Hitech are Vice-Champions after intense finale at Abu Dhabi

Both drivers came into the weekend determined to finish the season strongly. Luke had missed out on the Drivers’ Championship, sitting fourth with 162 points, while Dino was looking to round off a competitive campaign with another solid result. With the Teams’ title still mathematically in reach, Hitech arrived focused on maximising every opportunity.

In Sunday’s Feature Race…

Dino made a superb start from the second row of the grid in P4, overtaking Fornaroli to move up to P3 immediately. Luke began his climb from P17.

By lap 2, Crawford served a 10-second penalty, promoting Dino to P2. Luke gained five positions from his P17 grid placing, running P12. At the end of lap 2, Luke found himself in a brief midfield sandwich with Bennett, while a separate clash between Shields and Dunne brought out the Safety Car. With the race still in its early stages, the neutralisation offered little strategic benefit.

Racing resumed on lap 6, with Dino in P2 and Luke in P12. On the restart, the attrition had moved Luke up to P9, but was then passed by Villagomez on the same lap.

By lap 8, both drivers made a double stop to optimise the Supersoft tyre strategy. Dino’s pitstop was extremely close, narrowly missing out on getting ahead of Stanek, but midway through the laps he overtook him on track to claim the position. After the first round of stops. Durksen had pulled an overcut that moved him ahead of Dino and dropped him to P12, though he remained within striking distance.

On lap 10, a VSC temporarily neutralised the field. Dino recovered to P10, while Luke was in P17. A VSC followed on lap 14, deployed to clear Montoya’s stranded car, and the race resumed immediately afterwards.

On lap 15, Dino overtook Stanek again for P9. While running in net P2 on track, he was noted for speeding in the pit lane, and Luke received the same notice. Both were handed 5-second penalties that would be applied at the chequered flag.

By lap 17, Dino was working hard to stay in touch with Durksen ahead and eventually got past Bennett to close the gap.

On lap 29, those on the Medium tyre made their stops, reshuffling the order at the front. Dino continued to press, staying close to Durksen, while Luke worked to make the most of the final laps.

As the race unfolded, Dino was running P2 and Luke P9, both working to build a gap to mitigate their 5-second penalties but there was more jostling in the midfield to be had and Luke dropped to P12. After the application of penalties, Dino finished P4, just two-tenths off the podium, and Luke P14.

In Saturday’s Sprint Race

Starting the Sprint Race from P7, Dino gained two places on the opening lap. Early on, he engaged in a close battle with Victor Martins, running side by side into Turn 7 before consolidating P5. Luke also gained a place on lap 1, passing Villagomez to begin his climb through the midfield.

By lap 5, Dino chased Goethe for P4, while Luke continued his climb through the midfield. A lap 8 VSC promoted Luke to P16, and on lap 17, Dino made a bold, controlled move into Turn 9 to take P4.

A brief VSC on lap 21 cleared debris from a Crawford-Martins clash, and Luke tested the option tyre with a late pit stop. The race ended with Dino P4.

Season Wrap-up

It has been an incredible and highly competitive season for Hitech TGR, the team’s best in Formula 2.

Luke finished fourth in the Drivers’ Championship with 162 points, after waging a mighty campaign throughout his debut year. He secured his maiden F2 victory at Monza and a total of nine podiums, showcasing remarkable consistency and pace.

Dino improved to P7 in the Standings on 116 points. He earned his first F2 win in Baku, finishing the season with four podiums and continuing his strong development in the championship.