What a stunning drive. Alexander Dunne handled pole position with absolute authority to claim his first victory of the 2026 FIA Formula 2 season, breathing new life into his championship ambitions around the unforgiving Baku City Circuit. The Rodin Motorsport machine was in a league of its own, leading home a glorious 1-2 finish for the team as teammate Martinius Stenshorne brought his car home in second place. Dino Beganovic rounded out the podium in third for DAMS Lucas Oil after a fierce battle.
Down the order, the championship narrative shifted dramatically. Rafael Câmara snatched fourth place at the very line in a drag race against Noel León, a move that crucially promoted Câmara to the summit of the Drivers' Championship. Nikola Tsolov suffered a DNF in a chaotic race that saw a red flag stoppage following a multi-car incident at Turn 3 involving Tsolov, Joshua Duerksen, Cian Shields, John Bennett, and Rafael Villagómez, while Laurens van Hoepen and Ritomo Miyata also collided.
The race itself was pure street-circuit drama from the lights out. Dunne held his nerve through the opening corners to cover off Stenshorne, while Mari Boya ran fifth for PREMA Racing. Pit stops shuffled the pack wildly. Tsolov was the first of the front-runners to blink, but a sluggish stop dropped the Campos Racing driver to the very back in P19. Shortly after, Boya slowed to a halt out of Turn 2, triggering a Safety Car that scrambled the strategies entirely as Oliver Goethe and Colton Herta stayed out at the front.
Once racing resumed, the madness only escalated. Goethe defended brilliantly at the restart, but Dunne eventually pounced on Lap 16, slicing past into the first corner after Goethe ran slightly wide at Turn 16. Stenshorne soon joined his teammate at the sharp end, slicing past the DAMS driver at Turn 3 to reclaim an effective Rodin 1-2. Goethe then locked up under pressure from Stenshorne, letting Beganovic and León through and setting up a frantic four-car scrap for the final podium spots.
As the race ran to a time limit rather than the full 29 laps, Dunne crossed the line on the 22nd and final lap to seal a victory he dedicated to the team's relentless effort. "Super, super happy! I feel like it's been forever since I last won a race so to do it in the fashion today – getting the double podium today with the result in the Sprint and getting a 1-2 for the team is the cherry on top," Dunne said. Stenshorne secured P2, while Beganovic held off León and Câmara to take third. Câmara's last-gasp lunge past León pushed him to 182 points, one clear of Tsolov in the standings, with Dunne charging up to third on 174 points. Minì sits fourth on 161 and Beganovic fifth on 131.
In the Teams' Standings, Campos Racing holds firm at the top with 310 points, pursued by Invicta Racing on 272 and Rodin Motorsport closing fast in third with 267. MP Motorsport and DAMS Lucas Oil sit fourth and fifth with 198 and 166 points respectively. Saturday's Feature Race 2 will bring the Baku weekend to a close with lights out at 11:00 local time.
