Laurens van Hoepen crashed dramatically in the main race of Formula 2 in Canada. The Dutch driver started from pole position but saw his strong starting position go up in smoke after a hard crash in the notorious Wall of Champions, even before the fifth lap was completed. Van Hoepen still holds fifth place in the World Championship, partly thanks to several strong performances during the opening races of the season.
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Van Hoepen started the race with the best prospects but encountered understeer early on. In the fifth lap, that cost him his race; the Trident driver slid hard into the Wall of Champions, causing such severe damage to his car that continuing was impossible. It meant a painful zero score for the Wassenaar native, who recently had the opportunity to test with a Williams F1 car.
From the start, Van Hoepen was under pressure from Red Bull junior Nikola Tsolov, who briefly took the lead before the Dutchman skillfully reclaimed it. Ultimately, Martinius Stenshorne took the victory; Rodin Motorsport teammate Alexander Dunne followed in second place. For the Norwegian, it was his first win in Formula 2. Championship leader Gabriele Minì completed the podium in third place.
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🚨 SAFETY CAR DEPLOYED 🚨
RACE LEADER VAN HOEPEN MAKES CONTACT WITH THE WALL OF CHAMPIONS 💔#F2 #CanadianGP | LAP 5/39 pic.twitter.com/WqyVRvpxFH
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