Roman Bilinski prepares for the most significant challenge of his single-seater career as he steps up to the FIA Formula 2 Championship in 2026. The Polish-British driver joins DAMS Lucas Oil after a competitive FIA Formula 3 season and now lines up alongside Dino Beganovic. Having claimed three podium finishes and a Sprint Race victory in F3, Bilinski approaches his 2026 rookie F2 campaign with a structured and measured mindset.
During a pre-season media event attended by Pit Debrief, he discussed his expectations for 2026, highlighting his internal benchmarks while acknowledging the challenge ahead.
A big step and a strong benchmark at DAMS define the 2026 F2 Championship for Bilinski
Despite a promising 2025 F3 rookie campaign with Rodin Motorsport, Bilinski recognises the scale of the step up to F2. He understands that performance demands, race management and competition intensity all rise sharply at this level. As a result, he has set a clear objective: deliver consistent improvement across the season. He also pointed to the benchmark provided by team-mate Dino Beganovic, who returns to DAMS Lucas Oil after a strong 2025 F2 campaign with Hitech TGR.
“I’d say, you know, Formula 2 is a big step. So, you know, Dino’s a fantastic driver, so I’ve got possibly one of the best benchmarks, you could say, on the grid. So, you know, being there or thereabouts with Dino, just improving, improving every race, that’s the main goal.”
He then outlined how he plans to approach each race weekend, committing to extracting the maximum from every session while placing trust in the team’s structure and experience to guide his development.
“You know, I go into every weekend just looking to do the best job possible, and we’ll see where we are at the end of the championship. And we have a fantastic team as well, DAMS. So, yeah, very excited.”
Bilinski balancing ambition with realism as he takes on 2026 F2 campaign with DAMS
However, although Bilinski enters his rookie F2 season with a development-focused mindset, he does not intend to treat the year as a holding exercise. When asked by Pit Debrief about his competitive expectations, he stated that he believes that can compete towards the front, despite the fierce competition throughout the field.
“No, I think we can fight for sure. It’s not going to be easy. As Dino said, the next step is Formula 1, so this is probably as competitive as it gets.”
Though he acknowledged the depth of talent within F2, he remains confident in the potential of the DAMS package, stressing the “fantastic” team environment and strong role model in teammate Beganovic.
“So, for sure, it’s not going to be easy, but like I said before, I’m with a fantastic team. I can learn a lot from Dino. He’s got a lot of experience in F3 and also Formula 2, also being a Ferrari junior driver, there’s lots to learn off him, which I’ve been doing in testing. So, yeah, I think we can fight somewhat at the front, but for sure, it’s not going to be easy, and we have to build step by step.”
Adapting to a different machine as focus turns to Melbourne
Despite his confidence in a productive 2026 F2 season, Bilinski acknowledged that he faces a significant technical adjustment, as the F2 car differs markedly from its F3 counterpart. In particular, he highlighted the challenge of managing different tyre compounds over a race weekend, especially given the variations in grip levels. Nevertheless, he believes that both he and DAMS have been doing “a good job” in preparing for the season ahead.
“Yeah, for sure, it’s a completely different car to what I’m used to. We now have to manage different compounds in the same weekend. So, in testing, we have the hard and soft, which is something new for me, to make that big of a step in the same weekend.
“In terms of grip, we’re quite a lot faster on the straights, but not so much in the corners. So you have to adapt your driving a little bit. So, yeah, it’s tricky, to be honest, but I think it’s been going well. It’s testing, so it’s difficult to see where everyone stands, but I think we’re doing a good job.”
Despite his reluctance to draw firm conclusions from pre-season testing, Bilinski believes DAMS is in a strong position heading into the opening round of the 2026 F2 season in Melbourne. After spending three days in Barcelona focusing on their own development and preparation, rather than benchmarking themselves against their rivals, he is hopeful their approach will pay dividends.
“In the last few days, we’ve just been focusing on ourselves, doing our own thing, and hopefully in Melbourne that can pay off with some good results.”
Building momentum in a competitive field
As Bilinski begins his rookie campaign in the 2026 F2 Championship, he sets out a clear framework: measure against a strong internal benchmark, adapt to the demands of a faster and more complex car, and improve race by race.
With DAMS Lucas Oil providing stability and Beganovic offering experience, Bilinski approaches 2026 determined to build his season step by step in one of motorsport’s most competitive categories.
