Tsolov extends podium streak in Barcelona as Campos Racing retains Teams’ Championship lead
Campos Racing completed another strong performance at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, venue of the fifth round of the 2026 FIA Formula 2 Championship held alongside the Formula 1 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. At one of the team’s two home events this season, Nikola Tsolov secured his fourth podium finish of the campaign. In reality, it could have been his fifth, as he crossed the finish line in second place on Sunday before a post-race penalty handed down by the stewards relegated him to fourth. Nevertheless, this did little to overshadow a remarkable comeback drive and the excellent strategy devised by Campos Racing and its drivers. Noel León also delivered a standout performance, narrowly missing the podium on Saturday while finishing directly behind teammate Tsolov, before once again scoring valuable points in Sunday’s Feature Race.
Drivers had to contend with the high temperatures that would remain a constant throughout the weekend from the very first free practice session on Friday. Tsolov completed nine laps and posted a best time of 1m27.136s. León was less fortunate, as an off-track excursion significantly limited his running and left him heading into qualifying with very little mileage under his belt.
Qualifying began during the hottest part of the afternoon, with ambient temperatures reaching 30°C and track temperatures exceeding 50°C. Drivers spent much of the opening half of the session in the pits before venturing out for their first flying laps. Tsolov initially moved up to second place with a lap of 1m25.222s. León, still working to quickly get up to speed around the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, recorded an initial benchmark of 1m26.082s. As the session progressed, the decisive moment arrived. Tsolov was improving with personal best sectors in the opening two splits when a red flag abruptly ended his chances of improving, leaving him sixth overall. León, however, was slightly more fortunate and snatched tenth place with a lap of 1m25.265s, securing reverse-grid pole position for the Sprint Race. With less than three minutes remaining on the clock, no further improvements were possible.
Saturday’s Sprint Race, scheduled for 26 laps under the midday sun, promised to be a physically demanding contest. When the lights went out, Kush Maini overtook León, who nevertheless held onto second place ahead of a fast-starting Tsolov. After a couple of exploratory laps, Tsolov launched an attack and swept around the outside of his Mexican teammate at Turn 1 to move into second place. With tyre preservation in mind, León subsequently slipped one more position and settled into fourth. As the race unfolded and lap times began to rise dramatically, both Campos Racing drivers found themselves battling Gabriele Minì and Colton Herta for podium positions. In the end, after Herta ran through the gravel, Tsolov and León crossed the finish line in third and fourth places respectively.
Sunday’s 37-lap Feature Race was expected to be even more demanding despite slightly cooler morning temperatures. Campos Racing’s engineers and drivers opted for a strategy that differed from those of their main rivals. Both Tsolov and León started on the harder compound before switching to the softer tyre later in the race. At the start, Tsolov climbed to fourth despite the initial tyre disadvantage. Following a three-lap Safety Car period to recover a stranded car at pit exit, racing resumed with Tsolov and León focused on limiting time losses even as they dropped a few positions. By lap 12, they were running eighth and tenth respectively, but crucially were the leading drivers on their alternative strategy. Once those ahead began making their pit stops, their charge through the field gathered momentum.
Seven laps later, Tsolov and León were running second and third behind only Rafael Câmara, who was attempting to extend his opening stint as long as possible. Câmara eventually pitted on lap 22, with León making his stop on the same lap. Tsolov, who had inherited the lead, came in one lap later. They rejoined ninth and eleventh respectively with thirteen laps remaining. Immediately setting a blistering pace on fresh soft tyres, both drivers began carving their way through the field. Tsolov first dispatched Herta before turning his attention to Nico Varrone, whom he also overtook decisively. León soon passed the Argentine as well. As the race entered its closing stages, Tsolov produced a spectacular move around the outside of Minì before also overtaking Alex Dunne to take the chequered flag in second place behind Câmara. However, several hours after the race, the stewards imposed a five-second penalty after ruling that Tsolov had exceeded track limits while completing his overtake on Minì at Turn 4, following pressure from the Italian driver. The penalty dropped the Campos Racing driver from second to fourth place. León finished eighth.
Despite the penalty, Tsolov leaves Barcelona second in the Drivers’ Championship standings with 80 points. León remains fifth with 54 points. In the Teams’ Championship, Campos Racing continues to lead the standings with a total of 134 points.
The next round of the FIA Formula 2 Championship will take place in just two weeks’ time at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg.
