The GP2 Series was an open-wheel motor racing series introduced in 2005 following on from the discontinuation of the long-term Formula One feeder series, Formula 3000. The GP2 format was jointly conceived by Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore, and organised by Bruno Michel. In 2010, a lower GP3 Series was launched, with the aim of the Championship being a feeder series for the GP2 class. In 2017, the GP2 Series was rebranded for the up-coming season as the FIA Formula 2 Championship.

The concept of the GP2 Series was to make racing affordable for the teams that participate and to make a better stepping stone for young and upcoming drivers on their path to Formula One. GP2 made it mandatory for all the teams to use the same chassis, engine and tyre supplier so the results of the racing would solely reflect the drivers ability to perfect their race craft.

All but three races over the series’ history had taken place as support races on Formula One race weekends in order to boost the series’ profile, give the drivers experience of the Grand Prix environment, and to take advantage of the infrastructure (marshals, medical facilities etc.) that are in place for a Formula One event.

GP2 mainly raced on the European circuits – Spa-Francorchamps, Monaco, Silverstone – however, it also appeared on other international race tracks such as the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia and the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Singapore.

Many notable drivers have used GP2 as a stepping stone into Formula One. The 2005 Champion Nico Rosberg was hired by the Williams team for their 2006 campaign, whilst the 2006 GP2 Champion Lewis Hamilton made the transition the following year with McLaren. The final GP2 Champion in 2016, Pierre Gasly, moved up into Formula One in the following year to replace Daniil Kvyat for the remainder of the season in the Toro Rosso.

By the end of the 2016 season, nine of the twelve Champions were able to move up into Formula One – a strong 75% correlation – reflecting how F1 teams took GP2 seriously as a series capable of creating highly competitive racers.

GP2 Series Format:

Race Weekend:

On the Friday, drivers would participate in a 45-minute free practice session and a 30-minute qualifying session. The qualifying session would decide the grid for the race on Saturday which would run for 180 kilometres (112 miles).

During the Saturday “Feature” Race, each driver would have to make a pit stop in which it was mandatory to change at least two of the tyres.

On Sunday, there would be a Sprint Race of 120 kilometres (75 miles). The grid would be decided by the results of the race on Saturday with the top eight being reversed – the driver who finished eighth on the Saturday started from pole position and the winner started from eighth place. At the 2005 European GP2 Round at the Nurburgring, the Sprint race was extended from 80 to 120 kilometres, coinciding with F1 dropping its second qualifying session on the Sunday morning.

Points System

2005-2011

Pole position for Saturday’s Race was worth two points. Fastest lap was worth one point in each race (with the exception of the 2005 season where two points were awarded each race) and in order to qualify for the fastest lap point, the driver had to have completed 90% of the race distance. In 2008, the driver would also have to finish in the top ten of the race to be eligible for the fastest lap point.

With this points system, the maximum amount of points anyone could score in one round was 20 – by claiming pole position, winning both races with the fastest lap in each race. This feat was only ever achieved twice, firstly by Nelson Piquet Jr. in the ninth round of the 2006 season at the Hungaroring and secondly by Nico Hulkenberg in the fifth round of the 2009 season at the Nurburgring.

Points System for Feature Race
1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	Pole	FL
10	8	6	5	4	3	2	1	2	2 (2005) 1 (2006-2011)

Points System for Sprint Race
1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	FL
6	5	4	3	2	1	1

2012-2016

From the 2012 season, the GP2 series changed its scoring system to run in a similar fashion to that used in Formula One. 

Pole position for the Feature Race was worth 4 points, whilst 2 points were given for the fastest lap in each race. Therefore, the maximum number of points a driver could score at any round would be 48.

Point System for Feature Race
1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Pole	FL
25	18	15	12	10	8	6	4	2	1	4	2

Point System for Sprint Race
1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	FL
15	12	10	8	6	4	2	1	2

Champions:

Drivers’ Champions

Season	Champion	Points
2005	Nico Rosberg (ART Grand Prix)	120
2006	Lewis Hamilton (ART Grand Prix)	114
2007	Timo Glock (iSport International)	88
2008	Giorgio Pantano (Racing Engineering)	76
2009	Nico Hulkenberg (ART Grand Prix)	100
2010	Pastor Maldonado (Rapax)	87
2011	Romain Grosjean (DAMS)	89
2012	Davide Valsecchi (DAMS)	247
2013	Fabio Leimer (Racing Engineering)	201
2014	Jolyon Palmer (DAMS)	276
2015	Stoffel Vandoorne (ART Grand Prix)	341.5
2016	Pierre Gasly (Prema Racing)	219

Teams’ Champions

Season	Champion	Points
2005	ART Grand Prix	187
2006	ART Grand Prix	180
2007	iSport International	118
2008	Barwa International Campos Team	103
2009	ART Grand Prix	180
2010	Rapax	115
2011	Barwa Addax Team	101
2012	DAMS	342
2013	Russian Time	273
2014	DAMS	349
2015	ART Grand Prix	410
2016	Prema Racing	430

History of Previous Seasons:

2005

The 2005 season was the first of the series, succeeding the now folded Formula 3000 Championship. Arden International was among the favourites going into the new Championship having won the last F3000 titles.

The 2005 season began on the 23rd of April 2005, on the weekend of the San Marino Grand Prix at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola, Italy. In the pre-season testing to decide the drivers’ numbers for the inaugural season, the iSport International and HiTech/Piquet Racing teams showed great promise. The latter team was largely funded by the former Formula One World Champion, Nelson Piquet, to aid his son’s route to the premier Formula category.

The 2005 Championship consisted of 12 rounds and 23 races, with each weekend featuring a Feature Race and Sprint Race, the only exception being Monaco in which a singular Feature Race was held. German driver Nico Rosberg won the augural GP2 Championship, before being subsequently hired by the Williams F1 Team, with Heikki Kovalainen finishing in second place.

2005 was also notable for being the sole season that GP2 used grooved tyres like the F1 cars rather than the slick tyre style we see today.

2006

After the championship holder Nico Rosberg’s move to the Williams F1 team, and runner-up Heikki Kovalainen was hired as a reserve driver for Renault F1, Nelson Piquet Jr. was the early title favourite for the 2006 season. Other favourites included Alexandre Premat and rookie Lewis Hamilton, given they were driving the ART Grand Prix cars that won the previous season’s Team’s Championship.

For the first time, the season commenced on a calendar separate to the 2006 Formula One World Championship, with Round 1 starting at the Circuit de Valencia, in Valencia, Spain on the 8th of April 2006, with Piquet Jr. claiming victory in the Feature Race.

Piquet Jr. claimed an early lead in the Championship battle, before Lewis Hamilton began his own respective title charge, taking the Championship lead after a dominant run of wins. However, for most of the season the title swung back-and-forth in favour of both drivers.

Hamilton eventually claimed the 2006 Championship title in his rookie season in the penultimate race at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, in Monza Italy, before additionally taking a second place finish in the 21st and final round.

Nelson Piquet Jr. eventually signed as an official test and reserve driver for the Renault Formula One team for the 2007 season before being promoted to a full-time drive for the 2008 season, whilst Champion Lewis Hamilton was promoted into Formula One for the 2007 season at McLaren where he went on to break several records in his debut season.

2007

The 2007 GP2 Series Championship began on the 13th of April at the Bahrain International Circuit and concluded on the 30th September at the Circuit de Valencia – once again the only race that didn’t coincide with the Formula One calendar.

Timo Glock produced a dominant driving performance for most of the season, with only Lucas di Grassi providing some competition in the closing stages of the Championship. A convincing victory in the final race of the season saw Glock crowned the 2007 Champion, finishing only 11 points ahead of di Grassi.

The 2007 season was the last with the first-generation chassis, the GP2/05.

2008

The 2008 GP2 Series Championship featured the same teams as in previous seasons and was also the first time the calendar supported all of the Formula One races in Europe after a late deal was confirmed for the series to run at the Valencia Street Circuit.

It was the first season to feature the new car design from Dallara, the GP2/08, which was the only non-F1 car to pass the 2007 FIA crash test in full, thanks to the decision to install anti-intrusion panels on the car.

With four races to go, Giorgio Pantano led the Championship by 13 points over Bruno Senna and 20 points over Lucas di Grassi. On the final weekend, Pantano got the perfect start after securing pole position, consequently knocking di Grassi out of Championship contention. Whilst di Grassi went on the win, Pantano finished in 10th place after a drive-through penalty for crossing the white line at the pit exit.

Ultimately this meant little for the Championship, as Senna couldn’t produce any better finish than fifth and Racing Engineering’s Giorgio Pantano claimed the title with one race to go.

2009

The 2009 GP2 Series Championship consisted of ten rounds and twenty races, beginning on the 9th of May at the Circuit de Catalunya and finishing on the 20th of September at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve in Portugal.

The Algarve circuit hosted its first GP2 weekend, being the only new circuit on the calendar, whilst the Nurburgring also returned for this season as part of its rotation with Hockenheim as the host of the German Grand Prix.

Romain Grosjean left the series mid-season, despite being in contention for the title with Barwa Addax, to join Renault for the remainder of the Formula One season as a result of the sacking of Nelson Piquet Jr.

The 2009 title was claimed by German rookie Nico Hulkenberg in the penultimate round of the Championship in Monza, marking the first time the series had been won before the final round. ART also claimed the team’s title in the Algarve.

Kamui Kobayashi took part in the final two races of the 2009 Formula One season for Toyota as a result of Timo Glock’s injury in the Japanese Grand Prix. Champion Hulkenberg, runner-up Petrov and third-placed Lucas di Grassi all made the step-up to Formula One for the 2010 season for Williams, Renault and Virgin Racing respectively.

2010

The 2010 GP2 Series Championship consisted of 20 races held over ten rounds and began on the 8th May at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo, Spain before concluding on the 14th of November at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

2010 saw for the first time, GP2 holding its own feeder series, the GP3 Series – which for the most part appeared in support of the European Formula One rounds alongside GP2. Abu Dhabi also became a part of the main GP2 series after hosting two races in the 2009-10 GP2 Asia Series.

The 2010 season was the last to feature the second-generation Dallara GP2/08 car, which was introduced in 2008. It was also the final season that Bridgestone was the sole tyre supplier for the series, with Pirelli being the replacement for the following season.

Pastor Maldonado claimed the Championship title with two races to spare, despite crashing out of the Sprint race in Monza – the second successive season where the Drivers’ Championship was secured before the final round. Maldonado, driving for Rapax, became the series’ most successful driver with six successive Feature race wins during the 2010 season to take his to a total of 10 victories.

In the Teams’ Championship, Rapax claimed victory after a three-team battle in Abu Dhabi. Heading into the final race, Barwa Addax held a one-point advantage over Rapax, with ART a further nine points back in third. Rapax was the only team to claim points in the final race after a second place (and fastest lap) finish for Luiz Razia, gave Rapax a five-point lead for the Championship title over Barwa Addax.

2011

The 2011 GP2 Series Championship consisted of 18 races over nine rounds and began on the 7th of May at Istanbul Park in Turkey and concluded on the 11th of September at Monza in Italy. The series consisted of one less round than the previous year, as the ABu Dhabi round would return to the GP2 Asia Series and would not be replaced. It was announced that on 12th-13th of November, a non-championship round would take place in Abu Dhabi under the moniker 2011 GP2 Final in support of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Following a three-year cycle, the previous GP2 chassis was replaced for the 2011 season by the GP2/11, once again built by the Italian racing car manufacturer Dallara. This engine configuration remained the same up until the end of the 2017 season, with the only modification being to the exhaust systems.

The 2011 season also saw the addition of two new teams to the grid, Carlin and Team AirAsia, whilst David Price Racing was not selected to continue in the series, leaving 13 teams and 26 drivers to compete in the Championship.

It was announced that Renault would no longer badge their Mecachrome GP2 Series engines for the 2011 season and beyond, with Mecachrome instead running its own engine programme. All GP2 series cars also featured a reverse gear for the first time in the series.

The 2011 Championship title was won by the reigning GP2 Asia Champion Romain Grosjean in the penultimate round of the season. 

Luca Filippi, Jules Bianchi and Charles Pic were all divided by only two points in their battle for the second, third and fourth places respectively.

2012

The 2012 GP2 Series Championship consisted of 12 rounds and 24 races, beginning on the 24th of March at the Sepang International Circuit and concluded on the 23rd of September at the Marina Bay Street Circuit. It was the first season that saw the GP2 Series merged with the GP2 Asia Series, seeing the Championship being expanded to include rounds in Malaysia, Bahrain and Singapore, in support of the 2012 Formula One season.

The series adopted the same points system used by Formula One for the Feature race, with points awarded to the top ten drivers and the victor being awarded 25 points. The points awarded in the Sprint race also changed, with the winner receiving fifteen points and the top eight drivers receiving points. Another change meant that it was compulsory for drivers to use two compounds of tyres over a race weekend.

The Championship title was won by Italian racer Davide Valsecchi, driving for DAMS. Despite leading the Championship after winning the Sprint race in Silverstone, Luiz Razia ultimately had to settle for second in the Championship, ahead of Esteban Gutierrez who finished the season in third place.

2013

The 2013 GP2 Series Championship consisted of 11 rounds and 22 races, beginning on the 23rd of March at the Sepang International Circuit and concluded on the 3rd of November at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.

The 2013 season saw three new teams – Russian Time, Hilmer Motorsport and MP Motorsport – join the Championship, replacing iSport International, Ocean Racing Technology and Scuderia Coloni. 2013 was scheduled to be the last season in which the teams would compete with the third-generation GP2 car – the Dallara GP2/11 – however, the series organisers decided to keep the GP2/11 for another three-year cycle in an attempt to keep the costs of the series down.

The season saw 10 different race winners, including the 2013 GP2 Series Champion Fabio Leimer who claimed three race wins. Runner-up Sam Bird took five victories of his own, with James Calado finishing the season in third-place with two race wins of his own.

2014

The 2014 GP2 Series Championship consisted of 11 rounds and 22 races, beginning on the 5th of April at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir and concluded on the 23rd of November at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.

In his fourth season in the series, DAMS driver Jolyon Palmer secured the Championship title after a consistent season, scoring points in 20 of the campaign’s 22 races. He secured four victories – joint-most for the season alongside Stoffel Vandoorne and Felipe Nasr – and achieved 12 podium finishes, enroute to the title, which he claimed on the penultimate race weekend in Russia.

The battle for the runner-up position in the Championship was not decided until the final race of the season, between Vandoorne and Nasr. Ultimately, Vandoorne secured the runner-up place, by five points, after he finished in fifth-place compared to Nasr’s second-place finish.

2015

The 2015 GP2 Series Championship consisted of 11 rounds and 22 races, supporting the Formula One World Championship and the final round of the World Endurance Championship at the 6 Hours of Bahrain. It began on the 18th of April at the Bahrain International Circuit and concluded on the 29th of November at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.

The series was scheduled to run in support of the German Grand Prix, at a venue that hadn’t been decided at the time of the calendar’s publication. With the cancellation of the German Grand Prix, the planned GP2 race weekend was rescheduled to Bahrain International Circuit to support the 2015 6 Hours of Bahrain weekend.

Whilst still continuing to use the Dallara GP2/11 chassis that was introduced in 2011, this season saw the introduction of the Drag Reduction System (DRS) that was used in Formula One. The series used the same detection and activation points at each circuit as Formula One, and followed the same rules for activation – requiring the drivers to be within one second of the car in front at the detection point for DRS to become available.

Stoffel Vandoorne claimed the Championship title in Sochi with 341.5 points ahead of Alexander Rossi on 181.5 points. The reason that some drivers finished the season on half points was due to a first lap accident resulting in barrier repair work in Sochi, causing the race to be shortened to 15 laps instead of the 28 originally scheduled, therefore resulting in half points being awarded.

2016

The 2016 GP2 Series Championship consisted of 11 rounds and 22 races, supporting the Formula One World Championship. It began on the 14th of May at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and concluded on the 27th of November at the Yas Marina Circuit in ABau Dhabi.

Whilst it was originally scheduled to be the final season for the Dallara GP2/11 chassis that was introduced in 2011 and the Mecachrome 4.0 litre V8 engine package that debuted in the maiden season of the series in 2005, due to more cost-cutting the series announced that it would delay the brand new chassis and engine package introduction for another season.

Pierre Gasly claimed the Drivers’ Championship after claiming four race wins over the season. Gasly’s team, Prema Racing, also won the Team’s Championship in the debut season thanks to solid performances from both their drivers – Antonio Giovinazzi finished runner-up thanks to five victories over the season.

Rebranding in 2017

In 2015, the FIA announced plans to overhaul the Super Licence system – a driver’s qualification allowing the holder to compete in the Formula One World Championship – streamlining the qualification criteria and weighting the various feeder series’ to allow drivers to progress in a more linear system, now known as the FIA Global Pathway.

Rather than creating a new series where none had previously existed, the FIA chose to rebrand the GP2 Series as the FIA Formula 2 Championship in early 2017. Since then, Championship winners who have graduated to F1 include Charles Leclerc, George Russell and Oscar Piastri.