F2 Austria Wrap; Bennett wins maiden race, Minì keeps holding on, Tsolov to F1?

• John Bennett claimed his maiden Formula 2 victory with a dramatic last-lap overtake on Sebastián Montoya in the Austria Sprint, while Nikola Tsolov secured his fourth Feature Race win of the season.
• Tsolov’s victory reduced Gabriele Minì’s championship lead to just two points, setting up an intense title fight heading into Silverstone.
• Despite speculation linking him with a 2027 Formula 1 seat at Racing Bulls, no decision has been made on Tsolov’s future as Liam Lawson continues to impress in Formula 1.

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Last-lap stunner in the Sprint

It was a last-lap stunner in the Spielberg Sprint for Formula 2, with John Bennett making the decisive move on Sebastián Montoya to claim his maiden victory in the championship.

Starting second, Bennett initially got ahead of Montoya at the start before a multi-car pile-up at Turn 3, triggered by Rafael Câmara making contact with Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak.

When racing resumed following the Safety Car, Montoya did everything he could to assert himself back ahead of Bennett, but the Trident driver proved a much fiercer adversary than expected.

The following lap saw Montoya dive down the inside of Bennett into Turn 4 to retake the lead, before another Virtual Safety Car neutralised the race after Colton Herta retired.

Montoya defended resolutely on the final lap, but Bennett executed a switchback move at Turn 4 to reclaim the lead from the Colombian and secure his maiden F2 victory, with Rafael Villagómez completing the podium in third.

Fourth win of the season for Tsolov

With his name making headlines ahead of the Austrian weekend in connection with a potential Formula 1 seat, Nikola Tsolov did his prospects no harm by claiming a fourth victory of the 2026 F2 season in the Feature Race.

The composed drive from the Bulgarian also moved him to within two points of Gabriele Minì’s championship lead by the end of the weekend.

A quick getaway from third on the grid saw Tsolov pass Alexander Dunne into Turn 1 before overtaking polesitter and Campos teammate Noel León through Turn 3.

A collision at Turn 3 between Montoya and Villagómez also brought out the Safety Car, with racing resuming on Lap 4.

Dunne attempted to undercut Tsolov and León on Lap 8. However, despite a slow pit stop, the Bulgarian emerged ahead—only just. The Irishman did briefly move ahead on the following lap before Tsolov reclaimed the position on Lap 24.

Minì, having pitted on Lap 9, worked his way into contention and overtook Dunne for second, while Oliver Goethe completed the podium ahead of Câmara.

Inthraphuvasak’s alternate strategy pays off

Despite being eliminated from the Sprint on Saturday, Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak starred in Sunday’s Feature Race, with ART executing a sensational alternate strategy to finish fifth.

Using a set of Supersoft tyres for a shorter final stint, the Thai driver passed León and Dunne on Lap 37 for fifth. He even believed another lap would have been enough to snatch fourth from Câmara.

Starting sixth, the ART driver lost ground following the early Safety Car, with Joshua Duerksen moving ahead at Turn 3 before Roman Bilinski and Kush Maini also found a way past.

“Honestly, kind of bittersweet because I think the result could have been better today. I think being on the alternate strategy definitely worked out for us today. The race overall went very well,” Inthraphuvasak said after the race.

“I’m very happy to have taken a step back to where we belong this weekend. Hopefully this continues for the rest of the season. Happy to score some good points for myself and the team in the Feature Race.

“However, I think if lap one for myself was a bit better, I think we could have ended up third on the podium. A shame that we didn’t get lap one nailed in.”

Tsolov in, Lawson out?

Tsolov’s strong performances in Formula 2 have not gone unnoticed, with reports emerging ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix linking the Bulgarian to a Formula 1 race seat with Racing Bulls in 2027.

Spanish outlet Soy Motorsport reported that Tsolov would replace incumbent Liam Lawson to partner Arvid Lindblad at Red Bull’s sister team.

The claim was refuted by Racing Bulls Team Principal Alan Permane, who insisted nothing had been finalised regarding the team’s 2027 driver plans.

The speculation comes as Lawson continues an impressive run of form, recording a fourth consecutive points-scoring weekend in Austria, with Racing Bulls closing the gap to Alpine for fifth in the Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship.

Minì hangs on to the championship lead

While the weekend in Austria largely revolved around Tsolov, it was championship leader Gabriele Minì who ultimately held onto the top spot—even if only by the slimmest of margins.

Minì finished fifth in the Sprint before returning to the podium with second place in the Feature Race behind his title rival, leaving the gap between them at just two points heading to Silverstone.

The pair now appear to have broken away from the chasing pack led by Câmara and Dunne, with the Italian holding a 26-point advantage over the third-placed driver in the standings.

Formula 2’s rollercoaster 2026 season now heads straight to Silverstone for what promises to be another enthralling weekend.

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Written by

Jawad Yaqub

An eCommerce Specialist by day and reporting on F1 by night. Jawad is passionate about motorsport, having provided accredited F1 coverage for more than a decade and is a member of the AIPS (International Sports Press Association). Live blogging (almost) every grand prix too since 2014, as well as articles on the Supercars Championship. Also keen on sustainability, photography, collecting vinyl, (trying to) expertly barbeque and learning to Dad.

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