Formula 2 won’t be following F1 to all its glamorous destinations anytime soon, despite growing pressure from the sport’s top brass.
The junior series is set to race at Madrid’s new street circuit from 2026, but that might be one of the few new additions to its calendar.
Bruno Michel, who runs both F2 and F3, had to put his foot down when F1 boss Stefano Domenicali suggested matching F1’s packed 24-race schedule.
“Of course the promoters want us to be everywhere,” Michel explained. “But I simply cannot do that.”
This year’s F2 season had a massive 2.5-month gap right in the middle – while F1 kept racing through Brazil, the US, and Mexico. The young drivers were left sitting on their hands.
“It used to be even worse – three months,” Michel said. “We’ve improved things a bit by moving Baku to September before Qatar, but it’s still not ideal.”
F2 currently runs 14 race weekends, which Michel considers the sweet spot. But he hasn’t completely closed the door on expansion.
He’s talking with promoters about possibly filling that mid-season gap. “We’re looking at places like Austin, Mexico, or Brazil,” he revealed. “But these are expensive trips – we need to make sure the numbers work.”
Las Vegas is definitely off the table though. “There’s very limited track time there,” Michel explained.
The challenge is balancing growth with practicality. F2 teams don’t have F1’s massive budgets, and overseas races can strain their resources.
“We might add one or two races,” Michel said. “But if we don’t, that’s fine too. We need to make decisions that make sense for everyone.”
