Despite being a rather calm race, track actions did not disappoint for the Formula 2 feature race. The strategies played a big part, and some mistakes could defined the championship.
Most of the drivers made the decision to start on soft tyres. Montoya was too quick on the formation lap and had to brake really hard which could have damaged his tyres. Rafael Câmara had a clean start and kept the lead. Alexander Dunne locked one of his tyres but kept third place. On the other hand, Gabriele Miní, leader of the championship, managed to overtake Stenshorne at the start. In the back of the pack, Laurens Van Hoepen lost a bit of front wing. Nikola Tsolov slowly closed the gap to the Invicta driver in front, being the fastest on track. Villagomez made a beautiful overtake at La Rascasse on an Aix Racing car, but he quickly lost the position after he had a contact with Durksen, and lost a part of his front wing.
Sebastián Montoya and Van Hoepen, being on super soft, pitted on lap 8. Rafael Villagomez was battling with Montoya and the Prema driver had to cut the chicane as he struggled to put his tyres in the right temperature. Câmara had to cut the chicane as well, giving the opportunity to Tsolov to come closer. The battle for third was heated for a good number of laps between Dunne, Beganovic and Miní. The DAMS Lucas Oil driver came really close to the wall, but he kept his position. On lap 21 out of 42, some drivers began to struggle with their tyres, but it was too early to pit for the super soft so they had to manage them. It was the case for Gabriele Miní, who let Beganovic go in front, but was put under pressure by Stenshorne behind him.
The strategy paid off
On lap 24, Goethe and Bennett were the first to pit for the super soft. Montoya slightly touched the wall in La Piscine. On lap 26, Gabriele Miní pitted for super soft as well, but it was a long stop for the MP Motorsport driver, who had an issue with his front tyre. He was the first driver up front to pit. Varrone took a 10-seconds penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. Roman Bilinsky had to cut the chicane so Noel León had the opportunity to overtake him. Oliver Goethe was really close to Van Hoepen, but didn’t manage to overtake the Trident. Tsolov and Stenshorne pitted on lap 33, while Câmara stayed on track for one more lap. Tsolov went out in P5, which was a really great operation for Campos Racing. However, Câmara found himself in P3 leaving the pit, which was even better.
The battle for first position started. It didn’t last long since Tsolov started to overtake and Câmara wanted to keep the position so badly he went straight in the first turn. The Brazilian later declared he was sliding everywhere during his out lap. A small virtual safety car was called, and Ritomo Miyata had the occasion to pit. Colton Herta took a 10-seconds penalty for a virtual safety car infringement. Kush Maini and Mari Boya pitted on the last lap. Dino Beganovic, knowing the ART Grand Prix driver had cold tyres, tried to overtake. Both of them cut the chicane. Martinius Stenshorne overtook Miyata on the last corner for P5. In the meantime, Nikola Tsolov won the Monaco Grand Prix for the third time. Alexander Dunne and Dino Beganovic completed the podium. With the victory, Tsolov is second in the championship, only 2 points behind Gabriele Miní.