Sweden’s Dino Beganovic says his season is building momentum after he secured his second podium result of the year with a third place finish in the streets of Monaco, during Sunday’s FIA Formula 2 Feature Race.
The race was won by Campos Racing’s Nikola Tsolov and Beganovic snatched third on the final lap, passing ART’s Kush Maini.
The DAMS driver bounced back from disappointment in Montreal last time out, where he suffered a car problem which forced him to retire from second place.
Technical issues have been a recurrence for an unlucky Beganovic, hindering his strong pace and good form. Despite losing valuable points in the opening rounds, this podium allowed him to climb to sixth in the Drivers’ Championship following a tough trip to Canada.
One point between the top two! ???
How the Driver Standings look as we head out of Monaco ??#F2 #MonacoGP pic.twitter.com/dEIyostpLY
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) June 7, 2026
“I think it was a good race. I mean we focused on bringing the temperature on the soft tyre, trying to bring a good start and it paid off going off in P4 and then kind of just managing and staying with the group ahead,” the 22-year-old said.
Starting strong, Beganovic claimed positions from lights out when Stenshorne suffered a tough start. He then chased after the Rodin’s team mate Dunne, piling on the pressure. The race settled, but the final push came when the DAMS returned to the track in P11 with a fresh set of supersofts.
The Ferrari Academy Driver said: “I think we did a good job and when it was time to push we managed to do that so think we did a good job in that sense but we got a bit caught off guard with the slower cars coming out of the pits.
“Then I had to defend quite a lot with cold tyres and obviously the last lap was on the limit but I’m very happy to be here in P3 because I really think we deserve it.”
Someone get Dino some food, he's earned it ??#F2 #MonacoGP pic.twitter.com/gdFGNZPqGB
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) June 7, 2026
Podium secured during dramatic conclusion
The frantic last lap left F2 viewers on the edge of their seats when Maini and Beganovic found themselves battling for that final podium spot. With colder tyres, Maini slid off the track, forcing Beganovic to cut the chicane.
The two cars re-joined the circuit and Beganovic retained the place ahead, leaving Maini to shift his focus to defending from the fast approaching cars behind.
Beganovic said: “For me it is very clear. I was going for the move on the outside and I obviously have the tyres compared to him. I was clearly in front at the braking and at the apex, obviously you can’t take the corner with the colder tyres so we both went off.
“I’m very sure I could’ve made the corner because I had the tyres in. Just in case, I tried to let him pass in the exit but he wasn’t really willing to do that so I kept my place and pushed to the line but I’m very confident I did the right thing.”
ON THE FINAL LAP! ?
Maini's newly fitted cold tyres create a dramatic finish to the Monaco Feature Race in the battle for P3 ?#F2 #MonacoGP pic.twitter.com/UcDJLYopCM
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) June 7, 2026
With the championship still heating up, Beganovic currently sits two points behind León and five behind Dunne. With strong momentum, the Swede could look to climb further up the order as F2 heads into the European rounds.
“I think like you say, we have the momentum. We had the momentum basically since Australia. Without the DNFs from technical issues, it would’ve been a different story by now so fighting at the front in the Feature Race is always a good sign but I always feel like we have had the momentum so we are going to just keep going at it.”
With Round 5 in Barcelona only a week away, Beganovic will hope to carry this momentum forward, looking to secure that vital race win.
The cars will return to Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for Free Practice on Friday at 11:05 CEST (BST+1).
Image Credit – Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty
