Sami Meguetounif’s debut FIA Formula 2 campaign with Trident proved challenging, as the French driver often pushed beyond the limits and suffered the consequences.
Meguetounif began his single-seater career in 2020 with the French F4 Championship, where he impressed with an overall P4 result. He competed across multiple championships, including the Italian F4 Championship, FRECA, and the Formula Regional Middle East Championship, before moving up to Formula 3 in 2024 with Trident. His debut F3 season saw strong results, with two Feature Race victories and a P8 in the Championship standings. With that, Trident promoted him to F2 the following year.
Meguetounif suffers early setbacks in 2026 F2 season
The opening three rounds of the 2025 F2 season began poorly, with Meguetounif suffering two DNFs and earning no points.
From the start, the Trident driver received a ten-place grid penalty after a rule breach by Trident during pre-season testing while attempting to gauge aero loads. He further suffered in the Sprint Race on Lap 14 after taking a spin on track, resulting in his retirement.
Bahrain saw hope after securing its best 2025 F2 qualifying result of P6. With this result, Meguetounif started the reverse-grid Sprint Race in P4; however, his high position did not last long as he lost nine positions throughout the race. The 21-year-old also wasn’t able to challenge for points in the Feature, as he dropped down to P15.
His misfortune continued in Jeddah, as he had a tire issue beyond his control in the Feature Race, forcing him to suffer his second DNF of the 2025 F2 season.
Flashes of pace
Across Imola, Monaco, and Barcelona, glimpses of his true pace emerge, but mistakes and penalties continue to limit the final outcomes. At Imola, a P15 qualifying result led to a difficult P21 finish in the Sprint. Though later, in the Feature Race, Meguetounif secured his maiden F2 points with a well-controlled recovery drive to P10.
Round 5 in Monaco followed a similar pattern: from a low P20 qualifying position, to an improved P16 Sprint result, to an even better P12 Feature Race. However, the weekend was tarnished by a five-second time penalty, which Meguetounif received for being below the minimum delta time under Safety Car conditions.
In Barcelona, the improving trend in race performance continued. Starting in P18, the French driver finished the Sprint just outside the points in P9 before claiming P12 in the Feature Race.
Stalled progress
As the 2025 F2 season progressed, Meguetounif’s results remained consistent but had no great impact. The Trident driver suffered a large incident on lap 2 of the Austria Sprint after trying to go down the inside of Arvid Lindblad at Turn 3, ultimately causing a crash and rolling over two cars, leaving his car upside down on the track. Despite the scare, Meguetounif persevered to secure his second P10 points finish of the season in the Feature Race.
Silverstone, Spa, and Budapest saw ordinary mid-field results varying from P13 to P18. Though notably, the Spa Sprint featured another DNF beyond his control as his Trident stopped on track.
Final push beyond the limit
Monza was a weekend to forget, as Meguetounif suffered a double DNF. The weekend began well, with his season’s second-best qualifying result of P9, but his tendency to push beyond the limit quickly brought the heaviest consequences of the season.
Meguetounif started the Sprint Race in P2 and attempted to challenge for the lead, but dropped down under pressure. Later, while trying to overtake Alex Dunne, he went off the road, bounced over the chicane at Turn 2, and collided with Dunne. He received a five-second time penalty, which was converted into a three-place grid drop for the Feature as he retired from the Sprint.
The Feature Race offered little redemption as on Lap 14, a small mistake caused him to lock up at the main straight apex and spin off track.
Monza marked the end of Meguetounif’s 2025 F2 campaign, as Trident parted ways with him and teammate Max Esterson.
Meguetounif and Esterson replaced for 2025 F2 Baku Round onwards
After Meguetounif and Esterson’s departures, Trident ran Laurens van Hoepen and Martinius Stenshorne in Baku, before van Hoepen continued alongside James Wharton in Lusail and Yas Island. None of the drivers scored points throughout the three rounds, though van Hoepen will remain with Trident as a full-time F2 driver in 2026.
Season takeaways
Meguetounif ultimately placed 20th in the Drivers’ Standings with two points, while Trident finished last in the Team’s Standings, with all points coming from his efforts.
Overall, his debut 2025 F2 season proved challenging, with struggles in performance and consistency. However, glimpses of raw pace and determination were visible, particularly in his two point-scoring Feature Races at Imola and Austria.
While the 2025 F2 results may not reflect his true potential, the French driver has collected valuable learning experiences as he moves into the 2026 Asian Le Mans Series – LMP2, with Algarve Pro Racing.
