2026 F2 Pre-Season Testing | Barcelona | Câmara the one to beat in day 3

Rafael Câmara ended day 3 of the F2 Barcelona pre-season test on a high note, setting the fastest time of the entire session for Invicta Racing on the final morning. The Brazilian clocked a 1:23.252 to lead the field by a comfortable quarter of a second, with Campos Racing’s Noel León and teammate Nikola Tsolov rounding out the top three. In the afternoon, AIX Racing’s Cian Shields took charge of the timesheets ahead of León and Emerson Fittipaldi.

Morning: Câmara delivers when it counts

Van Amersfoort Racing set the early pace, with Rafael Villagómez and Nico Varrone alternating at the top of the timesheets before Campos entered the fray. León grabbed P1 after dipping into the 1:23s, only for teammate Tsolov to respond swiftly with a 1:23.654 that moved him to the head of the field.

The session hit a disruptive spell as three red flags interrupted proceedings around the hour mark. Varrone triggered the first after beaching his car in the gravel at the final corner. Shortly after, it was Villagómez who ended up off the road at the same turn. A third stoppage followed almost immediately when León pulled to a halt on track, forcing his Campos back to the pit lane.

With just over an hour remaining when running finally resumed, Câmara delivered the standout lap of the entire test. His 1:23.252 gave him a comfortable 0.274-second cushion over León, who pushed hard in the closing stages but could not find the extra time needed to overhaul the Invicta driver. Tsolov remained in third, with Laurens van Hoepen and Gabriele Minì completing the top five. Colton Herta claimed sixth, ahead of Mari Boya, Ritomo Miyata, Dino Beganovic and Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak.

F2 Barcelona Pre-Season Testing Results Morning

Afternoon: Race Runs Dominate as Teams Eye Melbourne

The afternoon session shifted the focus firmly to race simulation, with Hitech and AIX Racing among the first to take to the circuit. Miyata initially led the way before Rodin Motorsport’s Alexander Dunne moved to the top with a 1:29.362, edging Câmara by 0.073 seconds.

ART Grand Prix then made their presence felt, with Kush Maini posting a 1:28.582 to go quickest and lead teammate Inthraphuvasak by 0.291 seconds. Teams largely stuck to long-run programmes for the remainder of the afternoon as they gathered data ahead of the season opener in Melbourne.

Late improvements shuffled the order once more. Shields went fastest for AIX Racing on a 1:26.269, with León slotting in just 0.039 seconds adrift after a late push inside the final 15 minutes. A final red flag came after Van Hoepen stopped on the pit straight, but his car’s recovery proved straightforward and the remaining minutes elapsed without further changes to the order.

Fittipaldi completed the afternoon in third, ahead of Herta, Maini, Miyata, Inthraphuvasak, Boya, Câmara and Van Hoepen to wrap up the final top ten of the test.

F2 Barcelona Pre-Season Testing Results Afternoon