Gabriele Minì believes winning Formula 2 is the clearest way to earn his opportunity in Formula 1, with the Alpine Academy driver firmly in contention for the 2026 F2 championship. The Italian sits second in the standings with 147 points after nine rounds, only 20 behind championship leader Nikola Tsolov, while Alpine is gradually involving him more closely in its Formula 1 programme.
Gabriele Minì’s title challenge has been built largely on consistency. He has scored points in 16 of the 18 races held so far, claimed two victories and finished on the podium nine times – more than any other driver on the grid. Those results have kept him firmly in contention despite admitting that outright pace has not always been his strongest weapon this season.
Gabriele Minì builds F2 title challenge on consistency
Looking back at his campaign so far, Gabriele Minì believes the overall picture has been positive despite a difficult beginning.
“So far, I think it’s gone fairly well. We didn’t have the best start. We were really quick in Melbourne, but because of a problem we had to start from last place, so it wasn’t ideal. We still managed to score points, but we lost a lot of points that weekend.”
Rather than relying purely on outright speed, Gabriele Minì believes maximising every opportunity has been fundamental to remaining in the championship fight.
“We haven’t been the fastest, but we’ve maximised things better than anyone else. It’s been quite decent. Consistency is always really, really important. Obviously, it can’t mean consistently finishing P10, otherwise you never score enough points. But you have to maximise what you have if you want to try to win championships.”
Alpine continues to support Gabriele Minì
The Alpine Academy continued supporting Gabriele Minì even during the more difficult stages of his junior career. The Italian explained that those periods were complicated because his problems were not necessarily caused by driving errors.
“It’s always difficult, to be honest, because it wasn’t as though I was driving badly or making mistakes. We were simply slow.”
That also made it difficult for Alpine to identify one simple piece of advice that could immediately transform the situation.
“It wasn’t easy for them either to say, ‘Okay, you need to do this, you need to do that.’ But we always worked hard, focusing on the basics such as good braking and race craft. We looked at things we could have done differently, such as tyre saving.”
The situation is considerably more encouraging in 2026. Gabriele Minì says Alpine is pleased with the progress he has made and is now increasing his exposure to Formula 1 machinery and engineering work.
“Naturally, they’re quite happy and satisfied. I’ll also have the opportunity to test with them, so that’s a good thing. They’re involving me more and more in the F1 work, so I’m in the simulator, which is very useful for me and is a great opportunity.”
Minì sees Formula 2 as the final step before Formula 1
For Gabriele Minì, Formula 2 remains the closest proving ground to Formula 1 and therefore the clearest place to demonstrate that he deserves an opportunity at the highest level.
“In the end, F2 is the category closest to F1, so if you do well, in theory you should have a chance. It’s not 100 per cent guaranteed because there are contracts that have to be respected, but you have a better chance than if you’re doing badly.”
Gabriele Minì added that Alpine appears satisfied with the work completed so far, even though he and his team still want to find another step in outright performance.
“So far, I think they’re happy. As I said, we haven’t been the fastest, but we’ve been very consistent, so I’m quite satisfied with the work we’ve done so far. I know both my team and I are working very hard to find some extra pace and to be as consistent as possible in every area.”
Gabriele Minì says he needs to win F2 to reach F1
When it comes to reaching Formula 1, Gabriele Minì’s view is straightforward: he needs to win. He does not regard only the other Alpine-associated drivers on the Formula 2 grid as competition for a future seat. Instead, he considers every driver in the paddock a potential rival for an opportunity at the next level.
“At the end of the day, you go to F2 because you want to get to F1, so you have to win it. Every driver here could be part of Alpine, but ultimately I still have to be the one who wins. If I were the only Alpine driver and had a bad year in F2, I wouldn’t go to Formula 1.”
The pressure created by that reality is nothing new for Gabriele Minì. He believes his entire career has effectively prepared him for a situation in which every season can determine whether the next opportunity arrives.
“I’ve been preparing for this moment for a long time. There hasn’t been a single year when I could afford to be bad. Every year you have to show the pace to earn the following year.”
Gabriele Minì also stressed that his career path is not entirely under his own control, with Alpine and his management playing important roles in determining what comes next.
“I’m not the one who decides where I go. It’s my management, Alpine and everyone else, so I always have to show that I deserve a chance. If I’d had a bad first year in F3, that would have been my last race ever. I wouldn’t have had a second year.”
Minì refuses to let the F1 opportunity create extra pressure
Despite knowing how much is at stake, Gabriele Minì insists he does not feel additional pressure. His focus is instead on completing the season without regrets and knowing that he extracted everything possible from himself.
“As I said, I’ve been preparing for this my whole life, so I don’t feel any pressure. I know that probably the worst thing in life is having regrets, so I’m going to approach this year as calmly as I can and do the best job possible.”
“I want to reach the end of the year and say, ‘Okay, I couldn’t have done anything better.’ At that point, I’ll be happy with myself.”
With Gabriele Minì only 20 points behind Nikola Tsolov and Alpine increasing his involvement in Formula 1 work, the remaining rounds of the 2026 Formula 2 season could prove decisive. His objective, however, could hardly be clearer: maximise every race, fight for the championship and give Alpine the strongest possible reason to offer him a future opportunity in Formula 1.
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