What We Learned: The key talking points after Round 11 at Monza

Formula 2 returned with a bang from the summer break as the drivers got straight back to work at Monza for Round 11 of this fascinating 2024 season.
We witnessed a truly special performance from one of our title hopefuls, while another will be ruing his bad luck. On top of that, we saw several special drives in both races and as a couple of new faces joined our grid.
So, let’s look at some of the storylines from the Temple of Speed…
Gabriel Bortoleto’s Friday at Monza could not have gone worse as a costly trip through grass in Qualifying sent him spinning into a stop, leaving him starting last for both races.
RACE ANALYSIS: What made Gabriel Bortoleto’s Monza performance so special

To make matters worse, his rivals for the title Zane Maloney, Isack Hadjar, and Paul Aron were the top three in Qualifying, with the Invicta Racing driver facing a difficult weekend to rescue points.
But he showed incredible resolve, starting in the Sprint Race where he ended up in a tie for P8 with Dennis Hauger and then in the Feature, where with the help of a timely Safety Car, he was able to take the victory.
What also caught the eye was how much pace he had compared to the rest as he forced his way through in both races. At times, he was almost pushing his rivals through the corners.
So, once he hit the front in the Feature, there was no catching him as he crossed the line 9.4s clear of second-placed Maloney.
READ MORE: Chasing the Dream Season 6, Episode 12 – Out Now
This result puts him 10.5 points behind Hadjar heading into the final three rounds of the year, meaning the title fight is well and truly on.
The Hitech Pulse-Eight driver had a fantastic start to the year, achieving a podium finish in each of the opening seven rounds, giving him the Championship lead heading to Round 8 at Silverstone.
Since then, his fortunes have changed drastically, especially in the races, as a collision with Maloney in the Sprint knocked him out of the event. He was then hit in the rear by Josep María Martí at Turn 1 on the opening lap of the Feature.
What made this even worse was that Aron had made an excellent start from third and looked set to take the lead going into the first chicane.
That means he left Monza without scoring despite showing solid pace and as a result, he has dropped down to fourth in the Standings.
What will ease his pain is that Hadjar did not score any points either which means his gap to the leader is the same as before he came to Monza – he just has one round less to catch the Frenchman.
READ MORE: Victor Martins’ Monza Weekend in his Words
Next up is Baku and the Estonian will be looking for a clean weekend, the types of which he had to start the year.
Joshua Duerksen putting in a starring performance across both Monza races, leaving with a second Formula 2 trophy and with a whole host of points for him and AIX Racing.
His weekend got off to a slightly frustrating start as he missed out on P10 – and reverse grid pole for the Sprint Race – by just 0.008s to Enzo Fittipaldi.
But his form in the Sprint was outstanding, as a strong start found him fighting for points in the early stages. From then on, he enjoyed a multi-lap battle with Josep María Martí and Fittipaldi for the final spot on the podium.
However, once he took P3 from Fittipaldi in the closing stages he went off into the distance to finish on the podium.
He looked to repeat the same result in the Feature, using his impressive straight-line speed, which Martí called “insane” over the radio to make his way through the field, finishing in P5.
Such was his pace that Duerksen felt he could have challenged Bortoleto for the win if things had gone his way. Even with that, it is still a weekend for both him and his team to proud of.
READ MORE: Duerksen says he had pace to win Monza Feature Race after ‘enjoyable’ run to P5
It was a mixed weekend for Campos Racing where things started out well but ended on a bit of a sour note.
They were brilliant in Qualifying with Hadjar visibly and audibly pleased to be second while Martí ended up in P7, marking a return to form for him as he qualified in the top 10 for the second time since Melbourne.
The Spaniard felt he could have been higher showing the pace he and the team had, and he showed that in the Sprint, finishing fourth.
Martí took the lead early on but just lost out in the middle phase before fighting back late on. On the other side, Hadjar struggled and ended up in P10.
The Frenchman then didn’t have the best of starts in the Feature and was down to third on the run down to Turn 1. However, Martí had an excellent getaway from P7, and was challenging his teammate into the corner.
But he broke too late and ended up hitting the rear of Aron and that forced Hadjar along with a couple other drivers to go through the runoff area.
READ MORE: 2024 F3 Champion Leonardo Fornaroli steps up to F2 with Invicta Racing
Both drivers never quite recovered from that incident as Hadjar finished in P11 just ahead of Martí in P12. With Bortoleto’s victory, he closed the gap to the former at the top of the Drivers’ Championship, but it also meant Invicta Racing left Monza on 228.5 points leading Campos in the Teams’ Standings by 20.5 points.
This is arguably Campos’ first round this year where they have not looked on the pace, but they have Baku next up where they will be looking to bounce back.