Formula 2 Star to Run First Free Practice Session in Bahrain
The Ferrari Driver Academy’s newest rising star, Dino Beganovic, will be taking over fellow Prema Racing alum Charles Leclerc’s SF-25 during the first Free Practice in Bahrain. The test run comes after the team faced a devastating double-disqualification during the Chinese Grand Prix, dropping both Leclerc and teammate, seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton to P9 and P10 in the Drivers’ Championship. Scuderia Ferrari was also dropped to fifth in the Constructors’ Championship. Beganovic is currently racing for Hitech TGR in Formula Two and formerly raced for Prema Racing in Formula Three. He finished sixth in both years he raced for the team.
In Formula One, it is not unusual for teams to show off their future prospects during practice sessions. They allow for young drivers to get a feel of how much power a Formula One car has, and drivers can earn FIA Super License points from running a session. The Super License is the points system required for a driver to earn qualification to drive in Formula One, requiring 40 points. Current F1 drivers, like Ollie Bearman and Kimi Antonelli, have both run in FP1 sessions for their respective teams. Bearman, a Ferrari Driver Academy graduate, was even called up to participate in full races by Ferrari in Saudi Arabia and by his current team, Haas, in Baku, Azerbaijan, and São Paulo, Brazil. It is also beneficial for the teams themselves, as they can now observe how their students handle the biggest task in motorsport.
Beganovic has had quite the journey to get to F2. Though not as illustrious as other Prema alumni like Antonelli or Leclerc, Beganovic touts a FRECA title, eight F3 podiums, and two F3 wins. The Swede was only able to finish in P14 in the F2 Australian Grand Prix Sprint Race before the weekend’s feature race had to be canceled due to inclement weather. Beganovic shouldn’t worry too much, though, as there are seven former Prema racers currently in Formula One. With his F1 debut, Beganovic can earn up to 10 additional points to his FIA Super License, bringing him that much closer to every racing driver’s dream.
