APEX RACEWIRE Newsroom
Tsolov Outlasts Dunne and Minì to Claim Fourth F2 Victory in Austria
Nikola Tsolov recovered from front-wing damage to take his fourth Feature Race win of the season at the Red Bull Ring, closing to within two points of championship leader Gabriele Minì.
By Michael de Vries - 2026-06-28T09:28:17.000Z - 3 min read
Nikola Tsolov delivered a resilient drive at the Red Bull Ring to secure his fourth Formula 2 victory of the season, overcoming front-wing damage to win an eventful Feature Race in Austria. The Campos Racing driver crossed the finish line ahead of championship rival Gabriele Minì, trimming the Italian's standings lead to just two points as the title fight tightened significantly.
Starting from the front row alongside pole-sitter Noel Leon, Tsolov seized the lead early after Leon ran slightly wide through Turn 2 on the opening lap. Behind them, Minì made immediate progress from the line for MP Motorsport, passing Alex Dunne to claim third position just before neutralisation. An opening-lap collision involving Rafael Villagomez, Sebastian Montoya, and Joshua Dürksen triggered a Safety Car deployment before the opening lap could settle.
When racing resumed on Lap 5, the pit window triggered a wave of strategic activity among the leaders. Leon initiated the mandatory stops, with Dunne and Tsolov making their pit visits over the subsequent four laps. Minì waited until Lap 10 to stop, briefly emerging as the net leader on track. However, working with cold tyres proved difficult, allowing both Tsolov and Dunne to press their temperature advantage and pass the MP Motorsport car.
Dunne maintained intense pressure on Tsolov and made a successful bid for the lead on Lap 14. The pass did not come without consequences, as contact between the two cars broke the right front-wing endplate off Tsolov’s Campos. Despite the aerodynamic compromise, Tsolov remained within striking distance of the Rodin driver while Minì held third.
The race took another pivotal turn on Lap 25 when Dunne drifted wide at the final corner, allowing Tsolov to capitalize immediately and reclaim the top spot. Moments after the swap, Race Control deployed a Virtual Safety Car to clear Mari Boya’s Prema, which had come to a halt on the side of the circuit with an engine fire.
The Virtual Safety Car restart proved costly for Dunne, who surrendered second position to Minì. Facing severe degradation in the closing laps, Dunne came under heavy pressure from Rafael Camara and defended aggressively—moves later flagged for investigation by Race Control. Oliver Goethe capitalized on the tight defense ahead of him, sweeping past both cars to secure third place and his first podium finish of the season for MP Motorsport.
Tsolov held his composure through the final laps to take victory by 3.993 seconds over Minì, with Goethe completing the podium in third. Camara finished fourth ahead of Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak and Martinius Stenshorne, while Dunne dropped to seventh at the flag behind early leader Leon. Laurens Van Hoepen and Dürksen rounded out the points-paying top ten. The grid now turns its focus to the next round at Silverstone from July 3 to 5.