2016 Barcelona Sprint Race

The 2016 Barcelona Sprint Race, otherwise known as the 2016 Catalunya Race 2, was the second round of the 2016 FIA GP2 Series, staged at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on the 15 May 2016. The race, staged in support of the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix, would see Alex Lynn sweep to victory after a measured performance.

Raffaele Marciello would get the race underway from pole, dicing with Jordan King into turn one as Lynn watched on from third. Indeed, Marciello's aggressive defence from King ultimately gifted Lynn second, the Brit sneaking inside of his compatriot as King ran wide at turn two.

Lynn duly made his bid for the lead two laps later, slithering past Marciello into the first corner at the start of lap three. The Brit briefly disappeared up the road, leaving the Italian to slip down the order as he struggled with the balance of his Russian Time.

Pierre Gasly duly began the chase behind Lynn, sprinting up to keep the Brit focused on his mirrors rather than simply dancing clear. Yet, after twelve laps Gasly had yet to launch an attack at the Brit, although it seemed as if Lynn was beginning to struggle with tyre wear.

Unfortunately even that would not become a factor, for the safety car would appear for the final four laps. Indeed, a tangle between Sean Gelael and Antonio Giovinazzi resulted in the Italian bouncing into Arthur Pic and the barriers, resulting in a late clean up.

Lynn would, however, have to control a final sector dash to the line to claim victory, and duly kept Gasly at bay to do so. The Frenchman was a safe second ahead of King, with Artem Markelov in fourth after a strong climb through the field.

Background
The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya was unchanged after the Feature, with the GP2 field likewise unmodified. The grid had, however, been affected by some post-Feature penalties, with Antonio Giovinazzi relegated from eighth to eighteenth in the results. That promoted Raffaele Marciello into the top eight of the Feature, and therefore onto provisional pole for the Sprint.

Into the Championship and with the first of twenty-two races down it was Norman Nato who led the way in the Championship, eight ahead of Feature pole winner Pierre Gasly. Nicholas Latifi was next, a point behind Gasly, with Artem Markelov and Sergio Canamasas completing the top five. The other early scorers were Alex Lynn, Jordan King, Marciello, Gustav Malja and Oliver Rowland.

In the Teams' Championship it was Racing Engineering who led the charge after Nato's maiden triumph in the Feature, aided by the points from King for finishing seventh. DAMS were next ahead of Prema Racing, with Russian Time, Carlin, Rapax and MP Motorsport also on the board after the opening bout.

Entry List
The full entry list for the is displayed below:

Grid
The grid for the second race of the 2016 campaign was formed from the finishing positions of the Feature Race, with the top eight reversed as per-FIA Formula Two rules.

Results
The final classification of the is displayed below:
 * Italics indicate that a driver set fastest lap.

Milestones

 * Third career victory for Alex Lynn.
 * DAMS scored their 23rd victory as an entrant in the GP2 Series.

Standings
Pierre Gasly moved to the top of the Championship with his second place, moving six clear of Norman Nato in second. Alex Lynn was third after the opening pair of races, with Nicholas Latifi and Artem Markelov completing the top five. Elsewhere, Oliver Rowland had moved up to ninth, while Nobuharu Matsushita was on the board, meaning half of the field had registered points at the opening round.

In the Teams' Championship it was DAMS who led the way after the opening weekend, level on points with Racing Engineering courtesy of a second place. Prema Racing were next, ten behind, with Russian Time a close fourth. Carlin completed the top five as the final team in double digits, with MP Motorsport, Rapax and ART Grand Prix also on the board.

Only point scoring drivers and teams are shown.