Dino Beganovic bounced back from a challenging weekend in Monza by securing pole position in the first-ever Formula 2 (F2) qualifying session at Madrid.
The DAMS Lucas Oil driver mastered a demanding and heavily disrupted Qualifying session to take his third F2 pole position. Alex Dunne secured second place for Rodin Motorsport, while Invicta Racing’s Rafael Câmara completed the top three.
Beganovic’s achievement came despite limited running earlier in the day, leaving the drivers and teams with little information as they prepared for their first qualifying session around the new circuit. Speaking in the post-Qualifying press conference attended by Pit Debrief, Beganovic discussed the challenges of the Madrid track, the importance of his result after Monza and what to expect from the remainder of the Spanish GP weekend.
Beganovic delighted to make history in Madrid
As the first Formula 2 driver to claim pole position around the new Madrid circuit, Beganovic expressed his satisfaction with the result. The Swede also praised DAMS for responding strongly after a difficult outing in Monza one week earlier.
“Yeah, it feels amazing to do it here in Madrid, to be the first one to do it here in Madrid. We didn’t get many laps in FP, so it was, you know, it put a lot of weight into qualifying to be well prepared for the whole simulator work we did at the factory and so on. So obviously I think we did a very good job. Car was really good today. Dams did a great job to come back very strong after a disappointing weekend last week in Monza, so it feels very good.”
Trust proved crucial after limited practice running
The shortened Free Practice session left teams with limited data before Qualifying. With engineers unable to fully assess the car and drivers still learning the circuit, Beganovic explained that communication and trust within the team became particularly important. Rather than making major changes with little information available, he and his engineer focused on giving him a car he felt comfortable pushing in qualifying.
“I think, I mean, the main thing is having the trust between the engineer and the driver at that point, you know, because you can’t, the engineers can’t read much of that data. Obviously the drivers are still learning and you can’t learn anything from as an engineer perspective. So I think me and my engineer digged a bit into it and in the end we just tried to make me as comfortable as possible going into qualifying and I think we did, yeah, obviously the right thing.”
A demanding first taste of Madrid
Beganovic quickly discovered the challenge posed by Madrid’s new circuit during Free Practice and F2 Qualifying. The combination of its relentless layout, demanding corners and tyre requirements made qualifying particularly intense. He expects those characteristics to provide an equally difficult test across the races, both for the drivers physically and when it comes to managing their tyres.
“Yeah, it’s a crazy track. It brings obviously the heartbeat up very quickly and obviously in a qualifying lap especially. It will also be very tough on the tyres. I think here looking at the races it will be hard on the drivers as well physically. It’s quite tough. So I think we have some exciting races ahead but obviously tomorrow we’ll have to just look at getting the data and focus on Sunday.”
Pole provides a confidence boost after Monza struggles
The Madrid pole after F2 Qualifying also arrived at an important point for Beganovic and DAMS. After struggling for pace during the previous round at Monza, both driver and team responded by working through their problems ahead of the Spanish GP. Asked about the significance of the result for his confidence and his plans for next season, Beganovic stressed that his focus remains on delivering strong performances throughout the remainder of the current campaign.
“Yeah, obviously for my confidence and for the whole team it was super important to get this result today. Like I said before, Monza was very tough for us. We lacked a lot of pace but we digged deep in these couple days and obviously prepared ourselves for this race and we did a good job. So then for next year I’m just trying to do a good job here and the rest of the season. I think I showed quite well what I can do this season and before. So I’m not putting too much thoughts into that at the moment. I’m using the management to do that for me at the moment.”
Simulator preparation leaves few surprises
With Madrid representing a completely new challenge for the F2 field, simulator work played a major role in preparing drivers before arriving at the circuit. Beganovic felt DAMS had prepared well enough that the circuit itself did not present any major surprises. Instead, Free Practice helped answer some of the remaining questions surrounding how aggressively the drivers could approach specific sections of the track.
“Yeah, I mean like Alex [Dunne] said we do a lot of laps on the sim and I think the prep day was very good. Coming here there was no big surprises. It was just question marks about how you can do some certain corners. Obviously the kerb usage in one and the chicane in five and six. So obviously questions but most of them were answered in FP and they were applied for qualy.”
Red flags make banking a lap essential
The interruptions added another dimension to an already difficult Qualifying session. With crashes repeatedly disrupting running, Beganovic and DAMS prioritised setting a competitive time before the closing stages rather than relying solely on a final attempt. Their strategy paid off when another stoppage prevented the field from completing further improvements.
“Yeah, it was tough. I think our sequence today was very good. Obviously we tried to go on the new tyre in the middle of the session and just kind of put a banker lap so we are kind of safe if there’s any other red flag which there was in the end. So I’m very pleased we did that. Then I feel like the track is so tough. I mean all I said to Alex before all the crashes kind of made sense. “
“It was really sketchy with the car and obviously it’s you know for the F2 car here it’s cool to drive here but some of the corners that are flat in F1 or in F3 they are not flat for us and they are really on the limit and obviously when you’re lifting the car is behaving differently and obviously you can really have a big moment. So I think for the races it will be obviously important to stay on track and manage your tyres because you can easily make a mistake, you lose your focus and be in the wall. “
Beganovic embraces the challenge of a new circuit
Madrid marked Beganovic’s second pole position of the 2026 season after he also topped F2 Qualifying at the opening round in Melbourne. After the difficult weekends that followed, the DAMS driver welcomed the opportunity to tackle a completely new circuit, where every driver and team started with limited real-world experience.
“Yeah obviously it’s been a while but yeah we’re coming from a tough weekend in Monza which was really tough for me, really tough on the team but we just stick deep and I always love these kind of challenges you know you come to a new track and everything is kind of reset for everyone for the teams for the drivers and yeah it’s a great challenge so in the end I think we always have to believe in ourselves. We still have obviously the race on on Sunday and Baku and then we have to see what happens but there’s plenty of stuff to improve and to to be on top of but yeah it’s been a roller coaster to get here again.”
Madrid earns a place among Beganovic’s favourite circuits
Pit Debrief asked Beganovic where Madrid ranked among the circuits he has driven and how he expected the two races to unfold following his first official experience of the track. The DAMS driver placed the new venue firmly among his favourites, highlighting the adrenaline produced by the circuit’s relentless nature.
“I think it’s up there. It’s top five definitely. And it was, like Rafa said, you get another type of adrenaline. Not a lot of time between the straights. So yeah it’s fun and hopefully obviously we still need to get some laps in this weekend and hopefully enjoy it even more.”
Driver improvement outweighs track evolution
While F2 Qualifying offered more running around the circuit in Madrid, Beganovic did not feel that changes in the track itself played the defining role between Free Practice and Qualifying. Instead, he pointed towards the drivers continuing to understand the circuit, alongside the switch between tyre compounds and the increased demands placed on the rubber over consecutive laps.
“Yeah I think Alex summed it up pretty well. Obviously track becoming a lot harder than this morning made a big difference and in the end it’s more driver evolution than the track.So it wasn’t a massive difference in my opinion. It was more obviously changing from the hard to the soft and obviously the track being a lot harder on the tires throughout the lap and especially doing consecutive laps. So yeah I expected a bit more actually.”
Sprint Race becomes crucial for gathering data
Limited running throughout Friday also means teams head into the races without the usual amount of information, particularly on the hard tyre. Beganovic therefore expects Saturday’s race to play an important role in building knowledge before the Feature Race. However, with little data available, he believes DAMS must also trust the preparation it completed before arriving in Madrid rather than making unnecessary changes.
“Yeah we see we don’t have a lot of info about the hard tire after FP and we do the soft in qualifying. So like Rafa said tomorrow will be important to understand what the tire is doing what the car is doing and set it up for Sunday’s race. Yeah we lack a lot of data but in the end I think you know I have to trust the work coming into the weekend and you know don’t don’t invent the wheel from there.”
