Maini dominates Barcelona F2 Sprint - Mini beats Tsolov to second

Maini controls Barcelona Sprint as rivals unravel

Maini delivered a commanding Formula 2 Sprint Race victory in Barcelona, converting an early lead into a dominant win as tyre degradation, track-limit penalties and late-race pressure shaped a chaotic contest behind him.

Behind him, the Campos battle quickly intensified. Nikola Tsolov challenged team-mate Leon through Turn 3, backing out before making the decisive move at Turn 1 on Lap 3. That fight gave Maini breathing room, and the ART driver stretched his advantage to 3.5 seconds while the pack behind became increasingly compressed.

Tyres and penalties reshape the points fight

By Lap 11, Barcelona’s tyre degradation was already visible. Maini’s front-left showed clear graining, briefly allowing Tsolov to close before the leader re-established a gap of more than four seconds. Further back, Colton Herta finally cleared Leon into Turn 1 after a long pursuit, moving into fourth as Leon’s early promise faded.

Câmara, meanwhile, climbed into the points-paying positions and fought Rafael Villagomez for sixth. Their battle helped form a DRS train stretching deep into the field, before Villagomez was handed a five-second penalty for track limits. Roman Bilinski also received a 10-second penalty after repeated track-limit infringements.

Mini wins late podium fight as Herta’s chance disappears

With six laps remaining, Gabriele Minì began to apply serious pressure to Tsolov for second. The championship implications were clear: even a one-place swing mattered in such a tightly framed early-season fight.

Minì attacked on Lap 22 but Tsolov resisted. One lap later, Minì launched a more forceful move into Turn 1, with brief contact between the pair before the Italian emerged ahead. Herta then capitalised almost immediately, passing Tsolov to move into the podium places.

But Herta’s first F2 podium slipped away on the final lap. While chasing Minì through the middle sector, he locked up and ran into the gravel, later calling the error “unacceptable.” The mistake dropped him from third to fifth.

Maini was already gone. He crossed the line 7.2 seconds clear, sealing a dominant victory ahead of Minì and Tsolov after a Sprint defined by pressure, patience and punishment.