Written by Matthew Hume

Much has happened since I last wrote an article. Zane Maloney’s hot start has cooled off somewhat, rookies who maybe started a bit shaky have begun to find their feet, every driver has scored points and Victor Martins continues to have the most abysmal luck. However, there are two men upon whom I want to focus this week, namely Isaak Hadjar and Paul Aron.

First up is Isack Hadjar. When I last wrote one of these power rankings after Saudi Arabia, Hadjar had a staggering 5 points, some 42 points behind championship Leader Zane Maloney. He also sat at 7^th in that weeks’ rankings. The reason for that disparity is that Hadjar had looked on the pace and in the mix during all four races across the opening two weekends, but problems largely not of his own making had seen him DNF three of those races. It was looking like luck just wasn’t going to be on Hadjar’s side this year and potentially scupper his chance to progress to F1. That has all changed rather quickly. Whilst he hasn’t been picking up too many points in the sprint races, Hadjar’s last three feature race results are 1^st, 1^st and 2^nd. Perhaps more impressively than that is that it hasn’t just been stellar qualifying, having started those same races 8^th, 3^rd and 2^nd. He could very well have won in Monaco as well were it not for a late-race VSC that handed Zak O’Sullivan the chequered flag. We can forget about those early season woes, Isack Hadjar is here, he is quick and he is very much in contention for this years’ championship.

In contrast to the raw quickness but at times hot or cold nature of Isaak Hadjar, the other man I want to focus on has been a pillar of consistency. There are 10 rookies in the field this season, and in my pre-season rankings I ranked them 5^th, 8^th, 9^th, 11^th, 12^th, 15^th, 16^th, 17^th, 21^st and 22^nd. Five rounds in and a rookie is leading the championship. It isn’t even one that I had ranked in the top 10, nor is it one of the two just outside the 10. The man leading the championship after ten races is Paul Aron, who I rather foolishly only ranked 15^th heading into the season. Boy have I looked silly so far. Aron has taken podiums in five races, one in each round. He has scored points in all but the sprint in Melbourne. As I said, a pillar of consistency. P3 in the Bahrain feature, P2 in the Saudi sprint, P2 in the feature in Melbourne, P3 in the Imola sprint and P3 in the Monaco feature have helped the young Estonian to 80 points and the championship lead. It is early days so far but right now it looks like I was wrong, Jashan was wrong and Mercedes were wrong, because Paul Aron is looking oh so good to be in the mix for this title come Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

There is still a very long way to go in this years’ championship. But from what we’ve seen so far it looks to be shaping as one of the most exciting seasons we’ve had in F2 since I started covering it. So on that happy note, watch this space and may Ollie Bearman win every feature race from here on out!

1. Isack Hadjar +1

Was narrowly pipped to the pole by Verschoor. Probably wouldn’t have passed him during the race but did look faster. Was on to win for all money after Verschoor’s engine problems but the late race VSC stole glory from him. Still two wins and a 2^nd ain’t bad from the last three Sundays.

2. Zane Maloney -1

Whilst Hadjar has become red hot, Zane seems to have gone ice cold. Since taking P3 in the feature in Australia, Maloney has scored just 7 points in 4 races and has failed to make the top 10 in both qualifying sessions. Needs to turn it around quick if he doesn’t want to get overtaken by his rivals.

3. Paul Aron –

PILLAR of CONSISTENCY! Not sure what else to say about Aron that I haven’t said above. He just keeps generating results no matter what. The bad rounds will almost surely come, but likely so will some white-hot performances. Aron is in a great position for a championship challenge

4. Andrea Kimi Antonelli +1

I’m yet to see that thing that truly makes me sit down and take note but I am slowly starting to get the hype with Antonelli. He is clearly still building his way into the category but solid performances are starting to come thick and fast. After the disaster that was Bahrain he has logged 11, 12, 12 and 12 points from the last four rounds. Watch this space

5. Ollie Bearman +1

Look, Ollie is 13^th in the standings, he is 62 points behind Aron. A championship challenge looks farfetched at this point, but a top 5 finish, entirely possible. A top 8 finish, I’d almost guarantee it. A victory in Imola looked very possible until he stalled after his pitstop, and the recovery drive to finish P4 after starting P13 in Monaco was nothing short of brilliant. If you have any doubts of Bearman’s talent, go take a look at his overtake on Antonelli in the feature race. I rest my case

6. Gabriel Bortoleto +1

Two incredibly rough rounds in Jeddah and Melbourne can now feel like a distant memory for Bortoleto. He was clinical in Imola, claiming P2 on Sunday and backed it up with two solid points finishes in Monaco. He now sits 5^th in the standings on 50 points, absolutely in contention as the season progresses

7. Richard Verschoor +2

A tale of what could have been for Richard Verschoor. A brilliant lap saw him claim pole in Monaco and he was comfortably controlling Hadjar in the feature until engine problems saw him drop out of the mix. Ranking him 7^th may be a little high, but I’ve liked what I’ve seen from the Dutchman these last few rounds

8. Kush Maini -4

It all looked so promising one day into the F2 season when Maini had appeared to claim pole in Bahrain. He was sadly stripped of that due to his car being in breach of regulations. He had a very nice P2 finish in the Jeddah feature but Kush Maini is fast emerging as a sneaky contender to the mantle of most cursed driver in the field. He has failed to score in half of the races so far, and if you take away his 20 points in Jeddah, it’s just 14 points across the other nine races this season. He is fast slipping down the standings and more importantly, my rankings

9. Franco Colapinto +1

Another man who has come alive as of late is Franco Colapinto. Perhaps the most impressive driver outside of Hadjar in Imola, he won the sprint and finished P5 in the feature for a handy 21 point weekend. He backed that up nicely in the sprint in Monaco and looked a good chance of further points in the feature, however he fell away late in the race

10. Dennis Hauger No Rank

I can’t quite figure out Dennis Hauger this year, which is probably why he has only just snuck into my top 10 for this week. He sits 4^th in the standings on 56 points, only 24 back of the lead. A large portion of those points came from a brilliant round in Jeddah but he has been solid in both Melbourne and Monaco. Yet despite that I haven’t felt tremendously wowed by Hauger, which is why he sits 6 spots lower in the rankings than he does the standings. Perhaps I’m just a hater, but I want to see something a little more from our favourite Norwegian before I boost him up the rankings

Falling Out; Jak Crawford

In the hunt; Victor Martins, Zak O’Sullivan

F2 Imola Power Rankings

Ranking	Driver	Pos. Change
1	Zane Maloney	–
2	Isaak Hadjar	+1
3	Paul Aron	+1
4	Kush Maini	-2
5	Andrea Kimi Antonelli	–
6	Ollie Bearman	–
7	Gabriel Bortoleto	NOT RANKED
8	Jak Crawford	-1
9	Richard Verschoor	NOT RANKED
10	Franco Colapinto	NOT RANKED

F2 Australia Power Rankings

Ranking	Driver	Pos. Change
1	Zane Maloney	–
2	Kush Maini	–
3	Isaak Hadjar	+4
4	Paul Aron	+1
5	Andrea Kimi Antonelli	+5
6	Ollie Bearman	-3
7	Jak Crawford	-3
8	Dennis Hauger	+1
9	Jose Maria Marti	-1
10	Victor Martins	NOT RANKED

F3 Monaco Power Rankings

Ranking	Driver	Pos. Change
1	Luke Browning	+1
2	Leonardo Fornaroli	-1
3	Gabriele Mini	+1
4	Dino Beganovic	-1
5	Arvin Lindblad	+1
6	Tim Tramnitz	+2
7	Oliver Goethe	-2
8	Mari Boya	+1
9	Christian Mansell	NOT RANKED
10	Laurens Van Hoepen	NOT RANKED

Photos via Joe Portlock Getty Images

Instagram @onlinehubmedia

Check out the pod on Spotify