FIA Formula 2

The history of GP2 begins in 2005. The series was created to replace the discontinued International Formula 3000 . Its organizers are Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore . The reason for creating GP2 was the need for a championship, which is preparatory to participate in Formula 1. In this series, it is mandatory for all teams to use the same chassis, engine and the presence of a single tire supplier, which is necessary to create equal conditions for participation for all and to identify truly high-class racers ^[1] .

Most stages of the series are held as support races within the framework of Formula 1 racing weekends ^[2] to give pilots the experience of participating in the environment of the “royal” Grand Prix. GP2 competitions are mainly held in Europe, but there are exceptions (for example, in 2012 the stages of the series took place in Malaysia and Singapore) ^[3] .

Many riders who participated in GP2, then moved to Formula 1. For example, the champions of 2005 and 2006, Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton, respectively, already in their next season played in F-1: the German - in “Williams”, and the Briton - in “McLaren”. The winner of the 2007 championship, Timo Glock in the next 2008 became the main pilot of Toyota ^[1] . They were followed by a large number of other riders.

In 2011, GP2 was merged with the Asian monoseries GP2 Asia ^[4] . On March 9, 2017, the FIA ​​announced the renaming of the series in Formula 2 ^[5] .

Formula 2 cars

The Formula 2 car is based on the Dallara chassis , Renault V8 engine and Pirelli tires (since 2011).

• Chassis : The 2006 specification for the car was developed by Dallara Automobili. The 2006 GP2 is equipped with a double rear wing, a triple rear wing was used only in 2005 at the race in Monaco . The front upper and lower wishbones of the car suspension were reinforced, as were the front and rear suspension. Gross weight: 688 kg. Fuel tank: 125 l
• Engine : Renault V8 engine of 4 liters capacity of 612 liters. with. at 10,000 rpm Torque 500 Nm at 8000 rpm. Resource: 3500-4000 km.
• Gearbox : The 2006 gearbox was developed by GearTek and includes: 6 speeds + reverse gear. Longitudinal semi-automatic gearbox with electronic control, limited slip differential.
• Tires : Until 2005, the series used tires with grooves, but in 2006 the rules were changed to suit the slicks . The choice of tire class is determined by the supplier and organizers of the GP2 series before each competition. Until 2010, the Japanese company Bridgestone was the exclusive supplier of tires in the GP2 series. She supplied three slicks for dry weather (soft ( Russian soft ), medium ( Russian medium ) and hard ( Russian hard )), as well as for rain weather. For the period of the next two seasons - from 2011 to 2013. - The series management has concluded an agreement with the Italian tire manufacturer Pirelli ^[6] .
• Other components : Brembo supplies a new development of monoblock brakes and rims exclusively for the GP2.
  The car also includes internal cooling upgrades, a new water radiator, a radiator tube, a gasoline / water heat exchanger, new oil and water pipes and new heat exchanger mounting brackets.
• Performance : Thanks to research and pre-season tests, it turned out that the 2005 model is capable of accelerating from 0 to 200 km / h in 6.7 seconds. The maximum speed is 320 km / h, so only Formula 1 and IndyCar cars are faster than this car. It was said that the car will be about 10 seconds from the circle slower than the Formula 1 car.

Racing Weekend

On Friday, pilots have a 30-minute free-ride session and a 30-minute qualification. The qualification session shows which place the riders will start in the Saturday race, the distance of which is 170 kilometers, but no more than 60 minutes (with the exception of Monaco and Budapest, where the distance is limited to 140 km and 160 km, respectively).

During the Saturday race, each rider must pass a pit stop and change at least two wheels.

On Sunday, a sprint takes place with a distance of 120 kilometers, but no more than 45 minutes (with the exception of Monaco, where the distance is limited to 100 km). The starting grid is distributed according to the results of Saturday's finish: the first eight turns over, that is, the pilot who finished eighth on Saturday will start from the first position, and the winner from eighth place.

Scoring System

• Saturday pole position: 2 points.

• Fast lap: 1 point in each race. The rider who has shown the fastest lap must pass 90% of the race distance. The rider must also start from his position (that is, not from the pit lane), and also from 2008, in order to get a point for a fast lap, you must finish in the top ten.

With this scoring system, the maximum number of points that can be earned per stage is 20. To do this, start from the pole position, win both races and show the fastest laps in them. This was possible only to two pilots GP2 Brazilian Nelsinho Piquet and German Nico Hulkenberg . They scored a maximum of 20 points in the ninth stage of the 2006 season in Hungary and in the fifth stage of the 2009 season in Germany, respectively.

• In the 2012 season, the points system was changed.

• Saturday pole position: 4 points. Best lap in every race: 2 points. Thus, the maximum number of points for the entire weekend is 48.

Other

A pilot who previously became the champion in GP2 or FIA Formula 2 is not eligible for further participation in the series ^[7] .

Personal credit

Team Event

2005

The 2005 season was the first in the history of the championship, after the collapse of Formula 3000. Arden International , having won the latest F3000 titles, started the season as one of the favorites.

The 2005 season began on April 23, 2005 as part of the San Marino Grand Prix weekend at the Enzo and Dino Ferrari Circuit in Imola , Italy . At the pre-season tests, the numbers of the cars of the debut season were distributed, the best results were shown by the iSport International and HiTech / Piquet Racing teams. The last team was founded primarily thanks to the three-time Formula 1 champion Nelson Piquet , who helps his son throughout his formula career.

The championship consisted of 23 races, two each weekend excluding the only race in Monaco . The season was won by the German Nico Rosberg , who was subsequently hired by the Williams team.

2006

The 2006 season was the second season of the series. Two new Trident Racing teams appeared and the Formula 1 pilot Giancarlo Fisichella team combined with the Coloni Motorsport Fisichella Motor Sport . After the title holder went to Williams, and vice-champion Heikki Kovalainen became Renault 's reserve pilot, Nelsinho Piquet was at the rank of favorites at the Piquet Sports car, although the owners of ART Grand Prix cars Alexander Prema and Lewis Hamilton also had excellent chances, as ART was the current champion.

For the first time, the season was different from the schedule for the 2006 Formula 1 season , starting on the track in Valencia , Spain on April 8, 2006. Nelsinho Piquet became the first winner.

Initially, Pique was the leader before Lewis Hamilton began to catch him. The dominance at certain stages made him the leader of the championship, but then the balance again shifted towards Piquet.

After an exciting battle in the championship, lasting 20 races, Hamilton confirmed the title in the penultimate race at the Monza Circuit in Monza , Italy and celebrated the title with second place in the 21st final race.

2007

The 2007 season began on April 13 on the Sahir circuit and ended on September 30 on the Valencia circuit. The only rival for the dominant Timo Glock was the Brazilian Lucas Di Grassi , however, at the last race in Valencia, Glock confirmed his title.

2008

In the 2008 GP2 season, all previous teams remained. ^[8] This was the first season where the design of the car was changed by Dallara under the name GP2 / 08, it was the only car except Formula 1 cars that was able to fully pass the FIA crash tests . ^[9] The season was won by the Italian veteran Giorgio Pantano for the Racing Engineering team , the nephew of the legendary Ayrton Senna Bruno finished the season with the rank of vice champion.

2009

The 2009 season began and ended on the Iberian Peninsula . He opened the championship circuit in Catalunya, Spain (May 9-10), and closed the Algarve, Portugal (September 19-20). The champion title at the penultimate stage in Monza, Italy was won by Nico Hulkenberg .

2010

The championship included ten stages, all of which were Formula 1 support races. Pastor Malnonado became the champion , having gained a record six victories in the middle of the season. The second was Sergio Perez , who lost in a bitter struggle at the penultimate stage of Monza .

2011

The main triumph of the season was Romain Grosjean , who won five victories. The second place was taken by the Italian pilot Luca Filippi . Three leaders closed Frenchman Jules Bianchi .

2012

In 2012, the GP2 series was expanded to include stages in Malaysia , Bahrain and Singapore as part of support for the main stages of the Formula 1 world championship racing. The champion was David Valsecca , who played for DAMS. The second was Luis Razia , and the third was Esteban Gutierrez .

2013

This season, the Russian team Russian Time participated, replacing iSport International . She won the team event. The winner of the season was Fabio Leimer ( Racing Engineering ), followed by Sam Bird and James Calado .

2014

The 2014 season is the tenth in a row. The champion title was won by Jolyon Palmer , gaining 276 points. Second place was taken by Stoffel Vandorn , closed the three leaders Felipe Nasr .

2015

In the 2015 season, Stoffel Vandorn won the league title with 341.5 points. The second place was taken by Alexander Rossi , closed by the top three Russians Sergei Sirotkin .

2016

The season will be the last for the generation of the GP2 / 11 chassis. Pierre Gasley won the league title with 219 points. The second place was taken by the Italian Antonio Giovinazzi , closed the top three, as a year earlier, the Russian Sergei Sirotkin .

2017

The debut season for the generation of the new turbocharged Mecachrome V6 engines. The champion was Charles Lecler , the second was Artyom Markelov , and the third was Oliver Rowland .

2018

The second season in the history of the new championship. The calendar consisted of 12 stages, where George Russell became the champion, gaining 287 points, the second was Lando Norris , and the third Alexander Albon .

• List of pilots GP2
• GP2 Asia
• GP3
• Formula 1
• Formula 3000
• Formula 3
• Formula 2

1. ↑ The pilot, who is the champion of the FIA ​​Formula 2, has no right to continue to appear in the series.

• GP2 Series Site
• GP2 Official Blog
• Russian site about GP2
• English Information Website