Formula 2 eager to avoid 'very sad' championship-deciding scenario

Formula 2 CEO Bruno Michel has conceded it would be "very sad" if the outcome of the F2 championship is finalised outside a race weekend, with the two remaining rounds of the campaign still under the threat of cancellation.

F1's senior-most support series is due to conclude its season at the final two scheduled events on the Formula 1 calendar, in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, respectively.

However, the continued instability in the Middle East means it is still not definitively known whether the championship will — or even can — head to the region at the end of November for the final two legs of the planned season-ending triple header, which kicks off in Las Vegas.

F1's stance has long been that it will make the trip by default, but with recent fresh waves of hostilities in nearby Saudi Arabia — by way of strikes carried out by Yemeni Houthis — the lingering uncertainty caused by the United States and Israel's war with Iran prevails.

And even with Formula 1 expected to make a call in mid-October, such is the volatility of what will undoubtedly remain a dynamic situation past that point; the rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi being cancelled cannot be ruled out completely.

The Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix have already been affected by the conflict in the Middle East. After they were postponed from their scheduled slots in April, the former was rescheduled and relocated to Malaysia, whilst the latter was quietly dropped from the 2026 calendar.

F2, which should have raced at both, did not make the trip to the Sepang International Circuit for the unusually-named Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia earlier this month, as the forgone rounds had already been repurposed into an inaugural trip to North America, with slates at the Miami and Canadian Grands Prix in May.

But now, Formula 2 faces a new challenge: concluding a three-way drivers' title fight.

Coming out of the most recent round, in Baku, where the championship held an additional qualifying session and feature race — good for a maximum of 28 extra points — just seven points separate Haas-bound Rafael Camara and Red Bull junior Nikola Tsolov, who still could find his way onto the F1 grid next year with Racing Bulls. Alex Dunne is just a further 11 points behind the Bulgarian driver.

FIA Formula 3 — of which Michel is also CEO — concluded its campaign in similar fashion at the finale in Madrid, having lost its planned weekend in Bahrain, which may provide some clue as to why Formula 2 expanded the bill at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix for what was dubbed a "supersized" event.

Michel remains confident the races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi will go ahead, but would not be drawn on whether F2 would follow F1's expected contingency of heading to Imola to close out the season in early December if the Middle East swing cannot go ahead.

All of which creates the potential scenario whereby the title fight is retrospectively decided, and Camara is crowned champion away from the race track, by virtue of those two rounds being cancelled and not replaced.

Asked by RacingNews365 whether that would be a satisfactory outcome, Michel acknowledged it is a situation he is keen to avoid.

"Well, that would be very sad. Let's put it that way," he responded. "I don't think it's going to happen, honestly. [But] I don't think it's not going to happen...

"Because I agree with you; going back and saying, 'Oh, by the way, the champion has been declared a month ago, but we couldn't crown him' would not be very good.

"So yes, we absolutely want to finish the championship as it is."