Minì Takes Maiden F2 Win in Chaotic Miami Feature Race

Gabriele Minì took his maiden FIA Formula 2 victory in Miami, winning a chaotic Feature Race decided in the final minutes on overheating wet tyres. The MP Motorsport driver survived three safety cars, a race-ending crash for championship leader Nikola Tsolov, and a brutal three-way fight with Dino Beganovic and Rafael Câmara across the closing laps. Beganovic finished second for DAMS Lucas Oil. Câmara completed the podium for Invicta Racing. Tsolov’s retirement on Lap 1 cut his championship lead to a single point.

Key Points: F2 Miami Feature Race 2026

• Minì wins his first FIA Formula 2 victory for MP Motorsport. Championship gap to Tsolov now one point
• Tsolov out on Lap 1 after contact with Inthraphuvasak. Inthraphuvasak handed a 10-second time penalty for the incident
• Beganovic P2 for DAMS Lucas Oil, Câmara P3 for Invicta Racing. Three-car fight decided on the final lap
• Stenshorne takes a 10-second stop-and-go penalty for a starting procedure infringement before the race begins
• Duerksen stays out under the second safety car, inherits the lead, but mandatory stop drops him to tenth
• Three safety cars across the race. Final restart with five minutes remaining on overheating wet tyres
• Câmara takes fastest lap and the bonus point. Third in the championship on 34 points

Race Recap: F2 Miami Feature Race 2026

Before the Lights: Stenshorne Penalised on the Grid

It started before the race began. Stenshorne picked up a 10-second stop-and-go penalty for a starting procedure infringement before the formation lap had finished. Whatever the Rodin driver had built across the sprint weekend was already gone before a racing lap had been completed.

The Start: Maini Leads, Tsolov Gone on Lap 1

Maini got away cleanly from pole and held the lead into Turn 1. Câmara had wheelspin off the line. Stenshorne came through to second, but both he and Câmara ran deep at Turn 1, handing Minì third. Câmara recovered and retook it at Turn 7. Duerksen followed his Invicta teammate through to fourth.

Then the race changed entirely. Tsolov and Inthraphuvasak made contact at the first corner. The Campos car was beached. Championship leader out. Race neutralised before Lap 1 was complete. Inthraphuvasak was handed a 10-second time penalty. It did not save his afternoon.

Early Chaos: Pitlane Instructions and Goethe’s Exit

Race Control instructed drivers to use the pitlane during the safety car. Maini and Câmara missed the call and stayed on the main straight. Everyone else peeled in. Stenshorne emerged from the pitlane in second, served his stop-and-go, and that was effectively his race. The field picked up the safety car and resumed on Lap 3.

The restart lasted two corners. Goethe had a snap at Turn 18, hit the barriers, and was out immediately with suspension damage. Virtual safety car on Lap 5 to clear the debris. Back to racing on Lap 6 with Maini still leading, the Invictas second and third, and Beganovic hunting through the pack.

Mid-Race: Beganovic Attacks, Dunne Crashes, the Field Splits

Beganovic was on the move from the restart. He took fourth from Minì at Turn 4 and immediately joined the battle for second behind Maini. Dunne had been closing on Minì but ran deep into Turn 17 on Lap 9, tried to rejoin without grip, and found the barriers. Safety car for the third time.

That neutralisation triggered the pit window. Most of the field came in for mandatory stops. Duerksen stayed out and inherited the race lead, with Herta and Bennett also remaining on circuit. Maini pitted but traffic at the ART Grand Prix box cost him time, and Câmara emerged ahead on the road. The safety car withdrew with 23 minutes of racing remaining.

Duerksen led the restart well and opened a buffer. But his stop was coming. Herta and Bennett the same. When all three came in together, Câmara led, Beganovic second, León third. Minì was fourth and closing.

Final Phase: Wet Tyres, Drying Track, Three Cars for One Win

The final restart came with five minutes on the clock. All drivers on wet tyres. The track was drying faster than anyone could manage. Nobody had the grip the conditions demanded. Everybody was sliding.

Câmara led but Beganovic was right there. Into Turn 11, Beganovic forced an error and Câmara ran wide. He recovered and held him off. Minì put a committed dive on León at Turn 16 to take third. A virtual safety car with 12 minutes left converted into a full safety car. Back to racing with five minutes remaining.

One minute to go. Beganovic went around the outside of Câmara at Turn 17. Both ran wide off the circuit. Beganovic got back on track first and led into Turn 19. Câmara tried an immediate response into Turn 1 and went off again. Minì was there. He took second. Then he went after Beganovic at Turn 11, the pair running side by side through Turns 13, 14 and 15. Beganovic cut across the chicane and emerged ahead. Then ran wide at Turn 17. Minì went through. Took the lead onto the final lap. He held on.

Beganovic second. Câmara third. León fourth. Maini fifth.

Final Race Result: F2 Miami Feature Race 2026

Standings Snapshot

Coffee Corner Take

Got it. Here’s the full Coffee Corner Take with that fix dropped in:

Minì did not win that race on pace. He won it on survival and timing. Three safety cars. A championship leader gone on Lap 1. Wet tyres on a track that was drying faster than anyone could manage. The driver who made the fewest mistakes in the final five minutes of a race designed to produce them took the win.

That is legitimate. Formula 2 on a temporary circuit in conditions nobody had a reference for, with everyone overheating on wets in the closing stages, is a lottery with a skill element buried inside it. Minì found the skill element when it mattered. The final lap was not clean. It was scrappy and aggressive and decided by millimetres at Turn 17. He took it anyway. First win. He earned it in the conditions he was given.

Beganovic was the quickest of the three at the front. He led. He lost it twice, once from running wide and once from Minì forcing the issue on the inside. His pace throughout the final phase was better than the result shows. DAMS have something in that car and Beganovic is using it. The win will come if he keeps putting himself in these positions.

Câmara takes fastest lap and a podium from a weekend that should have delivered more. He had the race in his hands in the closing stages and ran off circuit twice at Turn 1 when the pressure arrived. On a dry track with grip that does not happen. On overheating wets with one minute left and two drivers fighting for the same piece of road, it does. He is third in the championship on 34 points, level with Minì. The fastest lap bonus point matters now. He got it.

Tsolov is still leading. By one point. That is all Minì could take back from a race where the Bulgarian was out before it started. Inthraphuvasak’s contact at Turn 1 cost Tsolov the chance to respond. He cannot do anything about that. What he can control is what happens in Montreal. The gap was nine points after the sprint. It is one point now. That is a championship that just became significantly more interesting.

Duerksen read the safety car correctly, inherited the lead on the alternative strategy, and led the race for a spell in the middle phase. Tenth after the mandatory stop took the gloss off it, but the pace mid-race was noted. His Mercedes test and development role does not change what Miami throws at everyone. He is finding his feet.

Contact between Varrone and Stenshorne ended the Norwegian’s race. Varrone was handed a 10-second time penalty for causing the collision.

Round 2 done. Three different race winners across Miami. The championship separated by one point with twelve rounds remaining. Montreal is next. Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. The first ever Formula 2 race in Canada. Another blank page for the whole field.