Leonardo Fornaroli capped a remarkable rookie season in the FIA Formula 2 Championship with Invicta Racing by sealing on Sunday the 2025 championship with a round to spare under the lights of Losail, finishing second behind race winner Victor Martins.
The 20-year-old Italian’s consistency proved decisive as his closest rivals faltered: Jak Crawford slipped to 11th, Richard Verschoor managed only sixth, and Fornaroli’s points lead became untouchable – barring a remote post-race penalty twist involving Arvid Lindblad.
The triumph crowns a rapid rise through the junior ranks. Just like his predecessor at Invicta, Gabriel Bortoleto, Fornaroli now owns back-to-back F3 and F2 titles. Yet their paths could diverge sharply from here.
While the Brazilian stepped straight into Formula 1 with Sauber, Fornaroli faces a far more uncertain future: he does not hold a contract with any F1 team.
It’s a jarring contrast for a young talent that has delivered so much. Fornaroli clinched last year’s F3 crown without a win, then answered critics this season with four victories – including a commanding feature race triumph in Hungary – and relentless points scoring that kept him ahead of more experienced rivals like the five-season veteran Verschoor.
But as the celebrations erupted in Qatar, the bigger question lingered: what comes next for the newly crowned champion who, despite proving himself again and again, has no clear route to the F1 grid?
