Hadrien David was delighted to take victory in the opening race of the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine weekend in Monaco, with the Frenchman controlling the race from the front from start to finish.
Having come close to the victory in the principality back in 2021, the R-ace GP driver got off the line to lead into turn one on the opening lap, and despite a mid-race red flag, caused when FA Racing’s Esteban Masson and MP Motorsport’s Sami Meguetounif tangled at the Grand Hotel Hairpin to block the track, David was in total control.
The race resumed with just over five minutes remaining on the clock, but David got the jump on the chasing pack at the restart, and despite pressure from Prema Racing’s championship leader Dino Beganovic, Alpine affiliate driver David did not put a foot wrong and was able to close out the race 0.902 seconds ahead of the Swedish racer. The result also moved him up into second place in the standings.
“It was a beautiful race,” said David. “Winning here in Monaco was a dream come true and at the same time it is a very important result for my season.
“Last year I came close to winning, but this time we did it.”
David will start second on the grid for Sunday’s second race of the weekend behind Beganovic, and the Frenchman has eyes on another podium result.
“Hopefully we can be on the podium tomorrow and gain some more points,” he said.
Beganovic was equally pleased to stand on the podium in Monaco, with the Swede extending his run of not finishing outside the top two this season to five races. He also extended his advantage in the Drivers’ Championship to forty-eight points heading into Sunday’s second race.
“We had a fantastic race today,” said Beganovic. “I started from the front row and managed to finish second. I am also satisfied with our race pace.
“I tried to push to pressure Hadrien, but still got a nice podium in a gorgeous setting like the Formula 1 weekend.”