nikola tsolov took the chequered flag in the 33-lap Formula 2 Feature Race at Albert Park Circuit, finishing 1. 6 seconds clear of Rafael Câmara to register his first Feature Race victory during the Australian Grand Prix weekend.
Nikola Tsolov seals maiden F2 win at Albert Park
Tsolov converted a strong start into a win after the race was twice disrupted at Albert Park. The Campos driver moved through the field early, running in the top five off the line, and inherited the lead when the pair ahead came together on the opening laps. Over the 33-lap distance he held off a challenge to finish 1. 6 seconds ahead of Rafael Câmara, with Laurens van Hoepen completing the podium.
Turn-one clash between Dunne and Stenshorne triggers Safety Car
The Feature Race began with Dino Beganovic on pole, but the polesitter lost positions into turn one as Rodin teammates Alex Dunne and Martinius Stenshorne jumped ahead. The pair battled side-by-side before Dunne crossed in front of Stenshorne into the braking zone and the two made contact, leaving both out of the race and bringing out a Safety Car on the opening laps.
Beganovic stalls, pit-lane contact and late safety car phases
Beganovic’s weekend deteriorated further when his DAMS car stopped with a mechanical issue on lap 16, prompting a Virtual Safety Car and then a full Safety Car later in the race. The weekend had already seen a pit-lane collision pre-race when Sebastián Montoya pulled out into Roman Bilinski, an incident placed under investigation. The race also featured mixed tyre strategies early on, with a small number of drivers starting on Soft compound rubber while most ran Supersofts.
Throughout the middle stint Tsolov built a gap: the leaders pitted during the pit window, with the front runners stopping around lap nine, and the Campos driver held roughly a two-second lead after the service. Pit-lane penalties affected other runners, with Sebastián Montoya handed a five-second penalty for a pit-lane infringement and Joshua Dürksen penalised for a false start.
Colton Herta recovered to seventh to claim his first points of the championship after a weekend that included a crash in practice, while Oliver Goethe and Ritomo Miyata finished inside the top five in the interrupted 33-lap contest.
nikola tsolov’s victory marked an all-rookie fight for the rostrum, with Rafael Câmara and Laurens van Hoepen joining him on the podium. The Feature Race was the main Formula 2 support event for the Australian Grand Prix weekend, and the result reshuffles the immediate picture heading into the rest of the series.
The next confirmed event on the weekend schedule is the Australian Grand Prix, the Formula 1 main race that the F2 Feature supported at Albert Park.
