Théo Pourchaire was participating in his fourth career weekend in the category considered as the antechamber of Formula 1.
For his first laps on the Monaco Grand Prix circuit, the youngest driver in the Formula 2 field quickly felt very comfortable between the rails. So much so that despite having little experience on this unique track, he managed the feat of setting the fastest lap of the weekend, earning pole position with a time of 1’20″985. “It’s a very beautiful start to the weekend, it was my first time in Monaco and being on pole for the first time in my F2 career, moreover in Monaco, is incredible,” rejoiced the Maralpin who had “really given everything, everything, everything,” and “taken big risks.”
Stringing the Laps Together
For the first sprint race on Friday, the young French driver started in tenth position due to the application of the reverse grid system. After an excellent start, he completed the first lap in 8th position, taking advantage of a mistake by Robert Schwartzman ahead of him. After a few warm-up laps, Pourchaire found his rhythm and set the fastest lap in the first third of the race. Five laps from the end, a safety car bunched up the field but did not disturb the ART driver who finished 7th after his teammate retired (engine failure) mid-race.
In race 2, with this result, the youngest driver on the grid was initially set to start from 4th position, once again thanks to the reverse grid system from the first race. But the Grassois benefited from the absence of Marcus Armstrong on the starting grid to start from third position on a track that was wet but drying. In these difficult conditions, he lost a place at the start before once again finding his rhythm and staying clear of race incidents. Alone on the track, Pourchaire continued his learning of the circuit for the next race where he would start from pole position.
By the 10th lap, several drivers had already gone through the pits to switch to slick tires. A losing strategy as the track would remain tricky until the finish. In the last third of the race, the Frenchman pushed to go after his first podium in the principality against Oscar Piastri and Jüri Vips. But a safety car upset the last few laps. In this crucial moment in terms of strategy, car No. 10 lost a position to Vips, which he was unable to reclaim in the last two laps.
A Grand Finale to the Weekend
To conclude this near-perfect weekend in Monaco, Pourchaire needed to make a perfect getaway from the pole position secured on Thursday afternoon. Although having a slightly poorer start than Schwartzman beside him, the local driver managed to hold onto his first place. Under pressure in the first part of this long race, the ART driver expertly managed the degradation to take up to a three-second lead over the Prema behind him. During the pit stops, the Italian team made an error that left the path clear for Théo.
However, the appearance of the VSC three times could have seen the gap to Zhou, who had not yet stopped, melt away like snow in the sun or worse, allowed the Chinese driver the opportunity to take the lead. Fortunately for the Grassois, none of that happened, and he won on one of the legendary circuits on the calendar with more than a five-second margin. In addition, he leaves Monaco in 3rd place in the driver standings with 47 points.
There’s no doubt that Théo Pourchaire will know how to celebrate this magnificent performance with his family present on site and his friends waiting for him just a few kilometers from the circuit. Congratulations!
