My 2026 FIA Formula 2 Predictions
- Linus O'Howell
- 1 day ago
- 12 min read
We’re back, right?! If you’ve been here for a while, you would know that I always start the 2026 Motorsport Season off by making my predictions for the 2026 FIA Formula 2 Championship! I did pretty terribly with these predictions last year, and it’s definitely fair to say that my Champions curse continues (especially in this series)! However, these are always fun to do, so let’s start off with P22!
P22: Cian Shields
Cian Shields is back for another year in FIA Formula 2! The 20-year-old British racing driver is driving for AIX Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish was second in the 2023 Euroformula Open Championship! When it comes to Formula 2, Cian has driven in one full season, where he finished 24th (last of the full-time drivers)! Since the start of 2024, Cian Shields hasn’t scored a single point in either Formula 3 or Formula 2, so I think that tells you everything you need to know about why I’ve got Shields to finish last again (for the third-straight year)!
P21: John Bennett
John Bennett has switched teams for his sophomore season! The 22-year-old British racing driver is driving for Trident in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finishes came when he finished Runner-up in both the 2021 Ginetta GT5 Challenge and the 2024 GB3 Championship! When it comes to Formula 2, John has driven in 31 Races, scoring 5 points, whilst his highest Championship finish was 22nd last year! The problem for me is that John Bennett only scored 1-point last season with VAR, and Trident are notoriously known for being pretty awful in F2, hence why I’m struggling to see Bennett even score a single point in 2026!
P20: Emerson Fittipaldi Jr.
Yes, there are more of them as Emerson Fittipaldi Jr. takes a big step up to the second tier of Motorsport! The 18-year-old Brazilian racing driver is driving for AIX Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish came when he finished third in the 2021 F4 Danish Championship! It’s worth noting that Emerson didn’t even compete in Formula 3, with the Brazilian taking a bigger step up straight from the Formula Regional level! Ultimately, it’s really hard to predict Emerson Fittipaldi Jr.’s ability, especially as he did worse in his second Eurocup-3 campaign than in his first one! AIX have delivered in the past when Joshua Durksen stepped up from FR, and that’s actually the reason why I have Fittipaldi to beat his teammate!
P19: Laurens van Hoepen
After appearing in the final three weekends of the 2025 season, Laurens van Hoepen is set for his first full campaign in Formula 2! The 20-year-old Dutch racing driver is driving for Trident in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish was third in the 2021 Ultimate Cup Series (F3 Regional)! In his two years in Formula 3, Laurens achieved 5 Podiums, with his highest Championship finish being 12th last year! Going off that and the fact that Trident are so poor, I can’t see Laurens van Hoepen achieving much this year!
P18: Nicolas Varrone
After years in Sportscar Racing, Nicolas Varrone is back driving single-seaters! The 25-year-old Argentine racing driver is driving for Van Amersfoort Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finishes came when he won both the 2018 V de V Challenge Monoplace Title and the 2023 World Endurance Championship – LMGTE Am Class! When drivers move across from sports cars to single-seaters, it can be incredibly hard to know how they’re going to get on! If Nicolas Varrone can adapt quickly, he’ll do better than this, but for now, I can’t put him higher than his teammate!
P17: Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak
8 years after Alex Albon, Thailand have a new driver to root for in the second tier of motorsport as Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak steps up to Formula 2! The 20-year-old Thai racing driver is driving for ART Grand Prix in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish was 5th in the 2021 Formula 4 UAE Championship! The problem for me with Tasanapol is that even though he won 3 Races in Formula 3 last year, he wasn’t close to his two teammates, and I’m not convinced that Inthraphuvasak is going to be good enough to compete on a high level in F2!
P16: Kush Maini
Kush Maini is back for his 4th year in Formula 2! The 25-year-old Indian racing driver is driving for ART Grand Prix in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish was second in the 2020 BRDC British Formula 3 Championship! Maini is also currently a member of the Alpine Academy! When it comes to Formula 2, Kush has achieved 2 Wins in 3 seasons, with his highest Championship finish being P11 in 2023! It feels like Kush Maini has gone backwards in every season he’s competed in in Formula 2, and with him now driving for a worse team in ART, I don’t see things going that great for Maini again!
P15: Oliver Goethe
Oliver Goethe returns to Formula 2 without Red Bull backing! The 21-year-old German, Danish, and British racing driver is driving for MP Motorsport in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish came when he won the 2022 Euroformula Open Championship! When it comes to Formula 2, Oliver has scored 49 points in 33 Races, with his highest Championship finish being 15th last year! I always feel like when a junior team gets rid of a driver, that’s quite telling! I don’t feel like Goethe is a poor driver, but he’s only won 2 Races since his Euroformula Open Title-winning campaign, so I don’t expect him to finish that high up!
P14: Rafael Villagomez
After finding some form from out of nowhere last year, Rafael Villagomez continues his long-term partnership with VAR! The 24-year-old Mexican racing driver is driving for Van Amersfoort Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish was 6th in the 2020 French F4 Championship! When it comes to Formula 2, Rafael has competed in 2 full seasons, scoring 2 Podiums, and his highest Championship finish was 14th last year! I have to say, I didn’t ever expect Rafael Villagomez to perform “as well” as he did in F2 last year, and as a result of that, I’m being fair by keeping the Mexican in the same place as he finished last year!
P13: Martinius Stenshorne
After competing in the final three weekends of 2025, Martinius Stenshorne is well prepared for his first full season in Formula 2! The 20-year-old Norwegian racing driver is driving for Rodin Motorsport in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish was second in the 2023 Formula Regional European Championship (behind Andrea Kimi Antonelli)! Martinius achieved 3 wins across his two years in Formula 3, with a 5th-placed overall finish last year being a pretty decent result! However, Martinius Stenshorne has since been dropped by McLaren, so I’m sticking him well in the midfield for now!
P12: Ritomo Miyata
It feels like now or never for Ritomo Miyata! The 26-year-old Japanese racing driver is driving for Hitech TGR in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finishes came when he won the 2016 and 2017 Japanese F4 Championships, the 2020 Super Formula Lights Title, and the 2023 Super Formula and Super GT Championships! When it comes to Formula 2, Ritomo has driven in 2 seasons, scoring just 1 Podium, and his highest Championship finish was 17th last year! Ritomo Miyata is a prime example of a driver who has a lot of talent but just hasn’t been able to adapt to Formula 2 machinery! I am hopeful that Miyata will improve this year based on Hitech’s connection to TGR, but I can’t fall into the trap again by putting him any higher!
P11: Sebastian Montoya
Sebastian Montoya remains with Prema for his second year in Formula 2! The 20-year-old Colombian and American racing driver is driving for Prema Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish was 4th in the 2021 Italian F4 Championship (a series that was won by Oliver Bearman)! When it comes to Formula 2, Sebastian achieved 3 Podiums in his maiden season, finishing 12th in the standings! In fairness to Sebastian Montoya, he did a lot better in F2 last year than I expected, and that sort of goes in hand with him being signed to Fernando Alonso’s A14 Management Team! I’m honestly not convinced that Prema are going to be any better this year, but it’s not impossible that Montoya doesn’t beat his new teammate!
P10: Mari Boya
Mari Boya steps up to Formula 2 with his first full year of Aston Martin backing! The 21-year-old Spanish racing driver is driving for Prema Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish was second in both the 2020 F4 Spanish and 2023 Eurocup-3 Championships! Boya is also currently a member of the Aston Martin Driver Development Programme! After two difficult years in Formula 3, Mari stepped up in his final year in the category, finishing third in the Championship! Mari Boya has had a decent junior career up to this point, and there are reasons to believe he’ll do well! However, it did take a couple of years for Boya to perform in F3, and like I said before, Prema’s ability has caused an uncertainty that sees me be unable to place the young Spaniard any higher!
P9: Noel Leon
Noel Leon enters Formula 2 as one of the hardest drivers to predict in the entire field! The 21-year-old Mexican racing driver is driving for Campos Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finishes came when he won the 2019-20 NACAM Formula 4 Championship, the 2021 Formula 4 United States and NASCAR Challenge Series – Mexico Titles, as well as the 2023 Euroformula Open Championship! In his two years in Formula 3, Noel scored the most points of any VAR driver in F3 history in 2024, but 2025 would prove to be a bit of a disaster as he finished just 17th (in a woeful Prema)! There are definitely a couple of blips on the resume of Noel Leon, but there are also a lot of reasons to believe that this guy has a lot of talent! Yes, last year was a disaster (I literally picked him to win the Title), but it’s fair to say that Leon has bounced back from disappointing results in the past! Personally, I can’t put Noel super high because of last year (as we can’t forget that he was beaten by his Rookie teammate), but I think Campos will be the right fit for the Mexican to bounce back in some way!
P8: Roman Bilinski
After a strong couple of years, Roman Bilinski is more than ready to thrive in FIA Formula 2! The 21-year-old Polish and British racing driver is driving for DAMS Lucas Oil in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish came when he won the 2024 Formula Regional Oceania Championship (a series previously won by the likes of Mitch Evans, Nick Cassidy, Lance Stroll, and Lando Norris)! Now, whilst 11th in your one and only F3 season may not look amazing on paper, Roman did achieve that whilst driving for Rodin, a team that’s never had a driver finish inside the Top 10 of an F3 Championship (dating back to their days as Carlin)! I was impressed with Roman Bilinski beating both of his teammates last season, and whilst I don’t think that will happen this year, Podiums will come for the popular young man!
P7: Nikola Tsolov
Nikola Tsolov has a big opportunity in front of him! The 19-year-old Bulgarian racing driver is driving for Campos Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish came when he won the 2022 F4 Spanish Championship (by 113 points)! Tsolov is also currently a member of the Red Bull Junior Programme! In his three years in Formula 3, Nikola struggled to begin with, but he found enough performance in his final year to end up as the series’ runner-up! The thing for me with Nikola Tsolov is I went all out with him in 2023, and that aged terribly! However, Tsolov has shown he’s very quick, winning 5 Races across his time in F3, and I think a great year for Nikola could result in him having a strong shot of making it into Formula 1 within the next two years!
P6: Colton Herta
Colton Herta: the biggest unknown heading into the 2026 Formula 2 Season! The 25-year-old American racing driver is driving for Hitech TGR in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish came when he won the 2013 Pacific Formula F1600 Championship (at the age of 13)! Colton is also a runner-up in both Spanish Formula 3 (2016) and Indy Lights (2018), whilst he’s spent the last 7 years competing in IndyCar! Now, Herta did pretty well, becoming the youngest Race winner in the series’ history, whilst his best Championship finish was second in 2024! However, Herta’s new teammate Ritomo Miyata is a prime example of how just because you’re strong on one side of the world, it doesn’t mean you’ll be able to adapt on another! By all accounts, Colton Herta looks set to drive for Cadillac in the future, as long as he performs well enough in Formula 2! For me, it’s too risky to predict Herta to fight for the Title, but I still expect Colton to do well!
P5: Gabriele Mini
Gabriele Mini switches teams in a year where he has a lot to prove! The 20-year-old Italian racing driver is driving for MP Motorsport in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish came when he won the 2020 Italian F4 Championship! Mini is also currently a member of the Alpine Academy! When it comes to Formula 2, Gabriele struggled in his first season, finishing just 13th in the standings (and more importantly, behind his Prema teammate)! The fact that things didn’t go well for Gabriele Mini last year is why I have him in 5th, because otherwise, I’d have him right in Championship contention! Gabriele has proven in both FRECA and Formula 3 that he massively steps up his game in his second season in a series, and this feels like a year where Mini is driving to earn his way into Formula 1!
P4: Dino Beganovic
Dino Beganovic returns to DAMS after a year at Hitech! The 22-year-old Swedish and Bosnian racing driver is driving for DAMS Lucas Oil in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish came when he won the 2022 Formula Regional European Championship! Beganovic is also currently a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy! When it comes to Formula 2, Dino has achieved 1 Win and 5 Podiums across 31 Races, with him finishing 7th in last year’s standings! Dino Beganovic is a quick driver, and I have reason to believe that his reuniting with DAMS will be a good move for both parties! Whilst Dino may have finished 7th in F2 last year, only one of those drivers who finished above him is still on the grid this year, meaning that the expectations should be for Beganovic to climb up the ranks in 2026!
P3: Joshua Durksen
It might have taken me a little while, but I am fully behind the Joshua Durksen hype train! The 22-year-old Paraguayan racing driver is driving for Invicta Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish was second in the 2019 Formula 4 UAE Championship! Durksen is also currently a member of the Mercedes Junior Team, having signed up to be one of their Development Drivers just last week! When it comes to Formula 2, Durksen has driven 2 seasons in the series, winning 4 Races, and his highest Championship finish was 9th last year! The thing with Joshua Durksen is that he’s been competing the last two years at a pretty poor AIX Racing team, and he’s achieved great success with them! In a similar way to Richard Verschoor last year, I expect Joshua to thrive at a top team moving forward, with many more wins to come! However, like I did with Verschoor last year, I can’t quite put Durksen to win it all!
P2: Alex Dunne
There’s a seat in Formula 1 in the future of Alex Dunne; all he has to do is nail 2026! The 20-year-old Irish racing driver is driving for Rodin Motorsport in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finish came when he won the 2022 F4 British Championship (in dominant fashion, too)! When it comes to Formula 2, Dunne achieved a lot of success in his first year in the series, with 2 Wins and 8 Podiums being enough to propel him to 5th in the Championship! I think last year proved that Alex Dunne’s year in Formula 3 was just a one-off, and that this guy is extremely talented! Yes, Alex has a lot of crashes and mistakes that he needs to iron out, but he’s not the first young gun we’ve had that very same conversation about! At the end of the day, Dunne is super quick, and he’s definitely a contender to win F2 this year!
P1: Rafael Camara
Just like I did in Formula 3 a year ago, I’m backing Rafael Camara to end the year as the 2026 FIA Formula 2 Champion! The 20-year-old Brazilian racing driver is driving for Invicta Racing in 2026, and his highest-ever Championship finishes came when he won both the 2024 Formula Regional European and the 2025 FIA Formula 3 Championships! Camara is also currently a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy! Rafael Camara is a record breaker in both FRECA and F3, and all the signs point to him being the one to beat in F2! See, Invicta have won each of the last two Drivers’ Championships in this category, with both Gabriel Bortoleto and Leonardo Fornaroli stepping up from F3 Championship-winning campaigns with Trident to win with Invicta in F2! Wouldn’t you know it, Rafael won F3 last year at Trident! The only concern that I have for Camara is the fact that my F2 Champions curse is pretty damn strong, but other than that, I feel like the young Brazilian is destined for Formula 1 greatness!
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