The feeder series to Formula 1
Formula 2 sits at the top of the junior single-seater ladder, directly below Formula 1. It runs as a support championship on many Grand Prix weekends, at the same circuits, so the drivers race in front of the same crowds and the same F1 team bosses who might one day hire them.
The championship started in 2017, taking over from the old GP2 Series. Its job is simple: prepare drivers for Formula 1, and give teams a clear way to judge who is ready. Below it sits Formula 3, the next rung down.
One car for everyone
Formula 2 is a spec series. Every team runs the same chassis (built by Dallara), the same engine (a turbocharged Mecachrome V6), and the same Pirelli tyres. No team can spend its way to a faster car.
That is the whole point. When the machinery is identical, the results come down to the driver and how well the team runs the weekend, not who has the biggest development budget. It makes F2 one of the clearest tests of raw driver talent in motorsport. The current car was introduced in 2024 and runs on sustainable fuel.
How a race weekend works
A Formula 2 weekend is built around qualifying and two races:
| Qualifying | Sets the grid for the Feature race. The fastest driver takes pole. |
| Sprint race (Saturday) | Shorter race. The top 10 from qualifying start in reverse order, so the quickest driver has to fight forward. |
| Feature race (Sunday) | The longer, main race. It starts from the qualifying order and includes a mandatory pit stop and tyre change. |
The reverse grid in the Sprint and the pit stop in the Feature are there on purpose: they force overtaking and strategy, which is exactly what teams want to see from a driver aiming for F1.
Points and the superlicence
The Feature race is worth more points than the Sprint, with bonus points for pole position and fastest lap. Both a drivers' championship and a teams' championship are decided over the season.
| Feature race, top 10 | 25, 18, 15, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, 2, 1 |
| Sprint race, top 8 | 10, 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 |
| Bonus | Pole position (Feature) and fastest lap |
There is a bigger prize than the trophy. To race in Formula 1 a driver needs an FIA superlicence, which requires 40 licence points earned over three seasons. Winning the Formula 2 title is worth the full 40 on its own. In other words, the F2 champion clears the licence hurdle in a single year.
Where Formula 2 leads
Formula 2 is the main road into Formula 1. Recent champions read like a current F1 grid: Charles Leclerc, George Russell, Oscar Piastri and others all won F2 before stepping up. A strong F2 season, even without the title, puts a driver squarely on the radar of F1 teams and their junior programmes.
That is what makes the championship worth following. The drivers fighting at the front of Formula 2 now are, in many cases, the Formula 1 grid of a few years from now.