Invicta Racing’s Joshua Dürksen enjoyed a strong Qualifying session at the 2026 F2 Barcelona-Catalunya round, finishing P2 to secure a front-row lockout for the team in Sunday’s Feature Race. However, post-session, he was handed a five-place grid penalty for both races this weekend due to a yellow flag infringement. The Paraguayan driver will start both races further down the field.
Speaking in the post-Qualifying press conference, attended by Pit Debrief, the Invicta driver reflected on his session, noting that he was pleased with how smoothly and cleanly it had gone.
He said: “Well, yeah, I mean, it was quite a good quali session. The car, for sure, felt very good. I think this helps a lot just to get a clean lap in, a good lap in. As Rafa [Câmara] said, the lap you have to do it on the first lap.”
“After that, the tyres are out of their window and they start to struggle for the second lap. But, to be honest, I think we had quite a clean Quali session. Everything went smooth, so I’m quite happy with that.”
Focus shifts to converting Qualifying performance into results
On an abrasive circuit like the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, tyre management over a push lap was crucial. When asked about his approach to each lap, knowing how important it is to nail the first attempt, Dürksen said: “Well, I mean, to be honest, I have always the same mentality. I just try to do my best on every single lap I do, every single corner. So, it doesn’t really change a lot.”
“And, anyways, all of us, we know very well Barcelona. So, for sure, that gives us a boost of confidence in knowing that you know the track, you know how the car should feel. And if you just replicate that feeling, then everything is going to be all right.”
Although luck and pace have not necessarily been on his side in recent rounds, he believes that this weekend offers an opportunity for redemption and a chance to recover the points they have lost over the past few rounds.
The Paraguayan driver said: “For sure, a very good chance for us. I think we were quite unlucky the last few rounds where we had a very good pace, a lot of potential, but we just didn’t manage to convert it into results. So, for sure, with this qualifying and now in Barcelona, we have a very good opportunity to get back those points that we deserve.”
Feeling “strong” and “confident” with Invicta Racing
While the last two weekends have proven difficult for Invicta Racing and their drivers, he belives the pace and opportunities have been there, but the team has not been able to capitalise on them.
“Yeah, for sure, I think we’re at a lot of pace along these previous race weekends. As you said, we just didn’t capitalise it. The pace was there. The opportunities were there. We just didn’t maximise it.”
He added: “So, for sure, this weekend is going to be very important. Now that we’re starting one-two, for sure [before grid penalty was handed], we have very big opportunities to grab a lot of points, especially those that we lost on the previous weekends.”
Although Dürksen will now start both races further down the grid, he will be aiming to score as many points as possible, confident in the strength of his team and the momentum behind them.
“And as Rafa [Câmara] said, I mean, the focus is on the job, not really on the results. As long as we do a good job, the results will come by themselves. And we feel strong. We feel confident. We’ve got a very good team around us. We’re working very well together. And I think that’s the most important.”
Executing the perfect Qualifying lap
“I won’t tell my secret, but nah, I’m kidding.”, he joked.
Explaining what goes through a driver’s mind during a Qualifying lap around Barcelona, the 22 year-old said that focusing purely on the driving rather than external factors is the most important.
“It’s very simple. It’s just really to focus on the driving. I mean, all of these external thoughts are useless because they don’t help you in performance. So it’s just focusing on the driving, focusing, as Alex [Dunne] said, breaking points, apexes, just making sure you’re making the correct driving style.”
“And as long as you do that, then everything should be okay. Sounds simple, yeah. It’s not that easy.”
Dürksen: “There’s really a lot of adaptation in the moment”
“No idea, but too many.”, the Invicta driver said when asked how many laps he thinks he has completed around the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Echoing similar sentiments to Rodin Motorsport’s Alex Dunne, he explained that drivers’ extensive experience at the circuit always helps when they return. However, while preparation is key, the 22 year-old added that it often comes down to adapting quickly in the moment, during a race or a push lap.
“Yeah, I mean, as Alex [Dunne] said, we have so much experience here. We pretty much know what to expect, what we have to do in order to be the most efficient possible with managing the tyres and having a good pace. Again, this experience helps a lot.”
“As Alex said, in other tracks it might get more difficult. But then, of course, you try just to prepare as good as possible. If you have a good simulator, then you can trust a little bit on that as well and see at least some tendencies of what you could expect.”
“Based on that, you go then to the race and you basically need to adapt during the race as well, depending on the track conditions, on your car balance, on whether you’re now in the front with clean air or behind the car. So there’s really a lot of adaptation in the moment.”, Dürksen said.
Finding the right balance
When asked by Pit Debrief about how much performance drivers were able to extract from the tyres before degradation started to set in, and how it affected track limits, he explained: “Yeah, 100%. And that actually starts already in the warm-up lap, even though people don’t see that from the outside, but it’s super easy, especially in this track with hot temperatures, just to actually heat the tyres way too quickly or too much for the start of the push lap.”
“And tyres, ok, they might feel well for the first sector, but then for sector two and sector three, you’re starting to struggle.”
He further explained how finding the right balance in tyre preparation is crucial, as drivers must warm up the tyres enough without overdoing it. Dürksen added that while track limits are generally manageable around Barcelona when confidence and pace are in place, it can become more difficult when pushing to find performance.
“So you actually need to find this balance of warming up enough but not too much so you still have, let’s say, a bit of a longer tyre life during the lap. And with this abrasive track, it’s fundamental because every slide can cost a lot with just temperatures and also a tyre life.”
“And with track limits, for me, it was ok. No issues. Same as Alex [Dunne] said. I mean, if you have it under control, it’s easy. If you don’t feel so comfortable, then it can get a bit tricky. Or if you’re not on the pace and you need to try something to be on the pace, then it can get a bit tricky. But usually it’s all fine for me.”
The 2026 F2 grid return to familiar circuits
As the European leg of the season continues to unfold, drivers return to circuits they know well. After conquering Miami and Montreal—two new tracks that were introduced on the calendar—Dürksen admitted that while returning to familiar venues helps, he also enjoyed the challenges of learning new circuits.
“Yeah, I think for sure that helps a lot. Just by knowing the track. Because you know what you can expect from the track. But at the same time, to be honest, I also quite like to be driving on new tracks. Because you don’t have any previous references. So, it allows you to freely discover the racetrack in a good way.”, he said.
“Because maybe some drivers in one track didn’t have good results. Maybe they have some bad habits. And maybe those bad habits can actually influence negatively.”
“And on the new racetrack, it’s everything new. So, you don’t have any of these kind of things. But usually for me, I feel like I have a very good baseline in all of the tracks. And I feel very confident. And for sure that’s a big benefit.”
