PREVIEW: Round 5 in the familiar surroundings of Barcelona

After a dramatic weekend in Monte Carlo, the paddock is making its way to Barcelona for Round 5.

Gabriele Minì continues to lead the Drivers’ Championship but hot on his heels is Nikola Tsolov, who trails his rival by just one point heading to the Spanish venue.

As they and their rivals prepare to go wheel-to-wheel once more, here is everything you need to know ahead of Round 5.

WHAT TO EXPECT

The Barcelona action starts with a 45-minute Free Practice at 11:05 local time on Friday before Qualifying later in the day at 15:55.

That session sets the grid for both races, the first of which is a Sprint on Saturday afternoon at 14:15 local time.

The drivers will get one more chance to come out on top in Barcelona with the Feature Race scheduled to get underway at 11:25 local time.

STAT PACK

• There have been five different race winners so far this season and they have come from the top four teams in the Standings – Campos Racing, Rodin Motorsport, MP Motorsport and Invicta Racing.

• 10 different drivers have stood on the podium this season but Alexander Dunne is the only one to have stood on the rostrum in each round.

• Only three of Formula 2’s eight Feature Races in Barcelona have been won from pole position – Charles Leclerc in 2017, Oliver Bearman in 2023 and Arvid Lindblad in 2025.

• The last four polesitters in Barcelona have all been rookies – Jack Doohan in 2022, Oliver Bearman in 2023, Paul Aron in 2024, and Arvid Lindblad in 2025.

FROM THE GRID – Emerson Fittipaldi, AIX Racing

“It’s a very medium to high-speed circuit, high speed corners and a very technical circuit, one of the most technical circuits in Europe.

“Turn 1 is the best place to overtake. There is no perfect way to do it because if you are on the outside at Turn 1 you can be on the outside at Turn 2 and still make it but to be more secure you should go to the inside.

“Nailing the lap is probably the toughest thing about Barcelona, especially as everybody has driven here.”

TECHNICAL PREVIEW

Pierre-Alain Michot, FIA Formula 2 Technical Director

“Barcelona is a venue that is familiar to everybody in the paddock, as the teams and drivers have tested and raced here for a long time, not only in Formula 2 but in other junior categories.

“As a result, both the teams and their drivers will have a huge understanding of how to have success here, so this should be an extremely competitive weekend with the margins very close. “Barcelona is a very technical circuit, as while there is a long main straight, there are several medium to high speed corners. So downforce levels should be relatively high as the teams look to give their drivers a car with good balance that they can feel confident in all weekend.”

PIRELLI PREVIEW

The compounds selected for the Barcelona weekend are Hard and Soft. The circuit is one of the most complete on the calendar, featuring several high-speed corners that generate significant lateral loads on the tyres. The Sprint race will be completed on the harder option, with careful management of front-axle degradation required. For the Feature race, both strategies are viable. We therefore expect the teams to split between the Hard-Soft combination and the opposite approach. Starting on the red-marked tyre offers better grip in the opening phases of the race while not being particularly penalising in the event of neutralisations, given the possibility of extending the stint through effective management. The change of date in the calendar, with the race moved back by two weeks compared to its traditional slot, could lead to higher track temperatures. Surface overheating of the tyres will increase the performance delta between the two compounds.