LONDON, CMC – Emerging Barbadian international race car driver Zane Maloney said his strong start to this year’s Formula 2 season has reassured him that he belongs more than anything and his dream of a seat in Formula 1 was still possible.
The 20-year-old Rodin Motorsport driver has secured three podium finishes this season, and he currently heads the drivers’ standings with 67 points from the first three rounds of the year.
Maloney is 15 points clear of his nearest rival, Hitech Pulse-Eight driver Paul Aron of Estonia heading into the European calendar between May and August when the drivers will tackle circuits at Imola, Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Spielberg, Silverstone, Budapest, Spa-Francorchamps, and Monza.
“It’s been good of course,” Maloney said. “I think we have started the season very strong in pre-season testing in Bahrain, and we’ve kind of carried that form over. “For sure, it’s still been a difficult start just with trying to be close to the front all the time in qualifying to set up good race weekends, but we’ve done that, other than Jeddah (in Saudi Arabia), we’ve qualified in the top five.
“Jeddah was the main circuit so far this year where we didn’t maximise the pace that we had just because of the problems in qualifying. Of course, it’s a very good start, a lot of things that could have gone better, but also could have gone worse.”
The highlight so far for Maloney was his opening weekend at the Grand Prix in Sakhir, Bahrain, where he completed the double, winning both the sprint and feature races to kick off his second F2 season in grand style.
“It was a very good weekend, it was something that I had dreamt of many times,” he said. “But when it happened, to be honest, I think that it just told me that you can do the job, and you are here for the right reasons, and you can do these things.
“It just reassured me that I am good enough to be in F2 and to be winning races in F2, and I think from then on it has helped with just being more confident in myself and knowing that every time I go on track, if I do a good job, I will be close to the front.”
