Martinius Stenshorne won the 2026 F2 Canadian GP Feature Race after a dominant drive through chaotic conditions, with Alex Dunne and Gabriele Minì completing the podium.
Noel León had claimed Sprint Race victory on Saturday in a chaotic contest featuring multiple Safety Cars and a wave of penalties. The result set up an intriguing Feature Race, with several frontrunners carrying momentum and others looking to bounce back.
Laurens van Hoepen started from pole position after a dramatic Qualifying session that saw two red flags and post-session penalties reshape the grid. Nikola Tsolov joined him on the front row, with Martinius Stenshorne and John Bennett behind. Câmara and Dunne, both carrying three-place grid penalties for impeding, started fifth and sixth. Sprint Race winner Noel León lined up seventh, while Gabriele Minì started ninth. Inthraphuvasak did not take part following a medical decision after his Qualifying crash.
Lights out for the F2 Canadian GP Feature Race
Nikola Tsolov made the better launch from the front row and swept around the outside of van Hoepen into Turn 1 to grab the lead. Van Hoepen responded immediately, retaking first place through the opening chicane in an intense wheel-to-wheel fight. Behind them, Stenshorne held third while Bennett dropped back under pressure from Villagómez.
Further down the order, drivers struggled for grip as the opening laps became increasingly tense. Dürksen moved ahead of León, while Câmara attacked Minì in a tight midfield battle as the field searched for confidence in the tricky conditions.
Van Hoepen leads the 2026 F2 Canadian GP Feature Race before crashing
Tsolov remained close behind van Hoepen during the early stages, using DRS to stay within range of the race leader as the fight for the lead intensified.
The fight ended dramatically on Lap 5 when van Hoepen clipped the kerb exiting the final chicane and crashed heavily into the Wall of Champions. The Dutchman suffered major front-end damage and retired from the race, bringing out the Safety Car just before the mandatory pit window opened.
Van Hoepen exited the car unharmed, but his first F2 pole position ended in disappointment after leading strongly in the opening phase.
Pit stops and retirements shake up the order
With the safety car deployed and the mandatory pit window now open, teams faced a critical strategic decision as rain continued to threaten. Most of the field stayed out initially, waiting to assess the conditions.
A second cafety car was required shortly after when Emmerson Fittipaldi Jr., who had pitted for a nose change and fresh tyres, lost control at Turn 1 on his out lap and went straight into the barrier. This time, nearly the entire field flooded into the pit lane to complete their mandatory tyre changes. Bilinski, Minì, and Boya, who had started on the harder compound, stayed out, as did Herta, who gambled on an alternative strategy.
Drama unfolded in the pit lane as Bennett retired following contact with Villagómez during the busy round of stops. Invicta’s decision to double-stack Dürksen and Câmara also created complications, with contact in the pit lane costing Dürksen significant time and track position. Tsolov retained the effective race lead ahead of Villagómez and Stenshorne as the field shook out.
Bilinski leads the F2 Canadian GP Feature Race after the Safety Car restart
Bilinski produced an excellent safety var restart, breaking clear immediately as the drivers behind struggled to generate temperature in their cold tyres. He quickly built a gap of over two seconds ahead of Herta, while Stenshorne set the fastest laps of the race and closed rapidly on those ahead.
The race swung dramatically when Tsolov, charging hard through the final chicane, was struck from behind by Maini in the braking zone and sent into a spin. The championship contender tumbled out of the top ten, handing a significant blow to his title ambitions. Stenshorne then used DRS to sweep past Herta and into the lead on the road.
Villagómez’s race also ended shortly after when contact with Câmara left him with front-left suspension damage, bringing out a virtual safety car. Bilinski ran wide at the hairpin on the restart and Stenshorne moved through to lead the race on track as well, building a gap of over two seconds with the race past its halfway point.
Minì, Dunne, and Beganovic battle through the field
With Stenshorne pulling clear at the front, the fight behind intensified. Beganovic surged through the order, passing Herta and then Bilinski to move into an effective podium position. Minì and Dunne, meanwhile, engaged in a fierce battle behind, repeatedly exchanging positions using DRS down the long straights.
Further drama followed as Câmara spun out after an ambitious move on Bilinski at Turn 2, dropping him out of contention and earning a five-second penalty. Under the revised regulations, that penalty had to be served in the current race, and Invicta sent Câmara back out to serve it on track. Beganovic’s impressive charge then came to a cruel end when a mechanical issue, which had been producing smoke from the rear of his car for several laps, finally became terminal and forced him to pull over. It was a devastating conclusion to what had been one of the drives of the race, ending his chances of a podium finish.
Safety car resets the fight for victory at the 2026 F2 Canadian GP Feature Race
Beganovic’s retirement erased Stenshorne’s advantage and triggered another Safety Car, transforming the race into a sprint to the finish. Bilinski, Minì, Herta, Boya, and León all dived into the pit lane for fresh super soft tyres, dramatically reshuffling the order. Boyer also pitted but immediately lost control on cold tyres exiting the pit lane and went straight into the barrier, mirroring Fittipaldi’s earlier incident and ending his race on the spot. León also picked up a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane during the stops, adding further difficulty to his afternoon.
Stenshorne retained the lead with Dunne behind him, while Minì rejoined in third. Tsolov, who had fought back strongly after being spun out by Maini, also moved back up the order with fresh tyres.
Stenshorne holds on to win the 2026 F2 Canadian GP Feature Race
At the restart, Stenshorne pulled away cleanly and broke the DRS gap to Dunne within the opening lap, building a lead of more than a second. Dunne and Minì, both on fresh super softs, remained close behind but could not find a way through. Further back, Maini was finally forced to pit for his mandatory stop under pressure, while Tsolov continued his recovery drive through the order.
With the clock running down, Goethe was involved in a collision with Miyata at the hairpin and retired on the spot, bringing out a final Safety Car with just minutes remaining. The race ended under Safety Car conditions, with Stenshorne taking his first Formula 2 victory and delivering Rodin Motorsport a historic one-two finish. Dunne crossed the line in second, with Minì completing the podium in third. Tsolov recovered to a strong points finish despite his earlier spin, while Montoya climbed from 18th on the grid to sixth by the flag.
