It was a masterclass in control when it mattered most. Dino Beganovic delivered two wins in a row for DAMS Lucas Oil after a brilliant start at the Baku City Circuit allowed him to slice past Nikola and sprint into the distance. Controlling the gap and breaking out of the DRS window was the key, though a late safety car brought a nerve-wracking single-lap dash to the finish that left the winner admitting he was not a big fan of the sudden interruption.
"It was just about getting the restart right and then making your race again and getting in the rhythm," Beganovic said.
I picked everyone off quite quickly and got to P3 a lot earlier than what I would have expected,
Behind him, Laurens van Hoepen brought his TRIDENT machine home in second place. While a strong podium, the runner-up admitted that the winner simply had a bit too much speed to fight for the top step. Surviving the tricky high-speed section of the track required absolute precision, especially with the mighty DRS down the long straight punishing even the tiniest slip-up into Turn 16.
"As soon as you make a tiny mistake there, you're so vulnerable into T1," van Hoepen explained.
Meanwhile, the drive of the morning undoubtedly belonged to Alexander Dunne. Starting down in tenth place on the grid for Rodin Motorsport, the charging Irishman carved his way through the field to claim a stunning third. A opportunistic lunge at Turn 3 on the opening lap—aided by slightly cold brakes that sent him to the apex much faster than anticipated—helped him snatch positions early. Adding the bonus points for the fastest lap capped off a brilliant seven-place recovery.
"I picked everyone off quite quickly and got to P3 a lot earlier than what I would have expected," Dunne said.
With the sprint dust settled, attention immediately turns to the afternoon. Dunne will line up on pole for the feature race alongside a strong squad of front-runners looking to unlock even more pace from their machines before the lights go out again.
