Dino Beganovic, a driver from the Ferrari Academy and a member of PREMA Racing, secured his first pole position in Formula 3. In his second season with PREMA Racing, Beganovic achieved a time of 1:46:431s. As the highest-placed returning driver, Beganovic aims to compete for the championship, drawing motivation from his previous victory in FRECA. PREMA Racing showcased their strength by placing two cars among the top three, with Beganovic overtaking Luke Browning and Christian Mansell to claim the provisional pole position.
Luke Browning of Hitech Pulse-Eight was initially considered the driver to beat, as he led the practice sessions and test times in Bahrain. However, Max Esterson, the GB3 champion, initially set the fastest time in the early stages of the qualifying session, with a time of 1:47:573s. Leonardo Fornaroli followed closely behind, with a 0.046s difference from the GB3 graduate. Unfortunately, Esterson’s position dropped to 15th due to track limits violations. Fornaroli then took the lead with a time of 1:47:141, while the previous favorite fell short with a time of 1:47:332.
During the early stages of the session, the top six drivers were separated by less than two tenths of a second. However, several drivers faced penalties for exceeding track limits. Sebastian Montoya had a lock-up during a fast lap at Turn 8, while Charlie Wurz and Esterson had their lap times excluded, resulting in a lower grid position. Mansell, who initially claimed the provisional pole, faced criticism for an unsafe release from the pits but managed to qualify in 8th place with his ART.
With only three minutes remaining to set the grid for the sprint race and the main race, Browning displayed an exceptional performance by setting a purple sector in the first part of the circuit. Mansell, Browning, and Beganovic engaged in an exciting battle for pole position, each trying to outdo the others with purple sectors. In the end, Beganovic emerged victorious with a time of 1:46:431s, with Browning closely following just 0.167 seconds behind. Mansell, however, dropped to eighth place, being overtaken by Gabriele Mini in third, Sami Meguetounif in fourth, Santiago Ramos in fifth, Leonardo Fornaroli in sixth, and rookie Tim Tramnitz in seventh.
Final standings:
1. Beganovic
2. Browning
3. Mini
4. Meguetounif
5. Ramos
6. Fornaroli
7. Tramnitz
8. Mansell
9. Lindblad
10. Esterson
11. Tsolov
12. Van Hoepen
