TSOLOV COMPLETES PERFECT SILVERSTONE WEEKEND WITH FEATURE RACE WIN
Nikola Tsolov was the man to beat at Silverstone, completing a perfect Formula 2 weekend with another victory in the Feature Race. After winning the Sprint Race, the Campos Racing and Red Bull junior driver secured a double victory and moved to the top of the championship standings at the halfway point of the season.
The Bulgarian driver produced another impressive performance, taking advantage of a smart strategy and excellent tyre management to claim his sixth win of the season. It was his fourth Feature Race victory of the year and his second in the last three Feature races, showing that Tsolov has become one of the strongest drivers on the grid.
Tsolov started the race on Soft tyres, choosing a different approach compared to Rafael Villagomez, who would eventually finish second. The strategy allowed the Bulgarian to use the extra grip during the opening laps before switching to Hard tyres for the second part of the race.
The plan worked perfectly. While several drivers, including Kush Maini, Alex Dunne, and Rafael Camara, followed a similar strategy, Tsolov managed his tyres better than anyone else. After switching to the Hard compound, the Campos driver showed incredible consistency and began closing the gap to the leaders.
The decisive moment came on lap 19 when Tsolov made a brilliant move on Kush Maini at the famous Maggots and Becketts section. The overtake gave him the lead of the race and allowed him to create enough of a gap to control the final stages and secure his third consecutive victory.
The Bulgarian driver also benefited from a race without Safety Car interruptions, allowing him to fully use his strategy advantage. Tsolov was able to manage the tyres until the finish line and celebrate another important victory for Campos Racing.
After the race, Tsolov admitted that the team did not expect such a dominant weekend but praised the work done by Campos. He highlighted that qualifying remains an area where they need to improve, but their race pace has been extremely competitive.
Behind Tsolov, Rafael Villagomez delivered the best weekend of his Formula 2 career. The Van Amersfoort Racing driver finished second, adding another podium after his strong performance earlier in the weekend.
Villagomez used a completely different strategy, starting on Hard tyres and extending his first stint. The Mexican driver managed the race well and built a strong position before switching to Soft tyres late in the race. The move allowed him to recover quickly and close the gap to Tsolov, eventually finishing just over three seconds behind the winner.
Kush Maini completed the podium for ART Grand Prix. The Indian driver was unable to match Tsolov’s pace in the final stages despite following the same tyre strategy, but he successfully defended his position from Alex Dunne and Rafael Camara, who finished fourth and fifth respectively.
For Gabriele Minì, the race was much more difficult. Starting from 10th place, the Italian driver struggled to recover enough positions and finished sixth. Although he gained some important points in the second half of the race with the Soft tyres, the result was enough to cost him the championship lead.
Minì was unable to match the pace of Villagomez, who was using the same strategy, and had to settle for a points finish instead of fighting for the podium.
The rest of the top ten was completed by Leon, Bilinski, Durksen, and Inthraphuvasak. Several drivers had disappointing races, including Beganovic, who finished 12th, and Varrone, who ended the race in 13th place.
The weekend also ended badly for Herta, who finished 16th, while Goethe dropped to 18th position after making a late pit stop in the final laps. Montoya retired after suffering a rear suspension failure, while Stenshorne was unable to start the race due to a technical problem.
With his Silverstone double victory, Tsolov now leads the Formula 2 championship with 141 points. The Bulgarian has created a 17-point advantage over Minì, who remains second in the standings.
Rafael Camara sits third, 30 points behind the leader, while Alex Dunne is fourth, 32 points away from Tsolov. Leon completes the top five with 69 points.
The Formula 2 season will continue in two weeks at Spa-Francorchamps for the eighth round of the 14-round championship. Tsolov will arrive in Belgium as the new championship leader, looking to continue his incredible run of form and increase his advantage at the top.
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