Although Franco Colpainto is not on his payroll of pilots since last August and the Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto, champion in 2024 and now pilot of the Kick Sauber team of Formula 1, also lacks, Formula 1, Formula 2 has not lost the South American representation this year. And a young man born in this part of the world became the pleasure of winning the first Sprint race of the 2025 season: The Paraguayan Joshua Dürksen He stayed this Saturday with the test that was played at the Albert Park circuit in Melbourne.
The 21 -year -old corridor, who started competition from the second place in the grid, made a brilliant start and overcame the light from the traffic light to Poleman, went out, El Italian Leonardo Fornaroli. In the first place he remained until the end of the test, although he had to face the challenge of three relaunches due to many other neutralizations of the race.
The first forced interruption occurred at the beginning of the third round, when the French Victor Martins became injured in curve 6 and forced the appearance of the Virtual Safety Car. In Leca’s bed of the same sector of the route, the American Max Esterson’s vehicle was stagnant in the seventh turn, so this time the security car entered the asphalt and there he remained four laps.
In those two relaunches, Dürksen, who represents the Aix Racing team, not only managed to contain Fornaroli (undefeated Racing), but in the second he managed to prepare an advantage of more than two seconds That gave him air. But in the 14th round the race stopped again for a mistake of the Frenchman Sami Meguetounif in curve 10.
Only at the beginning of the 17th turn the test was relaunched and then The Paraguayan shows his qualities again to keep Fornaroli and then build a new light that allowed him to reach the checkered flag with 2,198 advantage over his persecutor. The third step of the podium was occupied by the British Luke Browning, from Hitech TGR, who reached 2,879 seconds from the winner.
“Starting the season with a victory is great, an incredible feeling. Before the weekend, I didn’t think about winning. I knew that it would be in front, that it would have a good rhythm, but it did not occur to me that I would win the first race. When starting second today, I thought: ‘Well, yes, let’s do it.’ ‘ I am very happy to start the season like this “celebrated the winner, who will start ninth the main test that will run on Saturday at 21.30 (Argentina time).
Although his name may be disoriented, Dürksen is a full representative of his nation. His paternal great -grandfather was German and crossed the Atlantic Ocean during World War II. His grandparents and his parents were born in the Paraguayan Chaco and he, in Asunción on October 27, 2003. “I am more Paraguayan than the cassava”he sentenced in an interview to the Chronicle newspaper in that country in July 2020.
After competing in various categories of monoplays, such as Formula 4 competitions in Italy and the United Arab Emirates, Dürksen was incorporated in December 2023 by Aix Racing to compete the following year in Formula 2. Something that no Paraguayan had achieved.
His first success was achieved in the Sprint that ran in Baku (Azerbaijan) on September 14, 2024. Then he also won the main test of the last date of the season, on December 8 in Yas Marina (United Arab Emirates). In addition, it was third in the main race in Icola and in the Sprint in Monza.
“The previous experience helps me a lot because now I can learn from the many rookie mistakes I committed last year. Now I know the circuits and, above all, I know the car better than the rookie pilots of Formula 2. That is a point in my favor. I think that if I continue working hard as I am doing now with the team, we can have a great season together ”Dürksen was excited this Saturday after his victory in Melbourne.