Hauger snatches last second pole in traffic-filled F3 qualifying

A typical FIA Formula 3 qualifying which saw many drivers’ fast laps thwarted by traffic ended with Dennis Hauger taking his second pole position of the season and taking more points in the championship battle.

Caio Collet had set the pole time even later than Hauger but his lap time was deleted meaning Hauger was promoted back up to first in the PREMA.

Alongside the Norwegian in the front row for Sunday’s race will be Paul Ricard pole sitter Frederik Vesti who won at this track a year ago in his rookie season. The ART man will be hoping to make his good grid spot count after dropping back in France last time out.

Aleksandr Smolyar has been the king of race one so far this year, taking victories in both Barcelona and Paul Ricard but that will be tougher this time around after the Russian put his ART third on the grid, with Collet having to settle for fourth after his lap time deletion.

Jak Crawford backed up his fine practice form with fifth on the grid ahead of Trident’s Clément Novalak who bounced back from a poor practice for sixth on the grid

Jack Doohan would have wanted more than seventh having looked very quick earlier in the day, before his lap time was deleted, but he does at least give himself a good chance for all three races alongside Olli Caldwell in the PREMA.

Caldwell’s teammate Arthur Leclerc bagged his first points of the year by winning race two in France and finally got a decent qualifying together in ninth ahead of second in the championship Victor Martins. Hauger’s pole puts a ten point gap between the two before any races have been ran this weekend.

The first race of the weekend though will see Logan Sargeant start from the front after he qualified twelfth while Matteo Nannini joins him on the front row in the HWA Racelab machine.