F2: 2020 Formula 2 Season Predictions
This year, FIA Formula 2 sees one of the strongest lineups the series has ever had. With Hitech GP joining the grid for the first time, F2 will see 22 of the world’s fastest rising stars race under the spotlight of F1 team bosses, each hoping to make the step up into motorsport’s premier series. Before taking a look at who I think will be the front runners for the title, the full lineup can be seen below.
Now to run through my predictions for the championship contenders.
Dan Ticktum – DAMS:
21 year old Ticktum has had a very chequered racing career thus far, with one of his most infamous moments coming during the 2015 MSA Formula Championship (turned British F4), when he purposefully crashed into Ricky Collard under safety car conditions. For this he got a 2 year ban from motorsport, of which one year was suspended.
The Brit then really made a name for himself in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship, winning he 2017 and 2018 Macau Grands Prix, and finishing runner up in the 2018 season, behind only Mick Schumacher. Since then, Ticktum has bounced about various series including F2 and Super Formula, and was signed as one of Williams’ Development Drivers for 2020, after having been dropped by Red Bull after a failed attempt in Super Formula in 2019.
If Ticktum can control himself, he has a very good shot at the title, with obvious pace and in the team that won the 2019 F2 Constructors Championship he will have a quick car too, and with Williams F1 driver George Russell possibly moving to Mercedes for 2021, a strong season for Ticktum could see him in F1 next year.
Guanyu Zhou – UNI-Virtuosi Racing:
The Chinese 21 year old is the 2019 F2 Rookie of the Year, and was awarded the Anthoine Hubert Award for the highest placed rookie of that year. He may not have won a race, but several podiums on-route to 7th at seasons end, beating the likes of Schumacher, Jordan King, Louis Delétraz and Callum Ilott, show’s he has serious potential.
In 2019, Zhou joined the Renault Sport Academy, and was promoted to Test Driver for Renault’s F1 team in 2020. With Daniel Ricciardo’s departure from the team for 2021, Zhou is widely tipped to make his F1 debut next year, and if he did, he would’ve beaten the likes of Sebastian Vettel, Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas to the seat. Taking the F2 title this year would no doubt secure that Renault F1 seat for him.
Marcus Armstrong – ART Grand Prix:
Kiwi Armstrong has had a stellar past 3 years in his career – 2017 saw his breakthrough year with the Italian F4 title, runner up in ADAC F4 and 4th in his native Toyota Racing Series. In 2018 he bettered that result to 3rd in TRS, and had a very strong debut season in FIA Formula 3 European Championship, with 1 win and 10 podiums. In 2019, the Armstrong finished runner up in FIA Formula 3, behind only Robert Shwartzman, and went one better in TRS to finish runner up in that series too.
At just 19 years old, he’s one of the youngest drivers on the F2 grid, but one with lots of potential, and signing with ART Grand Prix, the team that took Nyck de Vries and George Russell to the title the past 2 years, will only boost his title chances.
Jack Aitken – Campos Racing:
At 24 years old, Anglo-Korean Aitken is one of the oldest and more experienced drivers on the grid. After finishing runner up in GP3 2017 to George Russell, Aitken made his F2 debut with ART in 2018. An underwhelming season saw him finish 11th, but a move to Campos for 2019 saw him become one of the title contenders. Unfortunately luck wasn’t on his side and he finished 5th overall, with 3 wins and 7 podiums, but he proved that he has excellent speed and race craft, especially after a stunning move on Louis Delétraz for the win at Silverstone.
In a season with nearly half the grid being rookies, Aitken’s experience will certainly pay dividends, and being a Williams Development Driver, a potential Williams F1 drive in 2021 will provide plenty of incentive.
Louis Delétraz – Charouz Racing System:
Like Aitken, Swiss Delétraz has age and experience above most of the F2 field in 2020, having raced in F2/GP2 since 2016. The 23 year old has had a quiet time so far in F2, his best season being 2019, finishing 8th, but has proved before F2 he has good pace winning in Formula Renault 2.0 NEC in 2015, and finishing runner up in Formula V8 3.5 in 2016.
During lockdown, Delétraz has become very much a fan favourite, and has proven his speed on the sim by winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans Virtual event. In the post-season testing at Abu Dhabi last year, he drove for Charouz for the first time and was instantly fast, being the fastest driver on most occasions. Being one of Haas F1’s Reserve Drivers, a potential drive in F1 2021 is up for grabs, and winning in F2 would certainly put him in favour of fellow Haas reserve Pietro Fittipaldi.
Artem Markelov – BWT HWA Racelab:
Russian Markelov returns to F2 full time in 2020, having only made 6 appearances last year. He has raced in F2/GP2 since 2014, finishing runner up in 2017 to Charles Leclerc, and over the years has proven himself to have excellent racing ability, with a triple overtake into Turn 3, then overtaking Nirei Fukuzumi at the final corner at Austria on the final lap being one of the stand outs.
No doubt Markelov has the speed, but will HWA, new to F2 this year after taking Arden’s place on the grid, be able to provide a front running car?
Mick Schumacher – Prema Racing:
This is a driver that needs no introduction – son of 7x F1 World Champion Michael Schumacher, Mick has proven that he always excels in his 2nd year in a championship, after struggling in the first. This was seen most in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship, when in 2017 he finished a lowly 12th, but in 2018 he dominated to beat Dan Ticktum, taking 5 wins in a row, and finishing on the podium in 12 of the last 16 races. The same pattern looks to be happening with F2, having finished down in 12th again in 2019.
Schumacher will surely be on the shortlist for Alfa Romeo in 2021, but he has to beat several other Ferrari Driver Academy racers in F2 this year to get that drive. Being a Schumacher will no doubt help, but if he doesn’t come out on top in the FDA battle, I will be surprised if he gets that Alfa Romeo drive.
Robert Shwartzman – Prema Racing:
Schumacher’s teammate Shwartzman will make his F2 debut this year after dominating FIA F3 last year with Prema. A fellow Ferrari Driver Academy member, Shwartzman is one of the most exciting young drivers on the grid. In 2018, the Russian won the Toyota Racing Series, and finished 3rd in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship, and the year before he finished 3rd in the Formula Renault Eurocup.
At just 20 years of age, there is still so much potential to unlock for the Russian, which considering the immense speed he already has, makes him a driver who is almost certain to make it to F1 in the near future. Shwartzman is widely considered the favourite for the 2020 F2 title, but will his lack of experience compared to rivals Schumacher, Zhou and Aitken amongst others cost him crucial performance to take the title?
Final predictions:
2020 is set to be an incredibly exciting year for the F1 circus, and could mark the changing of the guard at motorsport’s top level with 4x World Champion Sebastian Vettel and/or 2007 World Champion Kimi Räikkönen possibly retiring, and I believe this will be enhanced by Mick Schumacher taking the F2 title and signing for Alfa Romeo in 2021, quite possibly alongside Räikkönen.
Drivers Top 3:
- Mick Schumacher – Prema Racing
- Guanyu Zhou – UNI-Virtuosi Racing
- Robert Shwartzman – Prema Racing
Teams Top 3:
- Prema Racing
- UNI-Virtuosi Racing
- ART Grand Prix
