Dunne wins chaotic Baku F2 race as Câmara takes championship lead at the line

News Summary

Alex Dunne won Feature Race 1 ahead of Martinius Stenshorne and Dino Beganovic
Rafael Câmara passed Noel León at the finish to take fourth place
Câmara now leads Nikola Tsolov by one point after the Bulgarian retired in a seven-car crash

Alex Dunne won a chaotic Formula 2 Feature Race 1 in Baku on Friday, leading a Rodin Motorsport one-two ahead of Martinius Stenshorne as Rafael Câmara moved into the championship lead with a last-gasp overtake.

Dunne stayed clear of the accidents, Safety Car and red flag to secure his first victory of the 2026 season. Stenshorne finished second, with Sprint winner Dino Beganovic completing the podium for DAMS.

The decisive championship moment came on the final straight. Câmara used the slipstream to pass Noel León shortly before the finish line, taking fourth place and the 12 points required to move one ahead of Nikola Tsolov.

Tsolov entered the race with 181 points, 11 more than Câmara, but retired in the multi-car accident that stopped the race on lap 12. Câmara now leads the standings 182-181 with another feature race still to be held in Baku.

Dunne controls start as Tsolov encounters pit trouble

Dunne retained the lead from pole at Turn 1, followed by Stenshorne and León. Câmara made an immediate gain, passing Kush Maini to rise from fifth to fourth.

The opening laps remained relatively controlled, with Dunne building a margin of more than one second over his Rodin team-mate. Tsolov, who started tenth, climbed to eighth but became trapped in the midfield group.

The first mandatory stops began on lap seven. Tsolov entered alongside Laurens van Hoepen, Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak, Rafael Villagomez and Joshua Dürksen, but a slow stop dropped the Bulgarian behind several rivals.

Tsolov was subsequently given a five-second penalty for crossing the white line at pit entry. Because he retired before serving it, the stewards may convert the sanction into a grid penalty for Saturday’s race.

Boya retirement changes the strategy

Mari Boya stopped on the circuit on lap eight with a problem on his Prema, triggering the Safety Car.

The timing benefited Dunne and Câmara, who had extended their opening stints. Both completed their mandatory stops under neutralised conditions without losing their effective positions to the drivers who had stopped earlier.

Oliver Goethe inherited the physical lead but still needed to make his mandatory tyre change. Dunne therefore remained the net leader ahead of Câmara and the drivers who had already completed their stops.

Sebastián Montoya had already been eliminated before the start after spinning on his way to the grid and stalling his Prema.

Seven-driver crash brings out red flag

The race restarted on lap 12, but Câmara struggled to generate tyre temperature and dropped to sixth. Moments later, a major collision at Turn 3 blocked the circuit and brought out the red flag.

John Bennett, Joshua Dürksen, Cian Shields, Rafael Villagomez, Ritomo Miyata and Laurens van Hoepen were caught in the accident. Tsolov attempted to avoid the cars ahead but struck the rear of Dürksen and stalled.

Seven drivers were unable to continue, while race control suspended proceedings to clear the damaged cars and debris.

Because of the lengthy interruption, Feature Race 1 resumed as a timed race with approximately 20 minutes remaining rather than completing its scheduled 29 laps.

Seven-driver crash brings out red flag (Video: DAZN)

Câmara takes championship lead with finish-line pass

Goethe led at the restart but had yet to complete his mandatory stop. Behind him, Dunne controlled the effective lead while Stenshorne and León passed Câmara.

Goethe’s chances ended when he locked his tyres while defending from Stenshorne and ran wide, dropping down the order. Dunne opened a margin of more than three seconds and remained unchallenged through the closing laps.

Beganovic secured third, while León appeared set to finish fourth until Câmara attacked on the final straight. The Brazilian drew alongside the Campos and completed the pass metres before the line, securing fourth and the championship lead.

Dunne also recorded the fastest lap, leaving Baku Feature Race 1 with the maximum 26 points. Despite being shortened to 23 laps by the time limit, the race awarded full championship points.