Of the nine drivers returning for another full season in Formula 2, six are with a team they drove for in 2024. With the environment around them remaining the same, how have these drivers changed their approach as they aim to improve?

By Calla Kra-Caskey

In 2024, a new F2 car shook up the standings as teams adapted to the machinery. This winter has provided more stability for competitors, particularly those drivers staying with the same teams. 

Several driver-team pairings have existed long before F2. Rafael Villagómez’ partnership with Van Amersfoort Racing dates back to his 2021 Euroformula Open campaign. Since then, he’s driven for them for two F3 seasons and now a second F2 season as well. 

Last year, Villagómez finished 24th in the championship, the lowest placed of the full-season drivers. He identified qualifying as an area he could improve in his second season in F2. 

“After the year we had before that maybe wasn’t the best, it’s always good to look back and see where you can do better,” he told Feeder Series. 

“For sure the area that we identified was qualifying, because the majority of the time the race pace was quite strong compared to the people we were fighting around or even the guys at the front.

“You know how difficult it is to make up positions. If you start from the back, it’s difficult to just outpace everyone. So we identified that our qualifying needed the most work, and we worked quite hard during the winter to see if we could fix it, firstly myself and then as a team as well.”

Similar to Villagómez and his partnership with VAR, Red Bull junior Pepe Martí has been with Spanish outfit Campos Racing since the start of his single-seater career in 2021.

“This is my fifth year, so I know them very well,” he told Feeder Series. “I came into the team when F4 was a new addition to the team, so it was only F2 and F3 when I arrived. I’ve seen the team grow into a powerhouse in any category, and I’m really proud of Adrián [Campos Jr, team principal] and all the members of the team.” 

Martí said he appreciated the strong partnership between Campos and the Red Bull Junior Team as well as the stability that remaining with the same mechanics can provide. 

“Red Bull believes that they can provide a good car for us across the season,” he said of Campos. Last year, Martí’s teammate Isack Hadjar, likewise affiliated with Red Bull, took the drivers’ title to the final round and finished as runner-up while Martí himself finished 14th.

This year, he’ll line up alongside 17-year-old Arvid Lindblad, another highly rated Red Bull prospect. Although testing times are not fully representative, Lindblad finished above Martí in the overall classification each day of pre-season testing.

Still, Martí’s greater experience both on track and within the Campos garage could help him in the intra-team battle.

“It’s good to remain in the same team,” he said. “I know everyone very well and hopefully the partnership allows me to fight for the championship this year.”

Additional reporting by Martin Lloyd

Header photo credit: Dutch Photo Agency / Red Bull Content Pool