Noel Leon takes maiden F2 Feature Race win in Budapest

Noel Leon won his maiden FIA Formula 2 Feature Race on Sunday at the Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest, taking the lead with a well-timed mandatory pit stop during a Virtual Safety Car period and then holding off Kush Maini and Rafael Camara in a tight finish. Leon crossed the line 0.8 seconds ahead of Maini, and the top three were separated by 1.2 seconds.

The race began with Maini on pole and Camara alongside him on the front row, while championship leader Nikola Tsolov started 12th after a grid penalty. Roman Bilinski also stalled on the formation lap and was pushed to the pit lane before DAMS Lucas Oil fixed his car problem and he rejoined. Leon used an early pit stop strategy to move into contention and did enough late on to seal the win.

Camara completed the podium in third for his fifth podium of the season, while Laurens van Hoepen finished fourth and Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak was fifth. Tsolov remained the championship leader with 167 points, ahead of Gabriele Mini on 147 and Camara on 145. Campos Racing led the teams’ standings on 261 points, and Formula 2 was set to return after the summer break at Monza from September 4-6.