The Barbados national anthem rang out over the FIA Formula 2 paddock for the very first time today as Rodin Motorsport’s Zane Maloney took his maiden victory during the series opener in Bahrain. This evening’s victory also marked the first for the Rodin Motorsport team under its new guise.
A battling performance from the Sauber junior saw him climb from eighth on the grid to the top step of the podium for the first time since he joined the series in a cameo appearance at the end of the2022 season.
His maiden win comes after four visits to podiums in his debut F2 season and a trip to the historic Macau Grand Prix at the end of last year. Maloney, a 2019 British F4 Champion with the team, will be eyeing up even more success as he looks to another championship fight in2024.
Speaking about taking his debut win in the championship and the first win of the season Maloney said "Of course, I'm very happy to win the race, we started in P8, got a great start and the team just gave me an amazing car. So, it is all down to them, and we will go for it tomorrow."
The race was also a great success for rookie, Ritomo Miyata who jumped to Formula 2 from racing in Japan. After a difficult opening lap for the Japanese driver, Miyata battled through the field of experienced racing talent to finish ninth, one position off the points-paying positions.
Racing action returns tomorrow with the first feature race of the season. Both Maloney and Miyata will be eyeing up more success starting third and fifth on the grid respectively.