Rodin Motorsport driver Alex Dunne bounced back from a very disappointing Feature Race in Melbourne to seal P3 in the F2 Miami GP Sprint contest.
Starting P7 as the top 10 was reversed, the 20-year-old cleared Goethe and Minì at the start.
From there he drove a very measured race. Sitting in P5 for most of it, he passed Varrone on lap 15 and Dürksen four laps later to take 3rd.
Asked about his day in the post-Sprint press conference attended by Pit Debrief and other media outlets, the Irishman was pretty happy with a podium. Just like in the Albert Park Sprint, the Alpine Junior made up spots late in the day.
“Yeah, happy enough. No, it was good.
“It was pretty much a carbon copy of what I did in Melbourne. It was pretty much the exact same race.
“The pace was really strong. I think particularly the last five to six laps, when I started pushing more and more, the pace was really good.
“So overall, I’m happy.”
Tyre degradation lower than expected in F2 Sprint Race at Miami GP
Coming into the weekend, very high tyre wear was expected due to the heat and humidity Miami can provide. However, Alex Dunne was left surprised at how low it was in the Miami GP F2 Sprint.
Nonetheless, he did a very good job on looking after his tyres. After clearing Varrone and Dürksen who had been embroiled in a fierce battle with Tsolov and van Hoepen in the first part of the race, he closed a 3s gap to the Bulgarian and Dutch drivers by the end.
“The tyre deg was definitely lower than I expected. I think with how hot it was, I expected it to be quite a bit higher.
“I was managing quite a bit behind everyone at the beginning of the race, but I think nothing more than you normally would.
“At the beginning, it was a bit of a DRS train, so I knew getting past was going to be quite difficult. So I kind of just sat there and let it all unfold in front of me.
“Then when I had the opportunity to pass them, I started pushing a bit more, but I wasn’t saving like crazy at the beginning.”
With F2 racing in Miami for the first time, the Sprint gave all drivers and teams an opportunity to learn many things.
“I think it’s very useful for set-up and for the team and for myself to get an understanding of tomorrow.
“But I think overall it wasn’t too difficult. I think a lot of the stuff that happened is similar to what I expected.”
Alex Dunne on the thrilling F2 Miami GP fight for the win
With Nikola Tsolov and Laurens van Hoepen consistently trading the lead throughout the Sprint, it was an incredible spectacle for everyone watching. Eventually the Bulgarian got by on the exit of turn 17 on the final lap, with Dunne almost joining in and stealing it.
While he was a spectator like the rest of the world, he enjoyed what he saw and praised them for keeping it clean and respectful.
“I wasn’t necessarily involved in the fight, but it was pretty cool to watch, to be honest.
“The last five laps of the race for me were like qualifying laps, trying to catch up. At the same time, I was watching them battle it out.
“I think a couple of times I was thinking, ‘surely they’re going to crash at some point because they were so close to each other.’
“No, I think it was great to watch. It’s very, very cool. It’s not something you see very often. I think a lot of times when you have hard battles like this, it either ends up in tears or the other driver manages to pull a gap.
“I think it shows that this track provides great racing, which is great to see.
“Also, these two were very respectful with each other. I think overall the racing was great.”
The difficulties with DRS
Asked by Pit Debrief how difficult it is to defend when the DRS is so powerful, Alex Dunne explained the importance of getting a move done and bolting away if you are the car on the attack.
Having passed Joshua Dürksen for P3 on lap 19, he immediately pulled out over a second through Sector 1 on the next tour. It allowed him to fully focus on hauling the top 2 in.
“I think it’s difficult to manage, to be honest.
“If you approach someone with such a big overspeed, there’s not really a whole lot you can do. If you get past someone, you just have to try and maximise the next couple of corners and build as big of a gap as you can.
“In my case, tomorrow I’m starting a little bit further back because of the grid penalty, so I think probably there’ll be a little bit more of a DRS train, so I don’t think there’s going to be a whole lot I can do, but I’ll try my best.”
Physical test
On the toughest thing about the race, the County Offaly driver explained how the heat hits hard following the event.
“Yeah, I think for me, at least in comparison to these two, my race was definitely a little bit more relaxed. I did the majority of the race driving around by myself.
“I think, luckily, with the pace being strong, I was never really in a position where I had to worry about defending; I had to defend for the first two or three laps, and then for quite a while, I was just driving around by myself, even without DRS.
“So I think for me, it was definitely more on the relaxed side, but physically it was quite tough. I think the last three laps, when I was pushing quite hard to catch them two, I think with the heat and everything, it was quite tough.
“And then, similar to Nikola on the in-lap, and then when I got out of the car, when the heat hits you, it was really, really difficult.
“So I think in general, my race was pretty relaxed, but the heat was probably the most difficult thing to deal with.”
Alex Dunne wants to keep things the way they are
Following a really strong 2025 for this driver and team combination, it has continued into 2026. Alongside that, Martinius Stenshorne is getting right in the mix in his first full season in F2 and with Rodin Motorsport.
While Alex Dunne made an error of judgement at Albert Park and took them both out of the Feature Race as they battled for P1, the Irish and Norweigan drivers have been in the top 4 in both qualifying sessions this year. Indeed, the two-time F2 winner should have taken pole on the timesheets in Miami but made a mistake in turn 17 in qualifying by locking up.
The 20-year-old has finished P3 in both Sprint Races so far in 2026.
Replying to a question from Pit Debrief aftwe the F2 Miami GP Sprint, Dunne is focusing on chipping away at things as he looks to fight for the title in 2026.
“I think just keep doing what I’m doing.
“I don’t think we necessarily need to keep up with the frontrunners. Because I think we are one of the frontrunners at the minute.
“In Melbourne we didn’t quite score the points we wanted to in the feature race but that was my own fault.
“I think we’re in a very good place. The pace has always been very strong.
“In Melbourne and here we were fighting for pole and probably should have been on pole on Friday without a mistake on the last lap, to be honest.
“I don’t think we need to focus on anything in particular or change what we’re doing because the pace is really strong. I think we just need to keep on kind of chipping away at it.”
The challenge ahead for Alex Dunne in the F2 Miami GP Feature Race after good Sprint
Carrying his five-place grid penalty into it following the crash with Stenshorne in Melbourne, the Irish driver starts P9 later today.
There is a strong possibility of heavy rain and thunderstorms through Sunday in Miami, hence the decision to move the F2 and F1 races forward by multiple hours. At Silverstone last year, he finished P2, and he was the winner on the road at Spa — before a penalty — in races with wet conditions.
“Well, I mean, for me it doesn’t change a whole lot, but so far in the wet races that we’ve had, I finished first and second, from last year that is. So, I’d be pretty happy if it’s wet.
“I quite like the rain, starting from P9, maybe make it a bit more interesting as well.
“I’m not too fussed. I think the pace in the dry is good as well. But if it’s wet, then I’ll be happy with that as well.”
A podium?
Following his strong showing in the 2026 F2 Miami GP Sprint Race, Alex Dunne believes a podium is not completely out of the question.
What will be key in the early laps is looking after the fragile super soft tyre. Most are expected to start on it, but some drivers will have to wait until lap 7 to pit as the leading car from each team can box a tour earlier. As Martinius Stenshorne starts six spots ahead, it’s very likely the Norwegian boxes first.
“Yeah, I definitely don’t think a podium or a win is outrageous to think it’s possible. Of course, it’s going to be very difficult, but I think it’s definitely doable.
“I think a lot of the race is going to be down to the super soft stint, to be honest. Martinius is starting third, so he’ll have priority of who gets to pit first, which means I’ll have to go a lap longer, which is going to make things slightly difficult. Or more difficult, at least.
“So I think how well I can manage the super soft stint is going to play a big part into how the rest of my race goes. But if I can do that well, then I’d say we’re in with a good shot.”
