The Spanish driver was fortunate to escape unscathed from a dramatic accident at the start of the long race at the Baku Grand Prix.
In the sprint race on Saturday, he made a great start and put in a notable recovery.
“Overall, it has been a challenging weekend because we are leaving without any points, and today we were confident that we could achieve a good result.”
The Baku circuit hosted the thirteenth round of the Formula 2 season, which is nearing its end with only two races remaining.
Pepe Martí leaves the weekend without any points after a difficult start due to brake issues affecting both Campos Racing drivers during qualifying. As a result, the Movento driver had to settle for second-to-last on the grid for both races.
“When you start the weekend with qualifying problems, it’s very hard to turn things around. We’ve tried to give our best at all times, but the circumstances have been different.”
On Saturday, in the sprint race, Martí once again impressed with an excellent start and a strong recovery, which is typical of him as he is a strong racer. However, in the closing laps, he had to pit to change his front wing, which forced him to finish the race in nineteenth position and miss out on capitalising on his strong performance up to that point.
“We had good pace and we’ll take that with us for the upcoming races, but it was a shame to cut our good performance short with the pit stop. We’ll keep working to finish the season with a better result.”
In the long race on Sunday, Martí lined up with the intention of making another recovery, as the setting from Saturday provided the possibility of overtaking. However, as the red lights went out and he was making his first overtaking manoeuvre, a rival starting from the front rows stalled and couldn’t restart. Pepe and other drivers were unable to avoid the situation, and the Spanish driver’s car was launched into the air and flipped, suffering the worst of the incident. Pepe managed to exit his car unharmed, and after a medical check, everything was in order. This was the only positive news from a weekend to forget, but one that will serve as a learning experience.
“Overall, it has been a challenging weekend because we leave without points, and today we were confident that we could achieve a good result. Moreover, I had a really good start, and when I was alongside two cars, I found myself without space to continue, with a car stopped 10 metres ahead. It was impossible to react in time, and we went airborne. It was brutal… I felt a huge amount of respect and fear inside the car. The most important thing is that we’re unharmed. I have a bit of back and neck pain, but nothing serious. I’m happy that it ended up being just that, and we need to move forward,” says Pepe.
Formula 2 will not return until the Qatar Grand Prix, taking place from November 29 to December 1. Pepe will use these weeks off to continue working hard and finish the season in the best possible way. After the Qatar race, the F2 finale will also serve as the final event of the Formula 1 season at Yas Marina Circuit from December 6 to 8.
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