. But we seem to, already last year with the team, we seem to struggle a bit more with consistency. And this year has been a lot better. But it hasn’t been consistently at the front. It’s been kind of consistently in the top 10.”
Optimism for the races ahead
Despite qualifying concerns, Crawford’s race pace has been a consistent strength throughout the season. The American driver has finished in the top six in his last eight race starts, including two victories and two additional podium finishes. This impressive streak gives him confidence heading into the weekend’s racing action.
“Yeah, I can,” Crawford answered, when asked about his confidence in keeping his momentum going. “You know, free practise was strong over the long run. You know, I was improving all the way to my last laps in free practise and as well did really well here in the race, winning on track before getting a penalty.”
His reference to previous Silverstone success adds another layer of optimism. Having won on track at the British circuit before (despite a subsequent penalty), Crawford has demonstrated that he possesses the pace and racecraft to succeed at this challenging venue.
Technical challenges and setup compromises
The unique characteristics of Silverstone present specific challenges for F2 teams and drivers. When asked by Pit Debrief about tyre degradation management, Crawford highlighted the circuit’s demanding nature.
“The Feature Race can be quite tough, especially if it’s in colder conditions, a lot easier to grain the tyres and in the colder conditions and fall into a bad moment. But also, on the other hand, which happened to me last year was completely avoid the graining and you’re able to push flat out the whole race and improve to the end.”
The weather forecast for the weekend adds another variable, with rain possible for both Saturday’s Sprint Race and Sunday’s Feature Race. Crawford acknowledged the additional complexity this brings. “But if it doesn’t rain and it’s warm, then it will be just a normal saving race where, you know, you need to manage the thermal on the rear and not, you know, destroying your front left around this circuit,” he explained.
Setup compromises also played a role in Crawford’s qualifying performance. The high-speed nature of Silverstone, combined with its technical slower sections, requires careful balance. Crawford admitted this may have cost him ultimate pace. “Yeah, definitely have to take a compromise. I think everyone knows it’s quite a lateral track and we have data from other lateral tracks,” he said.
“And like Victor [Martins] said, these cars, they work in a certain window that’s really easy for two and four for each kind of corner speed. And at a place like here, you kind of do kind of sacrifice or maybe that was our problem, why we miss them. But we were not so fast in the slow speed today, which probably hurts a bit more.”
Looking ahead to the Sprint and Feature Race
With a 21-lap Sprint Race and Sunday’s 29-lap Feature Race ahead at the British GP, Crawford finds himself well-positioned to capitalise on his F2 qualifying performance. Starting from third place puts him in the mix for potential podium finishes and valuable championship points.
As Crawford noted, “You know, the race is not what I was worried about. It was more about the qualifying and qualifying well. So now that we’ve done that, you know, I feel good that we can have a good result on Sunday.”
