Pepe Martí expressed his disappointment at finishing only fifth in the F2 Sprint Race at the Belgian GP on Saturday, despite a promising start. The Spaniard, driving for Campos Racing, put in a solid performance but ultimately felt he and the team had done all they could.
While speaking to the media after the Sprint Race, Martí said, “We had a pretty good launch, but going into Turn 1, Ollie was quite conservative. So that forced me to stay on the inside, and because of that I could not make up any positions.”
Martí’s strong getaway was hampered by limited space on the inside at the first corner. This forced him to hold a defensive line that prevented any positional gains early on. In addition, he made slight contact with Oliver Goethe at Turn 1, which resulted in damage to his front wing. Despite the damage, Martí believes it did not massively affect his race pace.
“I struggled a bit from there, we weren’t really the fastest out there today, and we just managed to hang on to fifth throughout the whole race until the Safety Car window, when there was the crash with Amaury.”
Martí had to maintain his position under difficult circumstances, running with compromised aerodynamics for the majority of the race. The challenges of managing the damaged car and the competition meant the Spaniard had to focus on maximising what was available.
Safety Car opportunity and tactical pit stop
The F2 Sprint Race of the Belgian GP took an unexpected turn on Lap 12 when Amaury Cordeel collided with Victor Martins, ending up in the gravel at Les Combes. This incident brought out the Safety Car, which in turn gave Martí and the other drivers behind him a strategic opportunity to pit for new tyres.
“We decided to box, we took a chance, it was a good idea because everyone boxed,” Martí said, discussing the pit stop decision. “But after that, it didn’t feel like there was a big pace delta between the Soft and the Medium.”
Martí emerged from the pits in sixth position on the used Option tyre, a compound offering decent grip despite its wear. He managed to overtake Cian Shields but found Goethe just out of reach.
“I was very happy coming out in sixth on the restart, on the used Option, a good tyre. I was a bit disappointed when I was behind him and I was like guys ‘I am not that much faster than him’.”
Missed opportunities and race stabilisation
As the race progressed and the field settled into rhythm, Martí sensed a chance to pass Goethe. However, external factors interrupted this plan.
“Once the race stabilised and I had a good chance to pass Ollie, but Alex Dunne went for a move into T1, so that lost me the gap to Ollie, and we never got a chance again.”
This unfortunate timing denied Martí the opportunity to challenge for a higher position during the final laps. Despite this, Martí maintained a professional perspective on the race outcome.
“It was a bit disappointing because I felt we could have been fourth or third today, but there was not much in it today. It’s part of the game, the Medium lasts very well here, it behaves very well and the Soft doesn’t look to be the best tyre.”
He noted how the durability of the Medium tyre at Spa played a significant role in the race dynamics, limiting the impact of softer compounds during the closing stages. Looking ahead, Martí is curious to see how tyre strategies will unfold in the Feature Race.
“We will see tomorrow, it will be an interesting race because it did last at the same pace. So we could see a bit of a juggle strategy.”
Looking forward: Podium ambitions in Feature Race
Martí’s starting position for Sunday’s F2 Feature Race at the 2025 Belgian GP is sixth, and he remains optimistic about making progress and fighting for a podium finish.
“Obviously, I am hoping for a podium,” he stated with confidence. “Hopefully we can take more than the eight points from where we are starting in sixth.”
He is aware that a strong start will be crucial to his success and is determined to avoid any early setbacks.
“If we do a good step forward, we can challenge more than just sixth and I am excited to hopefully have a good start, not get blocked and if we can be around the top four or five in the first half we will have a good shot at the end.”
Martí’s focus on a clean getaway and early race position highlights his intent to maximise every opportunity in the decisive stages of the championship. With determination and strategic clarity, he aims to convert his strong pace into meaningful points as the season approaches its climax.
