The Bulgarian Nikola Tsolov was penalized after the main race of the fifth round of Formula 2, held this Sunday (14) at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain. The Campos Racing driver had five seconds added to his final race time and dropped from second to fourth in the standings.
The move that triggered the penalty occurred in the late stages of the race when Tsolov overtook Gabriele Mini, MP Motorsport driver. According to the stewards, the Bulgarian exceeded track limits to complete the maneuver on the Italian at turns 10 and 11, which is not allowed by Article 27.3 of the F2 regulations.
The stewards also stated that Tsolov left the racing line for a brief period, and for an extremely short time. High-definition footage was required to confirm that the infraction was committed by the current Formula 3 vice-champion.
Two drivers benefited from the penalty against Tsolov: Alexander Dunne, who moved up to second in the standings, and Mini, who gains a podium position after finishing this morning’s race in third. The race was won by Brazilian Rafael Câmara.
Formula 2 will resume in two weekends, with the Austrian round at the Red Bull Ring.
