Gabriele Minì on revamping his approach and title fight lessons from F3 to F2

23 April 2026

After stepping up to FIA Formula 3 and securing victories and fighting for titles, Gabriele Minì graduated to Formula 2 and once again, proved he was a front runner.

But the Alpine Academy talent has learned a great deal along the way, and he details the biggest lessons and improvements he’s made since being a rookie.

The MP Motorsport driver hopes he can take all these factors into a title fight in 2026.

ADDING TO PACE

“I think the pace has always been pretty strong, to be honest. From the first test I did in F3, and the first race I did in F3 - I basically won it on track before getting the penalty.

“Same thing for F2 - we had pole position in the first round, so I think the pace has always been a strong point, most of the time at least.

“Then, you learn more and more in terms of approach, in terms of racecraft and things like that, the details, because in the end that's what makes the biggest difference. You can do a small mistake in a corner because you want to try another push more in Qualifying, and you end up losing ten positions.

“In this championship it's a lot, and it's a lot of points lost, so there's some details, some little things that just can change your championship, and that’s what you learn.”

EXPERIENCE AS CONTENDER

The Italian has been part of Alpine's junior setup since joining F3 and remains part of their programme in 2026

“You approach the first year in a certain way, and the second year with a bit more knowledge, let's say, trying to fight for the championship kind of mentality.

“But, the goal is always to fight for the championship straight away. There isn’t a championship I’ve been in where I went into it and said, ‘okay, this year I'm going to learn, I don't care where I finish.’ That's not how it works, for me at least.

“The goal is always to try and fight for the front, but it can change in terms of approach. For example, in the 2024 season there were many times where I just didn't have the pace for one reason or another, and we still went home with a few points.

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“In the end, how the championship ends is what really matters. So, we know that to fight for a championship you need also those kinds of small points scores here and there when there is not a possibility to score any, so that's a different mentality.

“Maybe on another occasion you try to send it maybe too hard and end up getting a penalty or crashing out, but if you play smart, maybe at the end something happens, some penalty is given to the others, you can gain. And that's also something to think about when it's not going your way.”

SELF REFLECTION

“I didn't really have anyone telling me that I needed more or less, you know? I just wanted to do it for myself. I know that it's something I needed and that would have been beneficial to do. Of course, it's a lot of work needed because I was essentially starting a diet, working every day.

“It's really not easy. I had to work really hard, but in the end it worked and it helped me quite a lot. I think that with the same physique that I had in F3, I would have not maybe managed to do everything well in F2, so that's why I needed a change.”

REVAMP

Minì joined MP Motorsport in 2026 for his second full-time campaign

“I changed my diet completely, really from one opposite to another. In a month, I gained like five kilos, which was crazy for me to think about.

“I thought I couldn't, but I did. And then I just kept on going, growing stronger and stronger. For example, at the gym now, I can just lift three times what I did one and a half years ago.

“And even now, I'm still keeping the same regime and I still keep on getting stronger, so it's very good.

“It’s really funny because I train my neck and people on the team will say let’s do that too, so I let them, but they do like a quarter or a third of my weight and they really struggle. So it's very funny to see, but of course for the drivers in general, the neck is really important.”

ALPINE SUPPORT

“I think it's really a good sign, having an F1 team and an academy that believes in you and gives you support all this time.

“So I'm really grateful once again for that. They're giving me big opportunities thanks to my manager, thanks to all the sponsors and thanks to Alpine, that's the reason why I can race today and I can race this season and all the past seasons. So I'm really grateful for them and grateful for everyone supporting me.

“And once again, it's not only an help in terms of these things, but it's also an help to grow as a person and as a driver on and off track."