Marcus Armstrong currently sits 10th in the Formula 2 standings. Photo / Getty Images
Marcus Armstrong currently sits 10th in the Formula 2 standings. Photo / Getty Images
A return to the top step of the Formula 2 podium in the Netherlands last weekend was a welcome reward for Marcus Armstrong. However, the Kiwi driver believes he can find more in his performance before the season is through.
After winning the sprint race at Zandvoort and picking up10 points, Armstrong moved into 10th on the season standings after 12 of 14 rounds. With 91 points in the season so far, the HiTech GP driver has almost scored as many points in 2022 as he did in his previous two campaigns combined (52 with ART in 2020; 49 with DAMS in 2021).
But while he has had memorable moments this season, Armstrong has been left wanting more in what has been a roller-coaster of a campaign to date.
"I think it's been fairly inconsistent; well, let's say not consistent enough to put together the championship fight we wanted to," Armstrong told the Herald. "Some weekends we're blindingly quick like in Baku and Budapest, then other weekends it's really quite the opposite.
"In that regard, it hasn't been what I had hoped, but in saying that we've won a few races now. You can never complain too much, but my standards are high and we're not done yet. We still have four more races to go and we can still change the narrative."
With two rounds remaining, a top five finish is certainly within reach for the 22-year-old, who goes into this weekend's event at Italy's famous Monza Circuit 28 points outside the top five.
Monza caps off the third-straight race week after a month-long break, but Formula 2 has another two months off following this weekend's event before the campaign concludes in Abu Dhabi in late November.
Armstrong has now won three races this season, with the 22-year-old also claiming sprint race wins at Imola (Italy) and Spielberg (Austria). With the sprint race being the short-form race of the weekend, there are fewer points on offer for the drivers, with the winner picking up 10 whereas the feature race winner adds 25 to their season count.
It took a strong drive from start to finish for Armstrong to claim sprint race honours in the Netherlands, before multiple safety cars negated his team's strategy for the feature race.
Marcus Armstrong won the Formula 2 sprint race at Zandvoort in the Netherlands. Photo / Getty Images
In Zandvoort, due to the close proximity of spaces in the pit lane, drivers could not make their mandatory pit stop under the safety car. Starting from ninth on the grid, Armstrong was among the minority of drivers to opt for the alternate strategy of starting the race on the hard tyres and switching to the soft compound later in the race in the hope of a late speed advantage.
With the race being driven under a safety car from lap 17 to 25, Armstrong got onto the soft compound too late and didn't have the time to make places back up after exiting the pits. Fellow Kiwi Liam Lawson had the same issue, and both finished outside of the points.
However, Armstrong had good pace throughout the weekend and said he was happy with the improvements he had been making recently.
"I think my qualifying has improved. I think my starts, in particular, have been quite good; that's what has won me a couple of these races recently, just getting off the line better than the guy alongside me. They're both things I've worked hard on.
"I want to make another step this weekend on the qualifying side, but I definitely feel more at one with this (HiTech GP) car than I have in previous years.
"These cars are very fast and at times unpredictable just due to the nature of how fast we go through corners and the amount of down force that is being produced. Every bump in the track can cause a big reaction to the cars, so confidence makes all the difference because you can commit harder and you can attack the corners a bit harder than the guy who doesn't know what to expect."
