The 2020 FIA Formula 2 Championship saw three drivers earn promotion to Formula 1: Mick Schumacher (Champion), Yuki Tsunoda (3rd) and Nikita Mazepin (5th). Runner-up Callum Ilott also landed a reserve role with Ferrari, making last year one of the most successful seasons in GP2/F2 history. 2021 marks a new era for F2 as it embarks on its biggest shake-up since the series began in 2006. In Part 1 of the season preview, I take a look at the new weekend format and its impact on the calendar:
New format
In light of spiralling costs and the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Formula 2, and its sister series Formula 3, have adopted a new weekend format. Previously in F2, a Feature Race occurred on Saturday (Friday in Monaco) based on the result of qualifying the previous day. The race would require a mandatory pit stop to run both sets of tyre compounds, and a set distance of 170km. The results of the Feature Race would then set the grid for Sunday’s 120km Sprint Race, with the top eight being reversed. F2 used to appear in support of 12 F1 race weekends, whilst F3 would appear at 8, all of which were at the same races as F2. In this weekend format, this is how points were scored:
| Race Type | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th | Pole | Fastest Lap |
| Feature | 25 | 18 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
| Sprint | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | 2 |
Under the new format, F2 and F3 will now appear at separate race weekends, meaning there is more time in the schedule to fit in extra races. Qualifying will still set the grid for the Feature Race, which will take place on Sundays, with two Sprint Races on Saturdays. To set the grid for Sprint Race 1, the top 10 from qualifying will be reversed. Sprint Race 2’s grid will then be based on the results of Sprint Race 1, with the top 10 being reversed. The race distances are unchanged and each team will be provided with one extra set of dry tyres to compensate for an extra Sprit Race. F2 will now only appear at 8 F1 race weekends whilst F3 will appear at 7. Here is how points will now be scored:
| Race Type | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th | 8th | 9th | 10th | Pole | Fastest Lap |
| Sprint 1 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | 2 |
| Sprint 2 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | – | – | – | 2 |
| Feature | 25 | 18 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 2 |
The cost-cutting measures by the series were needed. This is evident in their renewal of the current Dallara F2 2018 chassis for another 3-year cycle, rather than introducing a new one as was planned for this season. With nine of the 11 teams in F2 also running teams in F3, the new weekend format and calendar means that this should alleviate some of the stress on team operations. There are two issues that have cropped up in this new format, however.
Firstly, qualifying in 10th is rewarded with a pole position for the first Sprint Race. On tight tracks like Monaco where overtaking is difficult, even for F2 drivers, this is such an unfair advantage. Secondly, reversing the top 10 is perfectly fine as F3 did the same in 2020 with their Sprint Race (albeit with a 30-car grid), but only the top 8 finishers score points in F2 Sprint Races.
This part just doesn’t make any sense to me. Should a driver who qualified 10th finish where they started in all 3 races, they’ll score 16 points (15 for Sprint Race 1, 0 for Sprint Race 2 and 1 in the Feature Race). In comparison, a driver that qualified 9th and finishes the races where they started would only score 14 (12 for Sprint Race 1, 0 in Sprint Race 2 and 2 in the Feature Race). Of course, fastest lap points could change that (given to the driver who sets the fastest lap, as long as they finish in the top 10) but it’s clear that drivers could feel incentivised to deliberately attempt to qualify 10th.
How I would address it is simple. Have two qualifying sessions, one setting the grid for Sprint Race 1 and the other for the Feature Race. This may be formulaic and requires a few more sets of tyres, but this is the fairest way to set the grids. Having an extra qualifying session could even provide an opportunity to trial a new format (for example, a Formula E-style Championship order), or even give a second crack at the F1 Elimination format that flopped back in 2016.
The calendar
| Round | Country | Track | Sprint Races | Feature Race |
| 1 | Bahrain | Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir | 27th March | 28th March |
| 2 | Monaco | Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo | 22nd May | 23rd May |
| 3 | Azerbaijan | Baku City Circuit, Baku | 5th June | 6th June |
| 4 | Great Britain | Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone | 17th July | 18th July |
| 5 | Italy | Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza | 11th September | 12th September |
| 6 | Russia | Sochi Autodrom, Sochi | 25th September | 26th September |
| 7 | Saudi Arabia | Jeddah Street Circuit, Jeddah | 4th December | 5th December |
| 8 | United Arab Emirates | Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi | 11th December | 12th December |
In spite of the number of weekends F2 runs shrinking from 12 to 8, this is compensated by having three races per weekend, so the number of races is actually unchanged at 24. Only 4 of the 12 tracks that featured last season are staying on the 2021 calendar. The new calendar was also altered due to the postponement of the 2021 Australian Grand Prix, with the Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi rounds pushed back by one week.
New event for 2021: Saudi Arabia
The championship will make its début at the Jeddah Street Circuit and running in support of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, a brand-new event on the F1 calendar.
Cancelled 2020 events returning: Monaco, Azerbaijan and Abu Dhabi
These three rounds were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the F1 calendar. Monaco and Baku in particular were shelved due to the inability to construct street circuits. Whilst the Abu Dhabi GP did go ahead in F1, the calendar reshuffle with two races at Bahrain meant that F2 elected to feature at both of those races. We finally saw a logical decision being made.
2020 events removed: Austria x2, Great Britain x1, Bahrain x1, Italy (Mugello), Hungary and Belgium
The extra rounds at Austria, Great Britain and Bahrain were removed as these were one off races on the F1 calendar, in addition to Mugello. Also, the Red Bull Ring will not feature at all as F3 will race at Austria. Hungary and Belgium also feature on their calendar so will not appear in F2 this season.
Cancelled 2020 events not returning: The Netherlands
Circuit Zandvoort had been included on the 2020 calendar but was removed from the schedule in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was initially expected that the round in The Netherlands would feature on the 2021 calendar, however the circuit was included on the F3 calendar instead.
I love a good rant about calendars in motorsport, case and point is my F1 article back in November. F2’s calendar is bad for a few reasons. Firstly, the circuit selection is poor, especially in comparison to the W Series and F3 calendars. Of the eight tracks being used, three of them are street tracks, four are also outside of Europe, where the teams are based. In a series that is supposed to be cutting costs, loading these cars on freighter flights to the Middle East and Asia three times seems unnecessary.
My second complaint is the overall length. The calendar is nearly nine months long. In the time Formula 1 is scheduled to complete 23 rounds, F2 is only doing eight. Granted they are not supporting every GP, but I do not understand the need to drag out the season for such a long period of time. There are also two-month gaps between Bahrain and Monaco, as well as Russia and Saudi Arabia, which are just aggravating. To counter my point though, at least the gaps give drivers an opportunity to try out other series that may pique their interest should they not reach F1, as long as they have the budget to do so.
Whilst I’m really not a fan of the overhaul in format and calendar, I am still excited by this season. I do appreciate that even in junior categories, it is becoming far too expensive, but I just feel that the series organisers have missed the mark with these changes. There are still a lot of talented drivers to follow in F2 this season though. A number of these drivers are part of F1 junior programmes and are all gunning for the F2 title. There is potential to be at least eight drivers involved in a Championship fight, so find out my opinion on the line-up in Part 2.