Campos Racing driver Nikola Tsolov secured his fifth victory of the Formula 2 season by overtaking championship rival Gabriele Mini on the final lap of the Sprint Race at Silverstone on Saturday.
Tsolov, a Red Bull junior, started sixth and advanced through the field before capitalizing on a mistake by polesitter Mini at the start of the 21st lap.
>>> Australian Officials Urge Public to Respect Viral Elephant Seal Neil
Mini locked his wheels into the Loop, allowing Tsolov to utilize DRS and take the lead down the Wellington Straight to finish 1.2 seconds ahead.
Van Amersfoort Racing's Rafael Villagomez secured third place to complete the podium, followed by the ART Grand Prix duo of Kush Maini and Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak in fourth and fifth.
DAMS Lucas Oil drivers Dino Beganovic and Roman Bilinski placed sixth and seventh, while Joshua Duerksen claimed the final point in eighth.
The race featured an early safety car deployment on Lap 2 after an incident involving Sebastian Montoya and John Bennett, which also involved Colton Herta.
Racing resumed on Lap 7, where Tsolov continued his progression by passing Villagomez for second place on Lap 9 before pursuing Mini.
>>> US Marks 250th Independence Day With Parades, Military Reviews
Following the race, Tsolov and Mini are tied at the top of the drivers' championship standings with 116 points each, though Tsolov holds the lead on countback due to his higher number of victories.
In the teams' standings, Campos Racing leads with 178 points ahead of MP Motorsport's 144 points.
"P1 in the Sprint today, very good recovery and very good understanding of the car for tomorrow, so looking forward to the Feature Race," said Tsolov.
Penalties were also issued during the event, with Nicolas Varrone receiving a five-second time penalty for causing a collision, and Martinius Stenshorne handed a 10-second penalty following a battle with Rafael Camara.
>>> Tour de France 2026 Opens with Historic Team Time Trial in Barcelona
The Formula 2 field will return to the Silverstone circuit for the main Feature Race on Sunday morning.
