By Izzy Hurcum
You know summer’s really here when the Formula 2 and Formula 3 Championships arrive in Europe. The first two weekends of June featured back-to-back race weekends in Monaco and Spain, contrasting the tight streets of Monte Carlo with the high-speed challenges of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Monte Carlo, Monaco (5th – 7th June)
Campos Racing arrived in Monaco on the back of a strong start to their season in both Formula 2 and Formula 3. In Formula 2, Red Bull Junior Nikola Tsolov sat in third place in the Drivers’ Championship with 35 points, while teammate Noel León was just two points behind in fifth. In the team’s Formula 3 campaign, Ugo Ugochukwu led the championship on 25 points, while Théophile Naël sat 12th in the standings. Also driving for the team is Ernesto Rivera; however, he didn’t compete in the first round of the championship due to injury.
Qualifying for the Formula 3 races saw Théophile Naël claim pole position for the feature race, with Ugochukwu taking fourth and Rivera fifth. In the reverse-grid sprint race, Rivera and Naël were involved in a collision with Trident’s Freddie Slater. Rivera retired from the race due to damage a few laps later, however, Naël managed to drag the car home to finish 24th. Ugochukwu finished sixth. The feature race saw Naël finish in second after losing the lead to Brando Badoer in the first corner. Ugochukwu came home in fourth, and Rivera maintained his fifth-place start.
Over in Formula 2, Friday’s qualifying session saw Tsolov qualify second, while León’s tenth-place result secured reverse-grid pole for the sprint race. León converted his reverse-grid pole position to a sprint victory with Tsolov finishing just outside of the points in tenth. Things changed for Tsolov on Sunday, however, as he took his third win of the season in the feature race after pole sitter Rafael Câmara retired on lap 34. León finished ninth.
Watch: Izzy Hurcum gives a rundown of the 2026 Formula 2 Championship so far
Avid Formula 2 fan, Madison Foster, believes that Tsolov has a strong chance of winning this year’s championship: “I think Tsolov just has that edge over Minì. He’s already won three races this season, and he’s only a rookie. That’s impressive in itself, but even more so considering that his main rivals have already completed a season in F2. As for the Teams’ Championship, it’s Campos’ title to lose. They’ve won half of the races so far! If any other team wins the title, I’ll be shocked.”
Barcelona, Spain (12th – 14th June)
After a solid weekend in Monaco in both championships, the Spanish team arrived on home soil as the team to beat. The team led both the Formula 2 and Formula 3 Teams’ Championship with 107 and 75 points respectively.
Naël claimed his third consecutive Formula 3 pole position in qualifying, making a bold statement. Ugochukwu qualified second and Rivera seventh. The reverse-grid sprint race proved difficult for Campos. Rivera retired with engine issues on lap four, while Ugochukwu spun into the gravel on lap 13, ending his race prematurely. Naël salvaged eighth place and a single championship point in an otherwise poor race for Campos. The feature race provided a dramatic turnaround. Naël converted pole position into victory, while Ugochukwu finished third to secure a double podium for the team. Rivera finished in seventh.
Campos’ Formula 2 team suffered a disappointing qualifying session with Tsolov and León placing sixth and tenth. Tsolov secured a sprint-race podium and crossed the line second in the feature race. However, a five-second post-race penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage demoted him to fourth. León, on the other hand, finished fourth in the sprint race and eighth in the feature race, securing vital points for the team.
Campos Racing leaves Spain at the top of both the Formula 2 and Formula 3 Teams’ Championships with 134 and 126 points respectively. In Formula 3, Ugo Ugochukwu and Théophile Naël occupy the top two positions in the drivers’ standings, separated by just six points, setting up what could become one of the defining intra-team battles of the season. Meanwhile, Nikola Tsolov sits second in the Formula 2 Drivers’ Championship on 80 points, only six behind MP Motorsport’s Gabriele Minì, keeping Campos firmly in contention for titles across both categories.
“We’ve made a very strong start to both championships,” says Campos Racing Team Principal, Adrián Campos. “Monaco was an excellent weekend for us, and although Barcelona presented a few challenges, our drivers did a great job of making the most of every opportunity. Heading into Austria at the end of the month, our focus will be on continuing that momentum and scoring as many points as possible. It’s a circuit all of our drivers know well, so we’re confident they can settle in quickly during practice and qualifying and put themselves in contention for strong results in both the Sprint and Feature Races.”
Bonus: Campos Racing’s weekend in Montreal in the F1 Academy Championship
Listen: Izzy Hurcum rounds up Campos Racing’s weekend in Montreal for the second round of the F1 Academy Championship
