Winning a race is always a special feeling, especially for younger drivers. Here are some of the youngest F2 race winners.
In Motorsport history many records have been beaten. Max Verstappen is the youngest race winner in Formula 1, he took the record from Sebastian Vettel. Every championship has its records and as Michael Schumacher said: “Records are there to be broken”. In Formula 2 race winners are naturally younger. The series is set up to give youth a platform to shine.
There are drivers of all ages in Formula 2; for example, in the current grid, the drivers’ age goes from 29 to 18 years old. In recent years, there have been younger drivers racing in the F2 Championship. To allow everyone to prove their potential right away. And, perhaps, discover a generational talent.
Here are some of the youngest F2 drivers to have won a race.
1 Theo Pourchaire
17 years old, 9 months, and 2 days
THEO POURCHAIRE WINS IN MONACO‼️
Our youngest EVER winner! Amazing drive from the rookie 🙌#MonacoGP 🇲🇨 #F2 pic.twitter.com/sQ0YMu3tEv
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) May 22, 2021
In 2021, Pourchaire took home his first Formula 2 win in one of the most iconic places in Motorsport history: Monte Carlo.
After an excellent qualifying session, the Frenchman managed to get the pole position. Monaco is a track where overtaking can be a real challenge, so qualifying is usually the most important part of the weekend.
Thanks to a good strategy from the team and several twists that affected his closest opponents, Pourchaire won the race.
With the minimum age limit set at 17 years old to race in Formula 2, Pourchaire broke the record first held by Lando Norris, becoming the youngest driver to win a Formula 2 race. He showed to have what it takes to fight for the title. Therefore, he was reconfirmed for the following year.
2 Oliver Bearman
17 years old, 11 months and 21 days
In his rookie season in Formula 2, Bearman showed great talent, especially in Baku where he dominated all weekend. From free practice to the feature race he was always in first position, making his first Grand Chelem. After starting ninth on the grid, he managed to win the race by surpassing teammate Frederik Vesti before the safety car was deployed.
It was not only his first victory but also his first podium in Formula 2.
Next year, the young driver of the Ferrari Driver Academy could fight for the title and collect even more victories.
3 Jak Crawford
18 years old, 1 month, 28 days
After closing the Formula 3 championship in seventh place, it was announced in January 2023 that Crawford would race with Hitech for the 2023 Formula 2 championship. Despite the difficult start to the season, the junior Red Bull driver managed to bring home a victory.
In the Sprint Race of the Austrian Grand Prix, Crawford started on pole. In the beginning, due to the damp conditions of the track, he slipped into sixth position. Thanks to two safety cars, the track conditions improved and Crawford, with slick tires, was able to return to the lead, winning his first race in Formula 2
4 Lando Norris
18 years old, 4 months and 25 days
Lando has landed #F2 @LandoNorris pic.twitter.com/2Fcis0GE3i
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) April 5, 2018
Since his debut in F2 in 2018, Lando proved to be one of the fastest drivers on track. In Bahrain, the British won the first race of the season by over 8 seconds to his teammate Sette Camara. However, this will remain Norris’ only victory in Formula 2, but thanks to excellent consistency in getting good results, he finished second in the championship.
With 17 podiums (Norris 8, Sette Camara 9), team Carlin won the constructors’ title. The following year, Norris’ consistency and talent led him to sing with the McLaren Formula 1 team. He is still considered one of the most competent drivers on the grid.
5 Christian Lundgaard
18 years old, 11 months and 20 days
Before racing in IndyCar, Christian Lundgaard raced for two years in Formula 2, and in his debut season, he won two races. The first one was the sprint race in Austria, despite not starting from pole position but from third place. In front of him, he had Dan Ticktum and Marcus Armstrong, but after the lights went out, he started his race to victory.
He managed to overtake Armstrong and, a few laps later, Dan Ticktum too, taking control of the race.
These two overtakes allowed Lundgaard to stretch his advantage over his opponents and win the race with a gap of two seconds. The Danish finished seventh in the championship with another five podiums.
