Sochi F2: Schumacher extends points lead with commanding win

Tsunoda made a clean start from pole position to lead the field into Turn 2 - the first braking zone at the track - while Schumacher cleared second Carlin driver Jehan Daruvala to slot himself to second position.

On the fifth lap Schumacher rapidly closed in on Tsunoda with purple times in sectors one and two, but the Japanese driver managed to fend him off with a quicker run in the final part of the lap.

Tsunoda then proceeded to set a series of fastest laps to build a two-second lead out in front, which he maintained when the two drivers stopped together on lap eight for medium tyres.

For the next 12 laps it appeared Tsunoda had the race under control, with the Carlin driver maintaining his advantage over Schumacher without any troubles, as the duo circulated well clear of their rivals.

However, Tsunoda then got stuck behind medium tyre-shod Artem Markelov, who was yet to make his pitstop, allowing Schumacher to come back into play.

Having brought the deficit to under half a second, Schumacher wasted no time to pass Tsunoda, selling a dummy as they approached Turn 2. Tsunoda ran deep into the corner while trying to protect the inside line, allowing Schumacher to cut across the track and swoop past him for the lead.

Virtuosi's Callum Ilott, who had leapfrogged Daruvala by pitting two laps later than the Carlin driver, also managed to clear Tsunoda on the same lap, putting the championship rivals into first and second positions.

But Ilott could do little about the pace of Schumacher, who enjoyed an untroubled run from there on take a comfortable six-second victory.

Ilott eventually fell into the clutches of Tsunoda on the final lap, who pulled off a brilliant move around the outside of the Virtuosi driver at the long Turn 3 left-hander to snatch second position.

The British driver was lucky to hold onto the final podium spot in the end, crossing the finishing line just 0.025s clear of the Hitech of Luca Ghiotto.

Daruvala eventually finished fifth after starting from the front row, recording his second-best finish of his rookie F2 campaign.

Campos driver Jack Aitken enjoyed a lengthy battle with Virtuosi's Guanyu Zhou, with the two drivers running long into the first stint on medium tyres.

Zhou made several attempts at passing Aitken, but the Campos driver put up a stern defence to hold his position, finishing sixth.

Zhou slipped to eighth in the final classifications, having lost a position to Hitech's Nikita Mazepin while trying to pass Aitken into Turn 2 on lap 16.

Marcus Armstrong was the led ART driver in ninth, while Dan Ticktum completed the points scorers for DAMS.

Robert Shwartzman, who was fourth into the championship heading to his home round in Russia, finished down in 11th after losing time with a slow right-rear tyre change as Prema attempted to double stack its drivers.

Red Bull Juri Vips (DAMS) and championship contender Christian Lundgaard (ART) retired on the opening lap in a multi-car collision that also involved Charouz's Pedro Piquet and triggered an early safety car period.

F2 Sochi feature race results - 28 laps