Round 12 of the 2026 FIA Formula 2 season arrives in Baku after a week’s break, bringing an insane new format and a massive 67 points on offer this weekend in Azerbaijan. That is right: following the setup seen in Madrid for Formula 3, this weekend features two Qualifying sessions, one Sprint Race, and two Feature Races.
Thursday kicks off the chaos with Free Practice followed immediately by two 20-minute back-to-back Qualifying sessions. Friday packs in a morning Sprint Race and the first Feature Race in the afternoon, leaving the final race for Saturday. It will be an absolute test for both the machines and their drivers, but with so many points up for grabs, a clean sweep could completely change the championship landscape.
History tells us just how vital it is to lead right now. Over the previous nine seasons of Formula 2, the driver holding the Championship lead with two rounds remaining has gone on to take the title. After this weekend, the championship faces a two-month gap before the final two rounds in Lusail and Yas Marina.
Nikola Tsolov enters the weekend leading the Drivers' Championship for Campos Racing, but the Campos Racing driver needs a bounce back. After claiming six victories in the first seven rounds, his last four race weekends have delivered just one podium and two DNFs. Yet the raw pace of the Campos Racing machine remains strong, which he'll need because Rafael Câmara sits just seven points behind, with Gabriele Minì and Alexander Dunne also closing the gap in Madrid.
Meanwhile, Joshua Duerksen is hunting history. The Invicta Racing driver arrives at the circuit of his first F2 victory in 2024 looking to claim the outright record for the most wins in the championship. Following his Feature Race victory in Monza, Duerksen is tied with Artem Markelov, Nyck de Vries, Richard Verschoor, and Felipe Drugovich on eight wins. Returning to Baku—where he also charged from P14 to finish second in the Feature Race last season—gives the Invicta Racing driver a prime shot at standing alone in the record books.
