Nikola Tsolov — Bulgarian F2 Driver, Red Bull Junior, Campos Racing
Sofia · Bulgaria
Milestone Seasons
+
’22Spanish F4 title
’25F3 wins record
’26First F2 win
Nikola Tsolov · The Bulgarian Lion
Tsolov
▸ Nationality
Bulgarian
▸ Born
21 December 2006
Sofia · age 19
▸ Team
Campos Racing · #6
Red Bull Junior · F2 2026
▸ F3 Wins
5
All-time F3 record holder
▸ Spanish F4 ’22
13
Wins in 21 races · champion
▸ 2025 F3 Final
P2
Runner-up · Campos teams’ title
▸ First F2 Win
’26
Melbourne — Bulgaria’s first, ever
nikolatsolovfan.com
2026 Season
Race Recaps
2026 F2 — Results & Highlights
R01
Melbourne · Albert Park
6–8 March 2026
Feature Win
Sprint P17
▼
P1Feature
P17Sprint
P5Qualifying
25Points
Feature Race — Lap Position
Key Moments
Lap 1
Started P5, stormed through Turn 1 to run P3 on the opening lap
Lap 3
Inherited lead after Dunne and Stenshorne collided at Turn 1 — took P1
Lap 8
Fastest lap of the race — extended lead to 4.2 seconds
Finish
🏁 First F2 win — Bulgaria's first-ever F2 race victory
"I just tried to stay calm on the first lap, pick my moments. Once I was in clean air, the car was perfect." — Nikola Tsolov
R02
Miami · Miami International Autodrome
1–3 May 2026
Sprint Win
Feature DNS
▼
DNSFeature
P1Sprint
P10Qualifying
10Points
35Total Pts
Sprint Race — Lap Position
Key Moments
Sprint
Started P1 (sprint pole, reverse grid), took lead early and controlled the race
Final lap
Van Hoepen overtook at T11 — Tsolov hit back with DRS on the straight
Finish
🏆 Sprint Win — F2's first ever winner in Miami
Feature
DNS — Tagged out at the start by Inthraphuvasak before race began (10s penalty to Inthraphuvasak)
"It was intense but funny at the same time. I lost the lead, got it back — that's racing." — Nikola Tsolov
R03
Montréal · Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
22–24 May 2026
Feature P12 (penalty)
Sprint P14
▼
P12Feature (post-penalty)
P14Sprint
P4Qualifying
0Points
35Total Pts
Feature Race — Lap Position
Key Moments
Quali
P4 (+0.312) — chaotic session with two red flags; Van Hoepen took pole
Sprint
From P7 on reverse grid, dropped back in a chaotic race. Finished P14, no points.
Lap 15
Innocent victim of contact — dropped from the fight to P16, outside the points
Recovery
🔥 P16 → P4 on the road — twelve places back through traffic, tyre-management masterclass
Post-race
⚠️ 10s penalty for leaving the track + gaining advantage against Goethe at T13–14 — reclassified P12, no points
Final
0 points · drops to P3 in title fight · 35 pts (−22 to Minì)
Technical Takeaway
The Montréal recovery from P16 to P4-on-the-road was a tyre-management masterclass that, in raw racing terms, should have protected 12 points and the championship lead. Instead, a post-race 10-second penalty for a track-limits infringement while defending against Goethe at Turns 13–14 wiped the result out — reclassified P12, zero points. The drive itself showed elite race-craft; the stewards' decision is what cost the points. Tsolov leaves Canada P3 in the championship, 22 points adrift of Minì.
Result re-classified P12 following a 10-second time penalty applied after the chequered flag · zero points from the weekend
Nikola Tsolov F2 results 2026 — race calendar, standings, schedule
Season Tracker
2026 F2
Next round
Barcelona · R05
Barcelona · R05
--Days
:
--Hrs
:
--Min
:
--Sec
Until lights out
Feature Race
Feature Race
R07 Session Schedule · Silverstone Circuit
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🇫🇷 Paris (CEST/CET)
🇦🇪 Dubai (GST)
🇯🇵 Tokyo (JST)
🇦🇺 Sydney (AEST)
Rnd
Race
Sprint / Feature
Date
Win
Podium
Points
No race / DNS
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Live Forecast · Updated each race weekend
2027 F1 Seat Forecast
A transparent, weekly-updated forecast of Tsolov's probability of landing a Formula 1 role in 2027 — broken down by the four factors that actually move the needle.
Race seat 2027
0%
Probability Tsolov starts a 2027 F1 grand prix — Racing Bulls being the realistic landing spot.
— no change
Some F1 role 2027
0%
Race seat or reserve / test-driver role inside the Red Bull umbrella for the 2027 season.
— no change
The four factors that move the needle
F2 championship position
—
—
Racing Bulls vacancy odds
—
—
Tsunoda contract movement
—
—
Marko relationship signal
—
—
Methodology
Race-seat probability =
(F2×0.40 + Vacancy×0.30 + Tsunoda×0.10 + Marko×0.20) × 0.55 ceiling adjustment.
Reserve probability = (F2×0.30 + Vacancy×0.15 + Tsunoda×0.25 + Marko×0.30) × 1.10 ceiling adjustment, capped at 95%.
All factor weights and inputs are hand-set per round based on public Red Bull pipeline signals.
Driver Profile
The Story
Sofia to the front row
"It seemed impossible in the beginning, coming from Bulgaria and being limited financially. But when you believe in something, nothing can stop you."
— Nikola Tsolov
Born in Sofia on 21 December 2006, Nikola Tsolov is the most successful single-seater driver Bulgaria has ever produced — and at nineteen, he is only just getting started. A Fernando Alonso protégé who came up through FA Racing karting and the Alpine Academy, he switched to the Red Bull Junior Team in November 2024 and signed permanently with Campos Racing for his 2026 F2 debut.
Two Formula 4 (Spain) seasons, three FIA Formula 3 seasons, and the all-time F3 wins record (5) led to Melbourne in March 2026 — where he became the first Bulgarian to win an FIA Formula 2 race and made a piece of national sporting history. The full career story is below.
Full feature From karts to championship leader — the Nikola Tsolov story →FIA Super License points
Progress toward the 40 points required to race in Formula 1 — counted over a rolling 3-year window
25/40
2025
FIA Formula 3 — Vice-Champion
+25
2026
FIA Formula 2 — Top 3 unlocks Super License
+40
2022
Spanish F4 — Champion (expired end 2025)
+12
A Top 3 finish in F2 2026 (worth 40 pts) would push Tsolov past the threshold. He currently leads the championship by 17 points with six wins.
Did you know? The top 3 isn't the only route. With 25 points banked, P4 (30 pts) or P5 (20 pts) in F2 already clears the 40-point bar. There's also an FP1 path: every F1 Friday practice outing completed adds 1 point, up to 10 — enough that even P6 in the championship could get him over the line with five FP1 sessions.
Read: Tsolov vs the Class of '26 — inside the rookie title hunt →
Read the full F1 2027 seat analysis →
Did you know? The top 3 isn't the only route. With 25 points banked, P4 (30 pts) or P5 (20 pts) in F2 already clears the 40-point bar. There's also an FP1 path: every F1 Friday practice outing completed adds 1 point, up to 10 — enough that even P6 in the championship could get him over the line with five FP1 sessions.
Read: Tsolov vs the Class of '26 — inside the rookie title hunt →
Read the full F1 2027 seat analysis →
Nikola Tsolov career timeline — karting, F4, F3, Formula 2
Career Path
From karts to the grid
2019
Karting · Champion
WSK Open Cup — 60 Mini
Wins his first international karting title at age 12.
2021
Karting · P3
Dubai 24h Endurance with Fernando Alonso
Hand-picked by Alonso to share a kart with him, Pedro de la Rosa, and Ángel Burgueño. They finish on the podium.
2022
F4 · Champion
Spanish F4 — Campos Racing
13 wins from 21 races. Title secured three races before the season's end. Joins the Alpine Affiliate Programme in March of the same year.
2023
F3 · Rookie
FIA Formula 3 — ART Grand Prix
Debut F3 season. Two points finishes at Spa and Monza; finishes 22nd in the standings while building experience.
2024
F3 · 1st Bulgarian Winner
FIA Formula 3 — ART Grand Prix
Wins the Monaco Sprint Race — the first Bulgarian to win in F3. Adds further wins at Spielberg and the Hungary Feature Race.
2025
F3 · Runner-Up
FIA Formula 3 — Campos Racing
Joins the Red Bull Junior Team. Wins in Bahrain and from pole in Monaco. Becomes the all-time F3 wins record holder (5). Finishes second in the championship behind Rafael Câmara. Drafted to F2 for the final two rounds — first F2 podium at Yas Marina.
2026
F2 · Race Winner
FIA Formula 2 — Campos Racing · #6
Wins the Melbourne Feature Race — Bulgaria's first ever F2 victory. Leads the championship out of round one.
Drivers' Championship
Drivers' Championship
2026 Standings
After Round 07 · Silverstone
1
NT
Nikola
Tsolov
Rookie
Campos Racing
141
2
GM
Gabriele
Minì
MP Motorsport
124
3
RC
Rafael
Câmara
R
Invicta Racing
94
4
AD
Alexander
Dunne
Rodin Motorsport
92
5
NL
Noel
León
R
Campos Racing
69
6
KM
Kush
Maini
ART Grand Prix
63
7
DB
Dino
Beganovic
DAMS Lucas Oil
57
8
MS
Martinius
Stenshorne
R
Rodin Motorsport
48
9
LH
Laurens
van Hoepen
R
Trident
47
10
RV
Rafael
Villagómez
Van Amersfoort Racing
30
Title Battle
Head-to-Head
Championship Leader · P1
Tsolov
Nikola Tsolov
Campos Racing · #6 · Bulgaria
141
Points
VS
+17 pts
After R07
7 of 14
7 of 14
P2 · −17 points
Minì
Gabriele Minì
MP Motorsport · Italy
124
Points
141
Points
124
6
Race Wins
1
20.1
Pts / Round
17.7
P5.00
Tsolov · Avg Qualifying (lower = better)
Melbourne P5 · Miami P10 · Montréal P4 · Monaco P2 · Barcelona P6 · Spielberg P3 · Silverstone P5
—
35
Last Round Pts (R07 Silverstone)
Tsolov Sprint WIN + Feature WIN · Minì Sprint P2 + Feature P6
16
13/14
Races Finished
Tsolov DNF — Miami Feature (first-lap contact)
14/14
Tsolov leads by 17 points after winning both Silverstone races — the first F2 double-win weekend since 2024, and his third win in a row. Six wins to Minì's one
Source · FIA Formula 2 · fiaformula2.com
In pictures
On track
"
It would be a dream for both me and the country to be the first Bulgarian driver in F1 — this is my goal and I'm only getting closer every day.
Nikola Tsolov
Torqued Magazine · April 2026
Did you know
He drove the Red Bull RB7 through Sofia
In June 2025, Tsolov drove Vettel's 2011 championship-winning RB7 down the streets of his hometown — the first time a Bulgarian driver had ever taken part in a Red Bull show run. He calls it a moment he'll "remember forever."
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