What we learned in Baku: The title fight hots up but who has the momentum?

Round 12 has come and gone and we have a new Championship leader, but while Rafael Câmara is the driver everyone is now aiming for, is he the man in form?

That and more in what we learned across the Baku weekend…

THE TITLE FIGHT MOMENTUM ISN’T WITH THE LEADER

If you thought this was a title fight between just two drivers, you’ll want to reconsider. Alexaner Dunne put together arguably his finest round in FIA Formula 2 so far to well and truly stake his claim over the 2026 Drivers’ title.

The Rodin Motorsport driver entered the weekend 38 points adrift of then-points leader, Nikola Tsolov. He leaves Baku 18 back from Rafael Câmara after the Brazilian took over at the top of the leaderboard.

And even after taking 20 points out of the deficit, the Irishman left Baku dejected after feeling he should have been even closer, but for a misjudgment entering the pit lane in Feature Race 2 that netted him a five-second time penalty, demoting him from the top step to third.

Four consecutive podium finishes and a scoring streak going back a further three races proves that he is hitting form at the perfect moment.

The Alpine Academy driver also earned his first pole of the season having been a near constant presence in the top three on a Friday so far this season.

Though Câmara will have left Baku the happiest of the three contenders, it’s no longer just Tsolov who is the major threat to him in the title fight. Dunne means business and if he keeps his Baku form going into Lusail, he’s the driver to keep an eye on.

CÂMARA BRINGS THE CONSISTENCY

Câmara took the lead of the F2 Drivers’ Standings for the first time in 2026 with his Baku Feature Race 2 victory.

The Brazilian has a seven-point advantage over Tsolov leaving Azerbaijan, and now has three Feature wins this season, one shy of the Bulgarian’s tally so far in 2026.

The P15 result in the Sprint Race was the first non-score in a race the Ferrari Driver Academy talent has finished since all the way back at the start of July in the Silverstone Sprint.

His near constant presence in the scoring positions in the intervening races, minus one DNF in the Monza Sprint, has helped him fight back in the title race.

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That consistency has finally rewarded him with the lead of the Championship heading into Round 13 in Lusail.

Tsolov, meanwhile, has comparatively been in a slump in form after his heights of back-to-back wins at Silverstone and a podium in Spa.

His Saturday fightback in the second Baku Feature Race limited what looked likely to be a major points swing, but he will need to start finding the same vein of form as earlier in the season to keep Câmara under pressure now he’s out in front.

RODIN AND DAMS ON THE RISE

In the past two rounds, four teams have taken victories: Hitech, Invicta Racing, Rodin Motorsport and DAMS Lucas Oil.

The latter two have improved their championship standing in the process. DAMS now resides fifth in the Teams’ Standings having overtaken ART Grand Prix, while Rodin sits third after climbing ahead of MP Motorsport and is just a single point behind Invicta Racing.

Dino Beganovic has enjoyed a climb up the Drivers’ Championship himself, now sitting in the top five having earned 58 points across the last two rounds.

The Swede’s teammate Roman Bilinski is also on a run of four-consecutive points finishes in his own right. Meanwhile, Rodin’s Martinius Stenshorne earned pole for Feature Race 2 in Baku, secured a podium in the first Feature of the weekend and is on a points run of his own stretching back five races.

Both teams are on the up at a crucial time in the season, and with two rounds to go, both look well-placed to add another victory to their 2026 tallies before the end.