Noel León secured a commanding Feature Race victory during Round 9 of the 2026 FIA Formula 2 Championship at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The weekend in Budapest got underway with Dino Beganovic setting the pace in Free Practice, topping the timesheets with a 1:30.720. Qualifying then saw Kush Maini storm to his second pole position of the season. The Indian edging out championship leader Rafael Câmara by 0.117s. León put himself in a strong position for Sunday’s Feature Race after qualifying third, while Joshua Dürksen claimed fourth on the grid. Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak rounded out the top five heading into the weekend’s races.
Stalls and Shakes to the Grid
Drama unfolded before the race had even begun as Roman Bilinski was forced to start from the pit lane after being unable to get his car going on the Formation Lap. As the lights went out, Kush Maini got a clean getaway from pole position. Rafael Câmara, on the other hand found himself under pressure from Noel León. The Mexican swept past to claim second into the opening corners. Van Hoepen also made early progress by overtaking Joshua Dürksen for fourth. Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak attempted to follow through but couldn’t find a way past.
Further back, the opening lap descended into chaos as multiple collisions shuffled the order. Martinius Stenshorne, Oliver Goethe and championship leader Nikola Tsolov all caught up in separate incidents. The Rodin Motorsport crew repaired Stenshorne’s car, allowing the Norwegian to continue the Feature Race in Budapest.
Maini’s Great Escape
Kush Maini continued to stretch his advantage, opening a gap of around four seconds over Noel León, while tyre degradation prompted the first wave of pit stops as five drivers dived into the pits to complete their mandatory stops.
Maini remained comfortably in control at the front, while León found himself under increasing pressure from Rafael Câmara. The Campos Racing driver headed a tightly packed DRS train from second down to sixth, with Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak bringing up the rear of the group. Dino Beganovic, running the alternative strategy, steadily closed the gap from seventh. As the Swede drew closer, Inthraphuvasak seized the opportunity to overtake Joshua Dürksen. As Gabriele Minì peeled into the pits for fresh tyres.
Lucky Pitstop for León
Rafael Villagómez became the first retirement of the Feature Race after stopping his car in the Turn 12 run-off area. Prompting Race Control to deploy a brief Virtual Safety Car. The neutralisation proved perfect for Noel León. The Campos dived into the pits from second place and significantly reduced the time lost during his mandatory stop. Further back, Herta, who had dropped to 15th following his pit stop, was handed a 10-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage while overtaking Alexander Dunne earlier in the race.
The Virtual Safety Car played firmly into León’s hands, with the Campos Racing driver retaining track position over Rafael Câmara once the Invicta Racing driver completed his own stop. Câmara then found himself under pressure from Van Hoepen. Race leader Kush Maini finally headed into the pits. The Indian rejoined behind León, handing the Mexican the effective lead among the drivers who had already completed their mandatory pit stops. León held a comfortable advantage of around five seconds, though with his tyres having been fitted earlier, the strategic picture remained far from settled.
A First Feature Win for León
The fight at the front remained wide open as Rafael Câmara steadily reeled in Kush Maini, while the ART GP driver worked hard to stay within DRS range of race leader Noel León. However, as the final lap got underway, Maini slipped out of León’s DRS. This Left the Indian vulnerable to the charging Câmara behind. Despite the late pressure, Maini held firm to keep second place. León crossed the line to claim his maiden Formula 2 Feature Race victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Câmara completed the podium in third after falling just short of finding a way past Maini on the final lap.
Results
Noel León took his first sprint win alongside Kush Maini and Rafa Câmara on the podium. Trident’s Laurens Van Hoepen, Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak, Dino Beganovic rounded out the top six. Championship leader Nikolas Tsolov came in seventh, as Joshua Durksen, championship contender Mini and John Bennett landed in the points circle
Formula 2 returns for the Italian GP from 4 september 2026 – 6 September 2026
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