Mike Conway, gifted pole position in GP2’s second Monaco race after being unceremoniously dumped out of the first one, took advantage with a dominant drive to victory.
The Trident driver had been on course for third place in the feature race when he was knocked off track by a lapped driver. Stewards awarded him eighth place, which autmoatically put him on pole in the sprint race with its reverse grid.
With team-mate Ho-Pin Tung acting as rear-gunner, he led the race from start to finish, building up leads of 11.4 seconds before a mid-race safety car period and 18.4 seconds at the end of the race.
Conway, who is associated with Honda’s F1 programme as a development driver, moves up to 10th in the overall standings and can only benefit from such a confident performance under the noses of the F1 paddock.
He said: “I just can say I`m really happy. This is my first win in the GP2 Series, and it`s great how it came right after the disappointment suffered at the end of yesterday`s race.
“Everything was perfect since the start, and I proved to be able to control the situation at all points, before and after the caution.
“The car was perfect too, allowing me to keep a really fast pace. In addition to the personal accomplishment, I think today`s result will be boosting our confidence for the rest of the season.”
Tung took second for a Trident 1-2, holding off Alvaro Parente who pushed hard but was unable to pass. Bruno Senna, who won the previous race, took fifth behind Roldan Rodriguez.
Briton Ben Hanley finished 14th, while Adam Carroll’s miserable weekend ended with a second lap retirement.