The FIA announced plans to revive the Formula Two category in 2015, following the continued success of GP2 and Formula Renault 3.5. On 8 March 2017, following an agreement with Liberty Media, which had acquired both the GP2 series and the Formula One Group, the FIA confirmed the rebrand to FIA Formula 2. FIA President Jean Todt stated that rationalising the pathway to Formula One had been a major goal during his tenure.
The inaugural 2017 season comprised eleven rounds, ten of which supported the Formula One World Championship, with one stand-alone event at the Circuito de Jerez. The series retained the Dallara GP2/11 chassis and the Mecachrome V8108 GP2 V8 engine. Charles Leclerc, the reigning GP3 Series champion competing as a rookie, won the Drivers' Championship; Russian Time secured the Teams' Championship and was the last team to win with the Dallara GP2/11.
The 2018 season introduced the Dallara F2 2018 chassis, with the Mecachrome V634 engine and the halo driver crash-protection device — also adopted by Formula One that year. Circuit Paul Ricard and the Sochi Autodrom joined the calendar.
In 2019 the series suffered its first driver fatality in ten years when French driver Anthoine Hubert was killed during the feature race at Spa-Francorchamps. The race and the following day's sprint race were cancelled. The FIA subsequently introduced the Anthoine Hubert Award, presented annually to the highest-placed rookie in the standings; Zhou Guanyu was the inaugural recipient. The number 19 was permanently retired before the 2020 season in Hubert's honour, and number 18 was also withdrawn the following year.
The 2020 season was heavily disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and did not begin until July. The 2021 season underwent significant restructuring: each round featured three races rather than two, the number of circuits was cut from twelve to eight, and the calendar was decoupled from that of the FIA Formula 3 Championship. The Jeddah Corniche Circuit was added to the schedule. In 2022 the two-race-per-round format was restored and the calendar expanded to twenty-eight races across fourteen rounds. The Sochi round was cancelled following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
A new chassis, the Dallara F2 2024, was introduced in 2024. Designed to more closely resemble the current generation of Formula One cars, it incorporated revised safety technologies and was engineered to better accommodate female drivers. The series also made its debut at the Lusail International Circuit in 2024. Imola was removed from the calendar after 2025 and is to be replaced by the Madring from 2026 onwards.
A Formula 2 race weekend runs across three days. Friday features a 45-minute practice session and a 30-minute qualifying session. Saturday hosts the sprint race, whose grid is set by reversing the top ten qualifying positions; the race covers approximately 120 km or 45 minutes, whichever comes first. Sunday's feature race precedes the Formula One Grand Prix and covers approximately 170 km or one hour. Between 2017 and 2020 the feature race was held on Saturdays and the sprint on Sundays.
The top eight finishers in the sprint race and top ten in the feature race score championship points. Pole position earns two bonus points, and one additional point is awarded for the fastest lap if set by a driver finishing in the top ten. The maximum points available in a single round is 39.
Car numbers are allocated based on the previous season's team standings, following a system similar to Formula One between 1996 and 2013. Number 13 has never been used since the GP2 Series began in 2005.
As of 2025, all teams compete with a carbon-fibre Dallara chassis powered by a single-turbocharged Mecachrome V634 engine, scheduled for an update in 2029. The car must weigh a minimum of 755 kg with driver. The Hewland-supplied gearbox features an eight-position barrel; clutches are supplied by ZF Sachs via hand-paddle. OZ Group has been the sole wheel supplier since the GP2 Series; in 2020 the cars moved from 13-inch to 18-inch magnesium-alloy wheels in anticipation of Formula One's 2022 tyre regulations. Pirelli has supplied tyres since 2017. Electronics are standardised with a Marelli Marvel SRG 480 ECU and Marelli PDU 12-42 power management unit. The Drag Reduction System has been used since 2015, lowering the rear wing's upper element by over 40 degrees when a driver is within one second of a car ahead.
The cars are capable of top speeds around 335 km/h in low-downforce trim, with lateral acceleration of up to 3.9 g in corners and 3.6 g under braking.
Since the 2017 rebrand, Formula 2 has established itself as the dominant feeder route to Formula One. Charles Leclerc and Sergey Sirotkin were the first graduates, debuting with Sauber and Williams respectively in 2018. George Russell, Lando Norris, and Alex Albon graduated in 2019. Subsequent classes produced Mick Schumacher, Nikita Mazepin, and Yuki Tsunoda (2021); Zhou Guanyu (2022); Oscar Piastri and Logan Sargeant (2023). Gabriel Bortoleto, Isack Hadjar, and Kimi Antonelli joined Formula One from the 2024 champion class. In 2025, Lando Norris became the first Formula 2 graduate to win a Formula One World Drivers' Championship.
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