Formula 2 in Canada 2026 (GATG)
As the season got back underway, Formula 2 found itself unlocking another new challenge in Montreal, Canada. The infamous street circuit located on the Notre Dame Island welcomed the 22-car grid to tackle their second new circuit in a matter of weeks after the cancellations of Bahrain and Jeddah.
The sun that had blessed the Montreal track for the weekend so far disappeared as feature race Sunday rolled around. Not only was the new track the challenge, the track was now cold, slippery and spits of rain threatened as the cars formed on the grid. It would be Nikola Tsolov joining Laurens Van Hoepen on the front row with Rodin’s Martinius Stenshorne behind.
As the drivers battled to find the temperature and grip, it would be the polesitter that would exceed the limits first as he became the first driver to hit the famous wall of champions. As fast as the safety car came in, it was back out again as Emerson Fittipaldi found himself with no grip as he exited the pit lane, sliding into the barrier.
Teams then make the call to pit, which would be a blessing for some and a curse for others. John Bennett would find himself out of the race after an unsafe release in the pitlane as drivers such as Alex Dunne and Joshua Durksen found themselves losing places due to double-stacking.
An amazing move after the restart from Stenshorne would see him shoot into the virtual lead as he blasted past Tsolov on Boya. A mechanical issue for Dino Beganovic who was running P2 would bring out the safety car once more in the dying laps of the race leaving the Rodin duo in first and second after a great comeback drive from Alex Dunne after the pitstops with Gabriele Mini in third. A restart on lap 34 would not last long as Ritomo Miyata and Ollie Goethe made contact at the exit of the hairpin as the race ended under VSC.
It was Rodin who could celebrate as the team brought home a 1-2 finish with Stenshorne collecting his first F2 win and Dunne following him home in second. Gabriele Mini would continue his podium streak in P3 taking quite a comfortable lead for now in the drivers' championship.
In the post-race press conference, F2’s newest race winner Stenshorne spoke of how a result like this felt like it was coming. “It has been a lot of races where we had a lot of pace, it felt like a matter of time before it was going to come”. He then spoke on what he thinks is key to how well he has settled into life in F2. “What is different from previous cars I have driven, I am not too sure. F3 was a bit of a struggle for me I think for different reasons but yeah, I feel comfortable in F2, together with Rodin as well. They’re providing me with a good car that I am very comfortable to drive”.
A 1-2 finish was a very welcomed result from both Rodin drivers after a tough opening to the season. Neither driver had a feature race finish this season coming into the third round. When asked about whether this result can be a spring board for the rest of the season, Dunne spoke about how it was nice to get the points on the board. “I think overall it is nice to finish in the top 3 and get some points on the board. I think overall there are just a couple of little things that need to be fixed and I know what they are”. He also spoke about how he hopes a result like this can be a somewhat restart of the season. “At this point for me it kinda feels like a second kick start to the year, we are only three rounds in but in saying that, I think we left a lot on the table (in the first two rounds)”.
It was a second new track in a row for F2 but for Gabriele Mini, it did not feel like there was as much learning which he put down to the sim work the drivers do, not only in the factories but at home as well. “There is not really a new track for us because we watch it on the TV, we play it on the simulator, even all three of us we always play on the simulator together”. He also praises the information they receive from the teams during track walks and their academies “We prepare with our own team, we do the track walks and of course me and Alex can get more information and feedback from the F1 drivers from Alpine”.
A hectic few weeks of learning and new challenges for F2 but attention now turns its attention to one of the most special races of the year as the grid heads to Monaco for one of the highlights of the motorsport year, The Monaco Grand Prix.
