Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak revealed he “never expected” to find himself fighting for points in the Feature Race after a difficult start to his 2026 F2 Madrid weekend.
The Thai driver kicked off his Spanish GP weekend with a heavy Turn 19 crash during Free Practice, forcing him to miss Qualifying. Starting from the back in the Sprint, Inthraphuvasak finished P15 before recovering to P6 in the Feature Race.
Taking advantage of an early Safety Car, he pitted for soft tyres before the restart, with the stop not counting towards his mandatory pit stop as he had an extra set of softs. He then climbed 14 positions before pitting during the second Safety Car to ultimately finish inside the points.
Inthraphuvasak on his 2026 F2 Madrid round comeback
Reflecting on his 2026 F2 Madrid turnaround, Inthraphuvasak shared: “After Friday, I never expected to be in this position. But I knew that on Sunday, anything could happen – it’s Formula 2.”
“We saved a set of Softs because we didn’t do Qualifying. So I had an extra set of Softs today and we went for the gamble on the strategy and it paid off. So it feels good to turn things around. Obviously, luck was on our side today, but it’s a bit of luck I think we were owed.”
While Inthraphuvasak acknowledged that luck played a part in the result, he was also quick to credit ART Grand Prix for getting his car back into shape.
“It feels good to have such a good turnaround. I have to say a massive thanks to the team for making it possible for me to get back into the weekend after the crash on Friday, I think it was a really big one. So I owe it to them for the points I scored this weekend.”
Learning along the way
Asked about the challenge of missing valuable track time, Inthraphuvasak explained how the team used the Sprint to learn the new Madring circuit and prepare for Sunday.
“It is very satisfying. Track time was very crucial with it being a new track for everyone and not an easy one as well.”
“So everything was about track time on Friday and unfortunately we had none. So yesterday in the Sprint Race, it was about collecting the mileage and learning the track as much as possible and getting prepared as much as possible for today.”
He added: “I think the pace was really, really good today and it was a positive after what happened on Friday.”
Having now scored points in six consecutive Feature Races, Inthraphuvasak leaves Madrid with a total of 71 points, moving him into P10 in the Drivers’ Standings.
Aiming to carry momentum into Baku
With three 2026 F2 rounds remaining, Inthraphuvasak heads to Baku for another new circuit, where the supersized weekend will offer more track time but little room for error. Despite never having raced at the Baku City Circuit, the ART Grand Prix driver noted that he will enter Round 12 with confidence.
“I really can’t wait to get back in the car. I think this weekend prepares all the drivers, not just myself, very well for Baku. It’s a street circuit again, but one that I have never been to. So, same process as this weekend, learn as much as possible on the sim and try to start on a very good level FP.”
“It’s been a few good rounds, a bit of a setback this weekend, but I’m sure that I’m going to be back on top of it very soon,” he concluded.
