Formula 2

Qualifying:

Dino Beganovic secured the first Aramco pole position of the 2026 Formula 2 season in a chaotic qualifying session at Albert Park. The DAMS Lucas Oil driver delivered a last-lap charge to cross the line in 1:28.695, snatching the top spot in the final seconds of the session.

Provisional pole changed hands multiple times in the final three-minute shootout. Rodin Motorsport teammates Martinius Stenshorne and Alex Dunne briefly held the top two spots before Beganovic’s blitzing run demoted them to second and third.

The session saw two red flags, which seemed to have been a common sight across the weekend, with the first following Mari Boya going through the gravel at Turn 12 before ending up in the barrier. He managed to get out of the car unharmed, however, the PREMA Racing machine needed to be removed from the track by the marshals. The second red flag was thrown as the grid rejoined the circuit with 12 minutes to go, with Gabriele Mini being forced to pull to the side of the track after suffering a loss of power near Turn 11.

Qualifying Top-10:

1. Dino Beganovic (DAMS Lucas Oil): 1:28.695
2. Martinius Stenshorne (Rodin Motorsport): +0.216
3. Alex Dunne (Rodin Motorsport): +0.344
4. Noel Leon (Campos Racing): +0.381
5. Nikola Tsolov (Campos Racing): +0.428
6. Rafael Camara (Invicta Racing): +0.448
7. Kush Maini (ART Grand Prix): +0.464
8. Oliver Goethe (MP Motorsport): +0.559
9. Joshua Durksen (Invicta Racing): +0.789
10. Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak (ART Grand Prix): +0.846

Sprint Race:

Joshua Durksen secured a dominant victory in the FIA Formula 2 Sprint Race at Albert Park for Invicta Racing. Starting from second on the reverse grid, the Paraguayan driver repeated his 2025 success in Melbourne, becoming the first victor of the 2026 season.

The race began with reverse-grid pole-sitter Tasanpol Inthraphuvasak holding onto the lead off the line, whilst Dursken momentarily dropped down to third behind Oliver Goethe. Durksen quickly recovered, making a bold overtake on Goethe at Turn 9 on the opening lap before passing Inthraphuvasak for the lead of the race on Lap 2.

Halfway through the 23-lap race, Gabriele Mini had made a notable charge from P21 on the grid and was up to seventh, before completing a DRS pass on Dunne into Turn 11 on Lap 13 to take sixth place. 

The Safety Car was deployed on Lap 15 to neutralise the race as a result of PREMA Racing’s Mari Boya colliding with the wall at Turn 6, allowing several drivers in the lower half od the field to gamble on a switch to the supersoft tyres.

Upon the restart, Durksen remained unchallenged at the front, comfortably managing a gap to the chasing pack. Behind him, Campos Racing’s Noel Leon secured second place after an overtake on Intraphuvasak, who was struggling with pace, on Lap 20. The final podium spot was decided after a post-race penalty for Martinius Stenshorne, whose 5-second demotion for an off-track overtake on the first lap, promoted Rodin Motorsport’s Alex Dunne to third.

Sprint Race Top-10:

1. Joshua Durksen
2. Noel Leon
3. Alexander Dunne
4. Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak
5. Ritomo Miyata
6. Gabriele Mini
7. Laurens Van Hoepen
8. Roman Bilinski
9. Sebastian Montoya
10. Martinius Stenshorne

Feature Race:

Campos Racing’s Nikola Tsolov claimed his maiden FIA Formula 2 victory in a dramatic Feature Race around Albert Park.

After starting in fifth, the Bulgarian driver navigated a chaotic opening phase to take the lead early on. He managed to fend off a late surge from reigning Formula 3 champion Rafael Camara to secure the win by 1.6 seconds.

A major collision on Lap 3 between Rodin Motorsport teammates Alex Dunne and Martinius Stenshorne saw racing quickly neutralised. Whilst battling for the lead at Turn 1, Dunne made contact with Stenshorne, sending both cars into the gravel and triggering an immediate Safety Car. This incident gifted the lead to Tsolov, who had already managed to pass pole-sitter Dino Beganovic, after a poor start for the DAMS Lucas Oil driver.

Beganovic was forced to pull to the side of the track on Lap 17 after suffering a mechanical problem. With his car in need of clearing, the Virtual Safety Car was deployed, before it was converted into the second full Safety Car of the race on Lap 19. Nicolas Varrone inherited the lead on the restart after a perfectly timed pit-stop; however, Tsolov soon reclaimed the top spot shortly after with a bold lunge at Turn 11. Varrone eventually began to fade on worn tyres and dropped out of the points after receiving a penalty for speeding in the pit lane.

The final place on the rostrum was rounded out by Trident’s Laurens van Hoepen, who secured his maiden F2 podium. Oliver Goethe and Ritomo Miyata completed the top five, whilst American rookie Colton Herta managed a good recovery drive to finish seventh, scoring his first points in the category after starting 14th.

Feature Race Top-10:

1. Nikola Tsolov
2. Rafael Camara
3. Laurens van Hopen
4. Oliver Goethe
5. Ritomo Miyata
6. Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak
7. Colton Herta
8. Gabriele Mini
9. Sebastian Montoya
10. Joshua Durksen

Formula 3

Qualifying:

Théophile Naël took the first Aramco Pole Position Award in 2026 at the Formula 3 season opener in Melbourne, claiming the top spot from Campos Racing teammate Ugo Ugochukwu with his final lap of the session. Naël’s time of 1:34.187 was just a mere 0.021s faster than Ugochukwu, ensuring a front-row lockout for Campos Racing in Sunday’s Feature Race.

After leading Free Practice, Ugochukwu dominated for the majority of the qualifying session, holding provisional pole despite sustaining front wing damage after hitting a polystyrene board at Turn 10 until Naël’s last minute effort.

The session was then halted with around 20 minutes remaining as a result of Trident’s Matteo De Palo crashing into the barriers at Turn 10. De Palo is set to start both the Sprint and Feature race from the back of the grid after his fastest time was later deleted.

Notable Performances:

• Trident rookie Freddie Slater showed impressive pace on his full-time debut, qualifying third.
• ART Grand Prix’s Maciej Gładysz also impressed by securing fourth place in his first F3 qualifying session.
• Melbourne native James Wharton (Prema Racing) showed strong early pace to sit as high as second before finishing the session in eighth.

Qualifying Top-10:

1. Théophile Naël (Campos Racing): 1:34.187
2. Ugo Ugochukwu (Campos Racing): +0.021
3. Freddie Slater (Trident): +0.082
4. Maciej Gładysz (ART Grand Prix): +0.267
5. Nicola Lacorte (Dams Lucas Oil): +0.346
6. Mattia Colnaghi (MP Motorsport): +0.360
7. Taito Kato (ART Grand Prix): +0.425
8. James Wharton (Prema Racing): +0.434
9. Bando Badoer (Rodin Motorsport): +0.438
10. Noah Strømsted (Trident): +0.451

Sprint Race:

Bruno del Pino secured his maiden victory in FIA Formula 3 for Van Amersfoort Racing in a dramatic Melbourne Sprint Race that was cut short due to a major collision.

The Spaniard led a dominant 1-2 finish for the Dutch outfit, controlling the pace from the front of the reverse grid before the session was halted prematurely.

Racing was neutralised early on Lap 7 as a result of PREMA Racing teammates James Wharton and Louis Sharp colliding heavily at Turn 6. The high-speed impact left both cars severely damaged, with scattered debris across the track, forcing the race officials to deploy the Red Flag. Due to the severity of the damage and the time required for barrier repairs, the Stewards made the decision to not restart the race.

As a result of the race ending before 75 of the scheduled distance was completed, halved points were awarded to the top ten finishers. Del Pino collected 5 points for the win, whilst his teammate Enzo Deligny and Rodin Motorsport’s Brando Badoer rounded out the podium, taking home 4 and 3 points respectively.

The Stewards founded Sharp at fault for the incident, handing the New Zealand racer a 10-second penalty that dropped him down to 16th in the final classification.

Sprint Race Top-10:

1. Bruno Del Pino (5 points)
2. Enzo Deligny (4 points)
3. Brando Badoer (3 points)
4. Noah Stromsted (2 points)
5. Taito Kato (1 point)
6. Maciej Gladysz
7. James Wharton
8. Ugo Ugochukwu
9. Freddie Slater
10. Theophile Nael

Feature Race:

Ugo Ugochukwu claimed his maiden victory in FIA Formula 3 with a dominant drive in a chaotic Melbourne Feature Race, crossing the line behind the Safety Car.

The grid was reduced to 28 cars before the lights went out, as PREMA Racing drivers James Wharton and Louis Sharp were both withdrawn for medical reasons after their collision during the Sprint Race the day before.

Pole-sitter Theophile Nael dominated much of the on-track action but saw his hopes of a podium disappear due to a five-second penalty for a false start. Noah Stromsted also saw similar luck, being given a 10-second penalty for making contact with Nicola Lacorte, dropping the TRIDENT driver down to 23rd.

The 23-lap race was neutralised twice by the Safety Car, firstly on Lap 9 as a result of Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi crashing into the barrier at Turn 12. The second Safety Car was called upon due to Michael Shin having pulled to the side of the road with rear suspension damage at Turn 16. The track could not be cleared in time for a restart, with the race ending under Safety Car conditions.

Ugochukwu followed the Safety Car across the finish line to take his first victory in F3 ahead of Trident’s Freddie Slater. With Nael and Stromsted’s penalties taking effect, Kato inherited P3. Del Pino followed his Sprint Race victory with P4 ahead of Maciej Gladysz and Enzo Deligny.

Feature Race Top-10:

1. Ugo Ugochukwu
2. Freddie Slater
3. Taito Kato
4. Bruno del Pino
5. Maciej Gladysz
6. Enzo Deligny
7. Brad Benavides
8. Pedro Clerot
9. Jin Nakamura
10. Mattia Colnaghi