News Summary
- Nikola Tsolov remains the 2026 F2 championship leader on 177 points but failed to score in either Madrid race.
- Rafael Câmara added 4 points across the weekend and moves to 170, reducing Tsolov’s championship advantage from 11 to 7 points.
- Gabriele Minì remains third on 153, while Alexander Dunne’s second place in the Feature Race lifts him to 139 and keeps four drivers within 38 points of the lead.
Nikola Tsolov remains at the top of the Formula 2 championship after the inaugural Madrid round, but his advantage has been reduced to only 7 points after a difficult weekend at Madring.
The Campos driver arrived in Spain with 177 points and an 11-point advantage over Rafael Câmara. He leaves with exactly the same total after failing to score in either race, while his Invicta rival moved from 166 to 170 points.
Câmara’s gain could have been substantially larger.
The Brazilian started Sunday’s Feature Race from third and was running in the points before making contact with Oliver Goethe at Turn 1. The MP Motorsport driver was sent into the wall, prompting a Safety Car, and the stewards subsequently handed Câmara a 10-second penalty for causing the collision.
Câmara crossed the line ninth but fell to tenth once the penalty was applied, earning only a single point. Combined with the 3 points he scored during Saturday’s Sprint, that was nevertheless enough to reduce Tsolov’s championship advantage to 7.
The Formula 2 regulations award 25-18-15-12-10-8-6-4-2-1 points to the top 10 in a Feature Race, with an additional point available for the fastest lap when set by a driver classified inside the top 10.
Tsolov’s Madrid weekend was even more costly.
The Bulgarian entered the round after a strong Monza weekend had left him on 177 points, 11 ahead of Câmara and 30 clear of Gabriele Minì. He then spun out of Saturday’s Sprint and failed to score again in Sunday’s main race.
That has compressed a championship battle that had appeared to be moving in Tsolov’s favour.
Minì and Dunne remain in title contention
Gabriele Minì also made progress in Madrid.
The MP Motorsport driver scored 6 points for seventh in Sunday’s Feature Race, taking his total from 147 to 153. He therefore sits 24 points behind Tsolov and 17 behind Câmara.
Alexander Dunne made a much larger gain.
The Irishman started alongside Dino Beganovic on the front row and finished second in the Feature Race. Combined with his qualifying points, his Madrid haul takes him to 139, moving him within 38 points of the championship lead.
That leaves four drivers separated by 38 points with three rounds remaining.
Beganovic was the biggest mover among the leading group after a near-perfect Sunday.
The DAMS driver started the Feature Race from pole after setting a 1:44.331 in qualifying, controlled the Safety Car restarts and went on to take his first victory of the 2026 season.
The 27 points earned from pole and victory take Beganovic to 106, lifting him to sixth in the standings.
Dino Beganovic controlled the Madrid Feature Race to take his first win of 2026 (Photo: Reproduction/F2)
Noel León remains fifth with 119 points, 58 behind Campos team-mate Tsolov, while Joshua Dürksen sits seventh on 90.
Further down the order, Ritomo Miyata’s breakthrough Madrid weekend brought him level with Martinius Stenshorne on 70 points. Miyata claimed his maiden Formula 2 victory in Saturday’s Sprint before finishing third in Sunday’s Feature Race.
Emerson Fittipaldi also made a significant gain. Second in the Sprint and fifth in the Feature Race lifted him to 28 points, level with Sebastián Montoya.
F2 2026 standings after Madrid
| Pos. | Driver | Points | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | N. TSolov | 177 | — |
| 2 | R. CÂMARA | 170 | -7 |
| 3 | G. MINÌ | 153 | -24 |
| 4 | A. DUNNE | 139 | -38 |
| 5 | N. LEÓN | 119 | -58 |
| 6 | D. BEGANOVIC | 106 | -71 |
| 7 | J. DÜRKSEN | 90 | -87 |
| 8 | K. MAINI | 88 | -89 |
| 9 | L. VAN HOEPEN | 72 | -105 |
| 10 | T. INTHRAPHUVASAK | 71 | -106 |
| 11 | M. STENSHORNE | 70 | -107 |
| 12 | R. MIYATA | 70 | -107 |
| 13 | J. BENNETT | 38 | -139 |
| 14 | R. VILLAGÓMEZ | 38 | -139 |
| 15 | O. GOETHE | 37 | -140 |
| 16 | S. MONTOYA | 28 | -149 |
| 17 | E. FITTIPALDI | 28 | -149 |
| 18 | R. BILINSKI | 26 | -151 |
| 19 | C. HERTA | 26 | -151 |
| 20 | N. VARRONE | 15 | -162 |
| 21 | M. BOYA | 13 | -164 |
| 22 | C. SHIELDS | 10 | -167 |
The championship now heads to Baku, where the Azerbaijan round takes place from September 24-26.
For Tsolov, Madrid ultimately became a missed opportunity. He arrived with an 11-point advantage and leaves with only 7 despite Câmara’s costly incident with Goethe.
Câmara can view the weekend from the opposite perspective. The Invicta driver missed a chance to make a much larger championship gain, but even after his 10-second penalty he leaves Madring closer to the lead than when he arrived.
And with Minì only 24 points from the top and Dunne 38 behind, the 2026 Formula 2 championship is no longer simply a two-driver contest.
FAQ
What are the F2 standings after Madrid?
Nikola Tsolov leads with 177 points, followed by Rafael Câmara on 170 and Gabriele Minì on 153. Alexander Dunne is fourth with 139 points.
How many points separate Tsolov and Câmara?
Only 7 points separate Tsolov and Câmara after Madrid. The gap was 11 points before the weekend, with Tsolov on 177 and Câmara on 166.
When is the next Formula 2 race after Madrid?
Formula 2 returns in Azerbaijan from September 24-26, with the championship battle continuing on the Baku street circuit.
