Category: Formula 2

22/10/2025 11:24 (GMT +2)

Yesterday was a busy day for Josep María Martí, as it has been announced on his official social media that the Spaniard is leaving Formula 2 with immediate effect to join CUPRA Kiro in Formula E. His other link to Formula 1, the Red Bull Junior team, has also been broken. It seems confirmed, however, that his partnership with A14 Management will continue, as Fernando Alonso’s agency has reposted various posts related to the move.

Until now, 2016 European F3 vice-champion Maximilian Günther had been the only Alonso protégé in Formula E. However, Pepe, who had been competing in F2 with Campos Racing uninterruptedly since the 2024 Bahrain GP, will join him from the 2025-26 Brazilian e-Prix onwards.

On the other side of Martí’s box, however, will be another former Red Bull junior. David Beckmann had already parted ways with CUPRA Kiro and, therefore, Dan Ticktum will be the one partnering the Sabadell-born driver at the American team.

Russell O’Hagan, Chief Operating Officer of CUPRA KIRO, has declared to fiaformulae.com that Martí has “stepped away from F2” and is now “committed fully” to Formula E. This move is effective immediately, which means the Catalan driver will not be competing in the Qatar and Abu Dhabi rounds of Formula 2. His chances of a title win were almost null, as he trails leader Leonardo Fornaroli (Invicta) by 76 points with 78 still in play. But now, only five candidates remain mathematically in contention: the Italian, Jak Crawford (DAMS), Luke Browning (Hitech), Richard Verschoor (MP Motorsport) and Alexander Dunne (Rodin).

The Spaniard’s electric switch means a current Campos seat is now void. Whilst the 2026 line-up will be Nikola Tsolov and Noel León, it seems only logical for the “Bulgarian Lion” to take Martí’s spot in the last two F2 rounds. The Sofia-born driver is part of the aforementioned Red Bull Junior Team and is the incumbent vice-champion of Formula 3. The Mexican, on the other hand, left the Austrian academy after 2022 and was ranked 17th in the last F3 season.

Said driver development programme only has two drivers in the silver category right now: Arvid Lindblad at Campos and Oliver Goethe at MP Motorsport. Nevertheless, this could change if the 18-year-old Alonso protegé makes the early jump. The only thing sure for now is that Pepe Martí has left the silver step in the road to F1, and will instead try to work his way up in Formula E. And this mission starts at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, where his official pre-season testing will take place from the 27th to the 30th of October.

2022 and 2023 WRC champion Kalle Rovanperä has announced he will be leaving the pinnacle of rallying after the season end in Saudi Arabia. His destination? Next year, Super Formula. In 2027, Formula 2.

The Finn’s announcement comes as a sudden shock for both fans of rallying and formula racing. Whilst, in recent years, experienced and successful F1 drivers such as Kimi Räikkönen, Robert Kubica and 2020 Rally Dakar “Rookie of the Year” Fernando Alonso have dipped their toes into rallies, it has not been as widespread the other way around. Sébastien Loeb is the only driver to have been rumoured to make the big switch. The WRC legend tested both the Renault R27 and the Red Bull RB4 and was seriously linked, as confirmed by himself, to a race drive in 2009 for Toro Rosso.

Rovanperä, however, will apparently take the feeder series route to a possible place in the pinnacle of motorsport. Raymond Blancafort of Soy Motor indicates that the driver of Latvian descent has “Formula 1 as his objective”, which is only logical considering his unusual switch to FIA Formula 2. He will start the 2027 season at 26 years of age and will end it at 27, something uncommon in non-pay drivers. This is also the earliest ever announcement of a driver of the category since its inception in 2017.

In an X video titled “New Chapter”, he also explains that he will be continuing to develop his career with the support of Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) in Super Formula. Rovanperä has become synonymous with the Japanese team, as he has driven with them in WRC for the last six seasons, winning two titles which could possibly become three this year. The trailer also insinuates he will be driving for Hitech-TGR when he makes the full switch to F1 feeders in F2, something logical considering the aforementioned links.

It remains to be seen whether Haas, who has been partnered with Toyota since 2024, has the Jyväskylä-born driver in their plans for the 2028 Formula 1 season. And whilst the ties seem logical, it is, for now, nothing but speculation.

This image was originally posted to Flickr by /the_game at https://flickr.com/photos/42553406@N04/52616179769. It was reviewed on 19 January 2023 by FlickreviewR 2 and was confirmed to be licensed under the terms of the cc-by-sa-2.0.

8. Paul Aron

–    2023: 24^th

–    2024: 3^rd

Let’s move on to the most recent case, that of Paul Aron. The Estonian, who had just graduated from Formula 3 in 2023 (3^rd), made his Formula 2 debut that same year with Trident during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the only race he competed in that season. A 16^th and an 18^th place finish earned him 24^th in the standings before starting his only full year in the category.

Now at Hitech, the former Mercedes junior (2019-23) managed to fight for the title against Gabriel Bortoleto and Isack Hadjar. However, the Invicta and Campos drivers prevailed, winning the championship and vice-championship, respectively. It would not be the only achievement he would lose to them, as Aron had to settle for the position of reserve driver at Alpine F1 for 2025, with Jack Doohan already signed as a starter for this year.

Following the early sacking of Esteban Ocon before the 2024 Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the Australian made his debut earlier than expected, with Aron not being considered for a starting position (not even temporarily) with the French team. Likewise, the star signing of Franco Colapinto, already a rookie in F1 with Williams, would relegate him to the background, as the Pilar-born driver is the team’s first reserve.

However, after a Doohan-Colapinto switch of roles, it seems that the Estonian could be next in line for the ever-changing Alpine, as long as the young driver of Italian Ukrainian descent continues to be inconsistent.

7. Luca Ghiotto

– 2017: 4^th

– 2018: 8^th

– 2019: 3^rd

– 2020: 10^th

– 2022: 25^th

A year after his GP2 debut with Trident, Luca Ghiotto signed with Russian Time for the inaugural Formula 2 season, where he finished 4^th. After a 2018 season in which he achieved an 8^th place with Campos, the Italian’s peak in the category came at the age of 24: in 2019. That year, while driving for UNI-Virtuosi, he completed the category’s podium behind future graduates Nyck de Vries and Nicholas Latifi.

The Arzignano-born driver finished 10^th after his switch to Hitech for 2020, his last full season in the second division. However, he later competed with DAMS in the 2022 F2 Italian Grand Prix following Roy Nissany’s race ban.

He never met the standard to be considered for a Formula 1 seat, with a single test with Williams in 2017 being the closest he ever was to the category. After this, he competed in IMSA, IndyCar, and the World Endurance Championship. He currently drives in LMP2 for the Inter Europol team in the European Le Mans Series.

6. Callum Ilott

– 2017: 26^th

– 2019: 11^th

– 2020: Vice-champion

Callum Ilott, a member of the Red Bull junior team during the 2015 European Formula 3 season, joined the Ferrari academy in 2017 after a weekend in Formula 2 with Trident (26^th overall). After a third-place finish in the last season of the GP3 Series, the Brit enjoyed his first full year in the silver division in 2019.

That season, in which he competed for the Sauber Junior Team by Charouz, he finished 11^th and participated in a test for the Alfa Romeo F1 team. He also tested with the Swiss team in 2020, a year in which he fought for a Formula 2 title which Mick Schumacher claimed, and who would also snatch a seat at Haas from him, along with Nikita Mazepin.

Ilott, who was the third-place finisher in the 2020 F2 series, was also a test driver for the Americans that year, before eventually driving in FP1 in 2021 as Alfa Romeo’s reserve driver. The then-Vasseur-led team also included Ilott as a reserve driver in 2022, in addition to serving as a Ferrari test driver in 2021.

After being excluded from Formula 1 by both Haas and Alfa Romeo, the latter opting to retain Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi for 2021 and to sign Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou for 2022, the Cambridge-born racer ended his ties with the premier class in 2023. Since then, he has participated in every IndyCar season, including the current one, and has competed in the World Endurance Championship. Despite some sporadic point-finishes in the former competition, he is perhaps best known for ending Álex Palou’s Indy 500 hopes in 2022 with a clumsy move that resulted in a crash.

5. Frederik Vesti

– 2022: 9^th

– 2023: Vice-champion

Frederik Vesti is, most likely, the driver on this list who is closest starting his Formula 1 career, having publicly stated that he is in talks with Cadillac and serving as Mercedes’ reserve driver behind George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.

He joined the German team’s academy in 2021, finishing fourth for the second consecutive season in Formula 3. After that, he joined ART for his debut year in Formula 2, achieving ninth place in the championship.

In 2023, the Dane became a test driver for Mercedes and fought for the championship with Prema. He ultimately lost the title, finishing second to ART’s Théo Pourchaire. During that season and 2024, he participated in FP1 with Toto Wolff’s team and remains a reserve driver, a position he held last year.

The Vejle-born driver balances this with other categories, having participated in the World Endurance Championship and currently races for the Cadillac Whelen IMSA team.

4. Artem Markelov

– 2017: Vice-champion

– 2018: 5th

– 2019: 16th

– 2020: 18th

As a veteran of the GP2 Series, having competed in the 2014, 2015, and 2016 seasons, the Moscow-born racer burst onto the scene in its sequel, Formula 2, continuing his partnership with Russian Time. Markelov would finish runner-up, a long way behind the F1-bound Charles Leclerc. Despite not having much of a chance in the title race, his performances and sponsorships earned him some sort of involvement in the premier class starting the following year.

As a Renault development driver, he participated in the 2018 young driver tests, in addition to driving in the FP1 session at that year’s Russian Grand Prix. While he remained with F2’s Russian Time, rumours of a starting spot alongside his compatriot Sirotkin at Williams gathered pace. However, the Grove-based team opted for the signings of George Russell and Robert Kubica for 2019.

After this, Markelov’s sporting decline began, having just finished 5^th in the 2018 F2. The 2019 season, where he only managed to drive six races with stints at MP Motorsport and Arden, ended with a disappointing 16^th place. His final year in motorsport, 2020, was even worse: 18^th while driving for HWA Racelab. Since then, the eight-time F2 race winner has had no motorsport activity and is reportedly retired since then.

3. Robert Shwartzman

– 2020: 4th

– 2021: Runner-up

Robert Shwartzman is perhaps the driver on this list who has come closest to achieving his big dream the most times. After signing with Ferrari’s academy in 2017, the young Russian established himself as one for the future when he dominated the 2019 Formula 3 championship.

He moved up to Formula 2 the following year with Prema, fighting for the title during parts of the season but losing out to Mick Schumacher, Callum Ilott, and Yuki Tsunoda in the championship. Following Romain Grosjean’s injury at the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix that forced his early retirement from Formula 1, the Ferrari-powered Haas team opted to give Pietro Fittipaldi his debut.

He also lost the American team’s 2021 seat to not only the German but also his compatriot Mazepin. He didn’t stay idle, however, and continued with Prema in the second-tier category that year, finishing second but losing the title to his teammate, the unstoppable Oscar Piastri.

Shwartzman would also be rejected by Haas, which, after sacking Mazepin, eventually brought back Kevin Magnussen for 2022. That year, he competed, now under the Israeli flag, in numerous tests for Ferrari, including in FP1 at Grand Prix events.

Despite being promoted to reserve driver and continuing with his extensive testing plan during 2023 and 2024, the Scuderia entrusted Oliver Bearman to replace appendicitis-affected Carlos Sainz at the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The Brit himself also signed for Haas for 2025 (participating in two races in 2024), leaving the Tel Aviv-born driver with no hope of reaching the premier class.

After a 2024 season in which he also competed in FP1 at the Mexican Grand Prix with Stake, Robert Shwartzman left Ferrari after a seven-year partnership to join IndyCar’s newest addition, Prema, his former F2 and F3 team. And, despite not having the best of seasons so far (24^th), he did start from pole position of the greatest race in the Series: the Indy 500.

2. Felipe Drugovich

– 2020: 9^th

– 2021: 8^th

– 2022: Champion

These are the top guns: the champions. Felipe Drugovich competed in Formula 3 in 2019 with Carlin, failing to score a single podium and finishing 16^th overall despite entering every race.

However, the Brazilian, who also holds Italian nationality, made his Formula 2 debut with MP Motosport in 2020, his first year being somewhat lacking in notoriety (9^th). In his second season, racing with UNI-Virtuosi, the youngster achieved slightly better results, finishing 8^th in the final standings.

In his third season, he returned to the Dutch team, and ensued to dominating the championship and leaving ART’s Théo Pourchaire, previously the favourite to take the title, with no possibilities. After his mathematical victory, the driver of Croatian and Austrian descent signed for Aston Martin as a reserve driver.

He has been with the British team since 2022, having participated in a large number of tests throughout these seasons, including several FP1 sessions at official Grands Prix (starting with his first full year with Aston Martin) and the pre-season testing of the ever-so-successful 2023. During that year, he was also a reserve driver for McLaren, although he never got in the car for Zak Brown’s team.

However, despite being the first option to get driving should Fernando Alonso or Lance Stroll suffer any problems, it is doubtful that the Paraná-born driver will be able to make it to Formula 1 as a starter, as both the Spaniard and the Canadian, son of owner Lawrence Stroll, are indispensable members of the team. Whether that be due to talent or other matters, especially for the latter driver, is up for debate.

Although he maintains his association with the premier class thanks to Aston Martin and there have been rumours of a possible move to Cadillac, it seems that the future of the 2018 Euroformula Open champion lies elsewhere. Drugovich, who has already competed in competitions such as the World Endurance Championship and the ELMS since his time in F2, has already dipped his gloves into Formula E, at least for this year’s Berlin round (17^th and 7^th).

1. Théo Pourchaire

– 2020: 26^th

– 2021: 5^th

– 2022: Vice-champion

– 2023: Champion

We conclude this list with the Brazilian’s greatest rival: Théo Pourchaire. The Frenchman, then only fifteen years old, signed for the Alfa Romeo F1 Team’s Sauber Academy in 2019. The following year, after Piastri snatched the title last minute in Formula 3, he went from rookie in the bronze category to rookie in the silver category. The Grasse-born driver competed in the final two weekends of the category, scoring no points and finishing 26^th with HWA Racelab.

In 2021, he signed for ART, a team he would remain with for the remainder of his Formula 2 career. With the French team, he had a promising first full season, finishing 5^th in the championship and being the clear favourite for 2022 after two victories in the category.

However, he also failed to win the championship that year, finishing a distant runner-up to veteran Felipe Drugovich. In his third full year and fourth overall, the ART driver finally secured the title, defeating Vesti.

However, the stock he had accumulated during his teenage years had already dissipated, and he completed a year as a reserve driver for the renamed Stake F1 team in 2024. Pourchaire, who had a real chance of fulfilling his dream with the Swiss team for 2025 but was ultimately passed over in favour of Nico Hülkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto, ended up leaving the team’s Sauber Academy at the end of the year.

He was a test driver for the team from 2021 and a reserve driver from 2023, with the ADAC Formula 4 champion being an option from 2022 to 2025 for seats that were ultimately filled by Hülkenberg and Bortoleto, as well as Guanyu Zhou and Valtteri Bottas.

The Frenchman had to settle for several FP1s in official Grands Prix during those years (except for his last one in Stake) before embarking on his current adventure in endurance racing. After brief stints in IndyCar and Japanese Super Formula in 2024, he made his World Endurance Championship debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

• 2017: 3^rd

After his 2015 and 2016 GP2 seasons, Oliver Rowland arrived to its successor with DAMS at 24 years of age. In his only Formula 2 season, he achieved third place in the championship thanks to two victories, in a year where PREMA’s Charles Leclerc dominated.

2017 was also his only season as a Renault F1 development driver after spending 2016 as a “young driver” of the French constructor. The Brit had nevertheless already experienced the top class before, as demonstrated by his Red Bull and McLaren tests. The latter team also adopted him as part of their young drivers’ programme from 2007 to 2010. His role as Williams’ “official Junior Driver” in 2018, however, was his last year linked to Formula 1.

The Barnsley-born driver was never seriously considered a candidate for a seat in the top class. The Grove-based outfit preferred Lance Stroll and Sergey Sirotkin, and Rowland was only ever thought of as a veteran that spent too much time in junior categories. Since his departure from feeders, the Formula Renault 3.5 champion has raced in the World Endurance Championship with CEFC and has been associated with Formula E since 2015-16. Rowland has competed in the latter category every year since then (except 2016-17) and finally reached his goal this season by conquering the 2024-25 title.

American driver Jak Crawford has spoken to Motorsport.com about a possible future in F1. The F2 title challenger told the Miami-based news outlet his plans to jump category: “We’re trying to find any space on the grid, whether it’s with Cadillac or Aston Martin or some other teams”.

The Charlotte-born driver is realistic with his possibilities and does not reject the possibility of taking the gamble of a starter seat with a new team like Cadillac over staying at a reserve role at Aston Martin. The former Red Bull junior also defined his future with Lawrence Stroll’s constructor as “up in the air”.

Many a driver has been linked to the two vacant seats at Cadillac, including, once again according to Motorsport.com, forced-outsiders and veterans Sergio Pérez and Valtteri Bottas. The former Red Bull and Mercedes drivers, respectively, are both race winners and vice-champions, and will no doubt have the edge over Crawford in proven talent and pedigree. 

Mick Schumacher also confirmed to Motorsport.com that he has been “in talks” with the US-based future team. However, the former Haas driver seems to have been mentioned less times in 2026 rumours than the previous candidates. Additionally, reports from Kym Illman suggest that former Stake F1 driver Zhou Guanyu, McLaren F1 reserve driver Pato O’Ward and 2022 F2 champion Felipe Drugovich are other “leading contenders” to make the jump to F1 with the Ferrari-powered constructor.

Whether Jak Crawford reaches the top category will surely depend on his driving ability in Formula 2. The DAMS driver is completing his third full year in the silver division with his eyes on the prize as he hopes to slim down the 9-point deficit to leader Leonard Fornaroli in this weekend’s Hungarian GP. Other contenders for the title in this crazily tight season are second-place Richard Verschoor (MP), who is two points behind the Invicta driver; as well as Alexander Dunne (Rodin) and Luke Browning (Hitech), who trail first-place by 11 and 12 points, respectively.

Whoever scores most points in both the Sprint and the Feature Races (as well as the two points for pole), including the F1-linked Jak Crawford, might be at an advantage to take this year’s F2 title and hopefully be closer to a seat in the top category.

Since its (re)creation in 2017, Formula 2 has, in theory, had the objective of preparing young drivers for Formula 1. But, despite the perception that the sequel of GP2 has failed in this regard, the truth is that there have been 21 graduates to the pinnacle of motorsport (22 if we count Roberto Merhi, who drove for Marussia in 2015).

However, not every driver that excels in this second division reaches their goals. There has even been occasions where being the championship winner has not been enough. Whether it be for financial or sporting-related reasons, I will be developing a list of the best Formula 2 drivers that never reached F1 (Formula 2 being the FIA category that started in 2017). But before, a few familiar names will be mentioned in the honourable mentions:

13.      Dan Ticktum

–             2018: 23^rd

–             2020: 11^th

–             2021: 4^th

Last seen: 2024-25 Formula E season (currently 7^th)

12.        Zane Maloney

–             2022: 26^th

–             2023: 10^th

–             2024: 4^th

Last seen: 2024-25 Formula E season (currently 23^rd)

11.        Sérgio Sette Câmara

–             2017: 12º

–             2018: 6º

–             2019: 4º

Last seen: 2025 ELMS LMP2 Pro-Am season (currently 7^th)

The list

10. Ayumu Iwasa

• 2022: 5^th
• 2023: 4^th

The Japanese driver debuted in Formula 2 the year after his rookie year of Formula 3 backed by Red Bull. Iwasa, who still remains associated with the team nowadays, competed in 2022 (5^th) and 2023 (4^th) with DAMS in said category and never stood a real chance against the likes of Drugovich, Pourchaire, or Vesti.

After earning his five victories in the second division, he has been both a reserve and development driver for the Red Bull structure. The Osaka-born youngster tested for AlphaTauri in 2023 before becoming their reserve driver and has completed FP1 sessions in Grands Prix for Racing Bulls in 2024 and for Red Bull in 2025.

Nonetheless, it seems like the possibilities of him starting a race are slim. Racing Bulls chose Liam Lawson as a replacement of forced-retiree Daniel Ricciardo for the United States Grand Prix in 2024. However, the lack of possibilities of moving up in the pecking order remained: his 2023 F2 team-mate Isack Hadjar overtook him to take the remaining spot in the Italian team, which was, back then, left without Lawson due to the New Zealander’s signing with Red Bull after Sergio Pérez’s sacking.

Even though, for a few months earlier this season, Iwasa seemed to be the first emergency driver in line for the Red Bull structure (that now has Tsunoda in the first and Lawson in the second team), Arvid Lindblad obtaining his super license, which gave him the permission to participate in the first Free Practice session of this past British GP, has changed all of this. It is a matter of time before the Brit jumps into a full weekend, probably as a replacement of the Hastings-born driver. For now, Iwasa’s future seems to lie in his home country, as he has been competing in the Japanese Super Formula since last year.

Both Formula 2 and Formula 3 return to the legendary Spa-Francorchamps track to celebrate their rounds as F1 feeders at the 2025 Belgian GP. And whilst the intra-McLaren battle between Norris and Piastri is heating up and promises to be as entertaining as a title fight can be, it is also worth checking out the silver and bronze divisions.

In Formula 2, Aston Martin junior Jak Crawford has emerged as a dark horse contender for the title. The American, who won the last Feature Race at Silverstone, is now only 6 points behind veteran Richard Verschoor. The Dutchman has 122 points compared to the DAMS driver’s 116. Close behind are Alexander Dunne (Rodin) and Leo Fornaroli (Invicta), at 108 and 104, respectively. The latter has been on an upwards spiral which culminated in his Sprint win at the British GP, whilst the McLaren junior wants to continue shattering expectations. Williams’ Luke Browning (Hitech) trails by only 6 points following his Feature podium behind the Irishman. Red Bull junior Arvid Lindblad (Campos), arguably the driver closest to an F1 seat, sits at 84 points. And it’s now or never for arguable contenders Sebastián Montoya (Prema) and Red Bull’s Pepe Martí (Campos). Both of Alonso’s protégés, although the former on a good streak and the latter with a not so fortunate immediate past, sit just behind a GP length by trailing the lead by 40 and 43 points, respectively.

The most consistent pairing, however, is Campos Racing’s. The Spanish team, benefitted by having two drivers in arguable contention, leads the team standings with 153 points to DAMS’ 142. Only one point behind is the Browning-led Hitech; whilst both MP Motorsport, at 134 points, and Invicta, at 133, are still in the fight.

It’s anyone’s game at the Belgian GP, as a maximum of 39 points are up for grabs in a thrilling weekend. Friday starts with a free practice and is followed by a qualifying session that offers 2 points for pole position as well as the first spot on Sunday’s grid. The top 10 are flipped around for Saturday, however, for a Sprint that awards 10 points to the winner. The Spa round will be topped off by a thrilling Feature Race that has the big prize of 25 points for the victor. Both races have one point awarded per fastest lap as long as the driver to do so ends in the top 10.

Here are the timings, all in local times, so you don’t miss any of the action:

Friday 25^th July

• 10:05 – Free Practice
• 14:55 – Qualifying

Saturday 26^th July

• 13:45 – Sprint Race

Sunday 27^th July

• 10:00 – Feature Race