This 12 months marks the twentieth anniversary of the Formulation 2 championship’s inception (then underneath the GP2 mantle), however there’s another excuse why it represents a landmark for the sequence: F2 has 4 drivers graduating on to Formulation 1 – one thing that had not occurred since 2010, when the F1 grid expanded from 20 to 24 automobiles. In different phrases, that is quite unprecedented in regular circumstances.
As a consequence, the much-renewed discipline of 9 returnees and 13 rookies has a lot to show to have an opportunity to seize an F1 seat in 2026, particularly as groups might financial institution on expertise within the first season of F1’s incoming technical guidelines with a brand new engine formulation.
Amongst these 13 debutants, solely 4 are rookies within the purest sense of the time period – Arvid Lindblad, Sebastian Montoya, Alex Dunne and Sami Meguetounif. The opposite 9 made their F2 debuts in the previous couple of rounds of the 2024 season, with this expertise essential to hit the bottom operating within the 2025 marketing campaign.
One apparent favorite, nonetheless, will probably be veteran Victor Martins, a Formulation 3 champion whose extraordinarily tight title combat with Oscar Piastri within the 2019 Formulation Renault Eurocup boosted the Australian’s profession as he got here out on high and joined the Renault academy whereas the previous misplaced the French model’s backing and needed to keep put within the sequence.
As Piastri flew in the direction of F1, Martins had a slower stand up the ranks. He joined Alpine once more, took these Eurocup and F3 crowns, then was one of the best F2 rookie in 2023 – however final season was a disaster with dangerous luck compounded by driving errors, resulting in his exit from the Enstone programme.
“Let’s say my aim and their aim weren’t on the identical line,” the 23-year-old Frenchman succinctly defined. As for the upcoming marketing campaign, the ART Grand Prix driver added: “I’ve no drawback for individuals to place me because the favorite.
The 2022 F3 champion Martins will probably be anticipated to battle for the 2025 crown with it being his third season in F2
Picture by: James Sutton / Motorsport Photos
“I really feel this 12 months goes to be totally different. In my thoughts, I really feel like I leap from 2023 straight to ’25! ’24 hasn’t actually existed, or let’s say it doesn’t have an effect on my aim, my motivation, my confidence within the staff and the individuals I work with. I do know I’m working with one of the best engineers in Formulation 2 and they’re going to give me one of the best automotive.”
Martins will probably be dealing with a bunch of youthful rivals, lots of them F1 staff proteges. Jak Crawford, a former Purple Bull junior now a part of the Aston Martin programme, is the very best returning driver from 2024 and can take pleasure in continuity because the 19-year-old American stays at DAMS for his third marketing campaign at this stage.
Many eyes will probably be on Lindblad, Purple Bull’s subsequent huge hope, who secured the 40 factors required for a superlicence when he won the Formula Regional Oceania title in New Zealand last month. Though the 17-year-old Briton is just too younger to truly be awarded the licence but, he’s recognized to be the primary contender to an F1 seat subsequent 12 months if Yuki Tsunoda leaves the fold or his new Racing Bulls team-mate Isack Hadjar falls in need of expectations.
After Bortoleto was considerably discreet on the F4 and Formulation Regional ranges, he took F3 and F2 by storm and landed a seat at Sauber. Everyone on the grid will attempt to emulate him, however just one driver really has the credentials to take action
Lindblad’s F2 debut with Campos will probably be scrutinised, although he says Purple Bull has not given him a selected aim for 2025 regardless of the expectation being “fairly excessive”. And don’t name him “the brand new Max”, for he might not respect it.
The Prema squad, whose 2024 marketing campaign was considerably of a shocker contemplating its pedigree as each Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Oliver Bearman struggled all through the season, shouldn’t be discounted both with Alpine junior Gabriele Mini – F3’s runner-up in 2024 – and Juan Pablo Montoya’s son Sebastian, each 19 years of age.
“They know that final 12 months they struggled at occasions, they usually tried actually onerous within the winter to know why they had been struggling,” Montoya mentioned. “I feel they obtained a greater thought on the finish of the season – they had been much more constant, they had been much more on the entrance they usually obtained to a degree the place they had been on the rostrum virtually each week on the finish of the 12 months.”
Purple Bull junior Lindblad, who completed fourth in F3 final 12 months, is predicted to succeed in F1
Picture by: Dutch Picture Company
Mini added: “Taking a look at testing a number of days in the past, I feel they understood many issues, and it appears to be like like a constructive one.”
In the meantime, on the again of a really non-public Ferrari F1 check at Barcelona in January, Dino Beganovic will try to construct on two stable F3 campaigns. The 21-year-old Swede joins Hitech – whose high driver Paul Aron took third within the 2024 standings – alongside Williams junior Luke Browning, 23, who was third in F3 final 12 months.
“We wish to win each titles, and I feel that’s clear from Paul’s efficiency final 12 months, and from having a driver line-up strongness. Me and Dino, I feel we’re one of many strongest on the grid,” Browning claimed.
“Expertise counts so much,” Beganovic insisted, earlier than including some nuance: “I feel the prime instance is Gabriel [Bortoleto]’s F3 and F2 seasons, it’s one thing I feel lots of people look as much as.”
After Bortoleto was considerably discreet on the F4 and Formulation Regional ranges, he took F3 and F2 by storm and landed a seat at Sauber – the longer term Audi F1 staff. Everyone on the grid will attempt to emulate him, however just one driver really has the credentials to take action: Leonardo Fornaroli.
Fornaroli took a equally surprising F3 title final 12 months in a constant however winless marketing campaign, and can now try to copy the Brazilian’s feat with the identical Invicta outfit – although the 20-year-old is conserving his expectations in examine.
“The primary factor for this season, for me, is to focus on myself, to not repeat the errors of final 12 months, and at all times be constant,” he mentioned. “However I can’t set a loopy aim for me, additionally as a result of I’m a rookie.”
This sounds affordable. However let’s not neglect how, 12 months in the past, rookie Bortoleto’s expectations shot up as he took pole in his maiden F2 qualifying session. The reality is, in F2, you by no means actually know what to anticipate.
Fornaroli might be a part of 4 different drivers to have received the F3 and F2 titles back-to-back
Picture by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Photos
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