The Arab circuit will host the second round of the FIA Formula 2 Championship this coming weekend. With two back-to-back race weekends, Campos Racing’s drivers will be eager to make their mark already in Sakhir
Campos Racing heads into the second round of the FIA Formula 2 calendar this 2025 season. The two races of the series—considered the second tier of the FIA’s single-seater pyramid—will take place at the Bahrain International Circuit, running in support of the Formula 1 Grand Prix at the same venue. The Alzira-based team’s two cars will once again be driven by Pepe Martí and Arvid Lindblad, who will be aiming to take the Red Bull colors to the top.
The championship, which got underway early last month in Melbourne, had a rather chaotic start due to issues with power cuts that affected both Martí and Lindblad. After a difficult start to the weekend in practice, which left both drivers starting from the back of the grid, the Spanish driver managed to climb to eighth place in Saturday’s sprint race. Lindblad, meanwhile, crossed the line in tenth on his FIA Formula 2 debut. The Sunday feature race was ultimately cancelled due to the torrential rain that struck the Australian circuit.
The Bahrain International Circuit is a key venue for both pre-season and post-season testing in FIA F2. In fact, the series held three days of collective testing in Sakhir just a few days ago, during which Martí and Lindblad completed 379 laps, with extensive qualifying and race simulations. All the data gathered during those test sessions has been carefully analyzed with the engineers to maximize performance ahead of this second round of the season. Martí already made a sensational debut in FIA F2 last year, as he finished second and third.
Designed by Hermann Tilke and inaugurated in 2004, the Bahrain International Circuit has been a staple on the calendars of top-level motorsport series worldwide, particularly as host of the Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix. With a length of 5.412 kilometers, the Gulf circuit is located in an archipelago surrounded by desert, which compromises tire grip—especially on Friday when cars hit the track for the first time. On top of that, high temperatures also play a crucial role, with highs of 36ºC and lows of 23ºC, significantly impacting tire wear and degradation.
Both free practice and qualifying will take place on Friday at 11:05 and 15:55, respectively. The sprint race will start at 16:15 on Saturday, while Sunday’s feature race—with a mandatory pit stop for tire changes—will be held at 13:25. All times are in Spanish time zone (CEST).
Adrián Campos (Team Principal of Campos Racing): “After a rather unusual season opener in Melbourne, with heavy rain that even led to the cancellation of Sunday’s race, we now head into the second round of the championship in Sakhir. This weekend should give us a much clearer idea of how the season will unfold. It’s a circuit that all drivers and teams know very well. As a result, the gaps will be small, since we have plenty of data from recent testing here with the category. I’m confident that Pepe and Arvid will play a key role in this weekend’s story.”
Photos: © Dutch Photo Agency
