Nikola Tsolov claimed victory in the 2026 Formula 2 (F2) British GP Sprint Race, finishing ahead of Gabriele Minì in P2 and Rafael Villagómez in P3.
Championship leader Gabriele Minì lined up on pole for the reverse-grid Sprint alongside Hitech’s Ritomo Miyata, while Rafael Villagómez and Joshua Dürksen occupied the second row of the grid.
Villagómez wasted no time getting on the attack, overtaking Miyata into the opening corner. Behind them, Nikola Tsolov made a sensational launch to climb into third, demoting Miyata to fourth ahead of Dürksen. Further back, Roman Bilinski began applying pressure to Kush Maini in the battle for sixth.
The race was neutralised almost immediately after contact between Sebastián Montoya and John Bennett at the final corner forced both drivers into retirement. Montoya pulled his PREMA onto an escape road, while Bennett’s TRIDENT came to a stop near the start/finish straight, bringing out the Safety Car.
Replays suggested the incident began as Montoya took avoiding action to miss Colton Herta. In doing so, Montoya ran onto the gravel, which appeared to compromise Bennett’s visibility. With little time to react, the TRIDENT driver collided with the rear of the PREMA, ending both drivers’ races.
Minì retains the lead on Villagómez at the restart
At the Lap 7 restart, Minì retained the lead ahead of Villagómez, while Tsolov held onto third. Further back, Bilinski looked to challenge Inthraphuvasak, but was unable to find a way through.
There was also contact between Goethe and Shields on the restart, sending the AIX Racing driver into the pit lane. However, he was able to rejoin the race after repairs.
DRS was enabled on Lap 8, with Stenshorne immediately closing in on Câmara and looking to make a move down the Wellington Straight. Meanwhile, León suffered a slight lock-up, allowing Câmara to close onto the rear of the Campos Racing driver and pile on the pressure.
At the front, Tsolov made an impressive move around the outside of Villagómez at Stowe to take second place. With clean air ahead, the Red Bull Junior immediately set his sights on championship rival Minì for the race lead.
Elsewhere, Stenshorne was handed a 10-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage while battling Câmara.
Further ahead, Miyata continued to struggle for pace and began slipping backwards. Inthraphuvasak capitalised on Lap 11, overtaking the Hitech driver at Stowe.
Bilinski challenging Miyata at the halfway point of the Sprint Race
On Lap 12 of the F2 British GP Sprint Race, Bilinski attempted to pass Miyata at Brooklands, but the Hitech driver defended well to keep the DAMS Lucas Oil driver behind.
Bilinski finally found a way past Miyata on Lap 14 at Brooklands, with Beganovic immediately following him through. Dunne also capitalised on the Hitech driver’s lack of pace, dropping Miyata to 10th.
At the front, Tsolov closed to within DRS range of Minì, piling the pressure onto the championship leader in the fight for victory.
On Lap 15, Maini produced a bold move around the outside of Dürksen at Brooklands to claim fourth position.
A lap later, Tsolov launched his first serious attack for the lead, but Minì covered the inside and shut the door. As the leading pair battled, Villagómez began to close the gap, bringing himself back into contention for the victory.
Further behind, Inthraphuvasak completed an impressive move around the outside of Dürksen at Luffield to move into fifth place. Tsolov made another attempt at Stowe on the same lap, this time diving to the inside, but once again Minì anticipated the move and held onto the lead.
Tsolov takes the lead of the Sprint in the last lap
Beganovic continued his charge through the field with a decisive move up the inside of Dürksen at the Vale Chicane to take sixth place. Bilinski soon followed, also finding a way past the Invicta Racing driver to gain another position.
A brief yellow flag was deployed after Stenshorne spun. During the incident, Varrone made contact with the Rodin Motorsport driver following a battle with Herta for 16th place.
The fight for victory reached its tipping point on the final lap when Minì locked up into Brooklands, allowing Tsolov to sweep past and take the lead. Minì suffered another lock-up through Maggotts and Becketts, allowing Villagómez to close right onto the rear of the MP Motorsport driver heading towards Stowe.
Tsolov held on over the final corners to claim victory in the F2 Sprint Race at Silverstone. Minì recovered to finish second, while Villagómez completed the podium in third after a thrilling battle in the closing stages.
