The fifth round of the season took place at the 2026 F2 Barcelona-Catalunya GP as the grid returned to a familiar circuit. The weekend delivered plenty of on-track action and drama, with Invicta Racing’s Rafael Câmara securing back-to-back pole positions and finally converting one into his maiden F2 victory in Sunday’s Feature Race. Meanwhile, after a difficult start to the year, ART Grand Prix’s Kush Maini returned to the top step of the podium on Sprint Saturday to claim his first win of the season.
Before the on-track action resumes next week at the Red Bull Ring, we take a look at the winners and losers from the 2026 F2 Barcelona-Catalunya GP.
Winners of the weekend
Rafael Câmara
After a difficult weekend in Monaco, where a maiden Feature Race victory slipped through his fingers, the 2026 F2 Barcelona-Catalunya GP provided redemption for Câmara. The Brazilian bounced back stronger than ever, delivering another dominant Qualifying performance by securing pole position on his first flying lap. His benchmark of 1:24.810 remained unbeaten, while teammate Joshua Dürksen completed an Invicta front-row lockout, although the Paraguayan was later handed a grid penalty for a yellow flag infringement.
On Sprint Saturday, Câmara crossed the line in P6 to collect valuable points ahead of Sunday’s Feature Race. Despite losing the lead at the start, the Brazilian delivered a tyre-management masterclass, extending his stint on the soft tyres longer than any other driver in the field. Eventually passing Alex Dunne for the lead, the Ferrari-backed driver crossed the line victorious to claim both his maiden F2 win and first victory of the season.
Having already secured podium finishes in the opening two Feature Races of the year, this win lifts Câmara back to 3rd in the Drivers’ Standings on 69 points as the championship heads to Austria.
Alex Dunne
Five rounds into the season, Dunne continues to return to the podium consistently, claiming his fifth podium of the year at the 2026 F2 Barcelona-Catalunya GP. The Irishman has also continued to demonstrate impressive consistency in Qualifying, often finishing inside the top three every weekend. Despite a difficult start to the season, where his own mistakes hampered his chances of scoring heavily in the opening two Feature Races, Dunne has clearly found his rhythm and continues to deliver strong results.
The round in Barcelona marked his first weekend of the season scoring points in both the Sprint and Feature Races. On Friday, he delivered a strong performance to qualify P3, placing him in a strong position for Sunday’s Feature Race. However, having started P8 on Saturday, the Irishman ultimately finished where he began, securing the final points-scoring position in the Sprint Race.
On Sunday, after a strong launch off the line, he moved into the lead. Managing the pace out in clean air, Dunne appeared to have the race under control. However, following the pit stops, Câmara eventually made his way past, forcing Dunne to settle for a P3 finish. Nonetheless, the Irishman continues his impressive run of consistency. Heading into Austria, he sits 4th in the Drivers’ Standings with 67 points.
Nikola Tsolov
Despite losing his Feature Race podium, Tsolov can still walk away from the 2026 F2 Barcelona-Catalunya GP with plenty of positives, having secured a podium on Saturday and a strong points haul on Sunday after his post-race penalty.
Having qualified P6 on Friday, Tsolov noted significant improvement in the car’s handling following his P3 finish in the Sprint Race. Starting from P5, the Bulgarian made his way through the field to eventually finish P3. While he initially looked set to settle for P4, a mistake from Colton Herta allowed him to inherit the final podium position, adding another podium to his tally for the year.
While the pace was not enough to beat Câmara in Sunday’s Feature Race after opting for a bold alternative strategy, he still made it work on track. Crossing the line in P2, the Red Bull-backed driver initially secured a double podium weekend, although a post-race penalty later demoted him to P4. Despite losing out on several additional points and a podium, it remained a strong points haul to take away from the weekend, particularly after his Feature Race win in Monaco.
Continuing to close the gap to Gabriele Minì despite losing his podium, Tsolov sits 2nd in the Drivers’ Standings with 80 points, just six points adrift of the championship leader.
Kush Maini
After a difficult start to his fourth F2 season, the 2026 Barcelona-Catalunya GP marked a more productive and encouraging weekend for the Indian driver. Having qualified P9, Maini benefitted from the reverse-grid format for Saturday’s Sprint Race, where he lined up on the front row alongside Noel León. With a strong launch off the line, he immediately moved into the lead and went on to deliver a lights-to-flag victory.
Subsequently, having finished P9 in Sunday’s Feature Race, he walked away from the weekend with a double points finish. As the championship heads into its sixth round in Austria, Maini will aim to build on this momentum and keep scoring strong points as the European leg of the season unfolds.
Losers of the weekend
Colton Herta
While the 2026 Barcelona-Catalunya GP marked a significant weekend for the American, who participated in his first FP1 session with Cadillac, it ultimately proved to be a difficult one to take, as a costly mistake during the Sprint Race ended his chances of a maiden F2 podium.
Having qualified P8 on Friday, he was in a strong position to fight for a podium on Saturday, lining up on the second row. Despite dropping a few places in the opening stages, Herta showed strong pace and battled his way back through the field, eventually moving into the final podium position. However, locking up his tyres into Turn 5, the American ran straight into the gravel, losing the chance to stand on an F2 podium for the first time.
With a driver of his pedigree, having come from IndyCar, it was a tough pill to swallow. Sunday’s Feature Race proved equally disappointing, as he finished in P15. Now five rounds into the season, Herta continues his search for a standout performance.
Joshua Dürksen
Post-session penalties continue to impact Dürksen, hampering his chances of scoring strong points throughout the weekend. Having qualified on the front row alongside his teammate Câmara for Sunday’s Feature Race, a yellow flag infringement resulted in a five-place grid penalty for both races. This left the Paraguayan driver starting further down the field than he would have wanted.
While he was caught up in an incident on Saturday that was not of his own making, a double points-less finish marked a disappointing end to his weekend in Barcelona. Now on a three-race points-less run, he will be hoping to bounce back stronger in Austria.
Martinius Stenshorne
The 2026 F2 Barcelona-Catalunya GP proved to be a difficult weekend for Stenshorne, who had arrived in strong form. The Norwegian lacked pace throughout and qualified well down the order in P16 on Friday. After spinning Dürksen around during the Sprint Race on Saturday, the incident earned him a ten-second time penalty, as he eventually finished the race in P18. Sunday’s Feature Race offered little improvement as he crossed the line in P17. Having been on a four-race points-scoring streak and taken a double podium in Montreal just two rounds earlier, the Norwegian will now look to bounce back in Austria.
