Nikola Tsolov becomes first Bulgarian to take part in official F1 session

Nikola Tsolov has become the first Bulgarian to take part in an official Formula 1 session after being selected by Racing Bulls for the opening free practice session at the Mexican Grand Prix on Friday. The 19-year-old will drive the VCARB 03, replacing New Zealander Liam Lawson. His Racing Bulls teammate for the session will be Arvid Lindblad, with whom he also competed during the final two rounds of the 2025 Formula 2 season.

Tsolov finished in 12th place, nearly a second and a half behind the fastest driver of the session, Charles Leclerc, and will hand over his place in the Racing Bulls car to Lawson, for the rest of the weekend, CE Report quotes BTA.

Tsolov made his debut on the medium tyres and his first fast lap of the 4.304km track was in 1:22.070, 1.256 seconds behind the leader Kimi Antonelli. This achievement put him in 11th place, with almost everyone else except the Racing Bulls running on the hard compound tyres. Gradually, the Bulgarian climbed to sixth place with a time of 1:20.661, ending his first stint at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodrigues.

Tsolov went out quickly for the second session, again on the medium-compound tires, and immediately improved his time to 1:20.513 minutes. The Bulgarian was given the soft tires for the last 20 minutes of the session and improved his time to 1:19.604 minutes, which was only 59 thousandths behind the achievement of the starting driver of Red Bull – Isaac Hadjar. However, he had to make a short pit stop due to numbness in his right leg. The Bulgarian driver failed to improve his time at the end of practice and finished in 12th place.

Tsolov began his racing career in karting, where his performances attracted the attention of two-time Formula 1 world champion Fernando Alonso. He moved to Formula 4 Spain in 2022 and won the championship in his debut season with 13 victories.

The Bulgarian subsequently spent three seasons in Formula 3, finishing as vice-champion in 2025. That result earned him a place in the Red Bull Junior Team and a promotion to Formula 2 with Campos Racing.

Tsolov made his F2 debut in Lusail before securing his first podium at the season finale in Abu Dhabi, finishing third in the sprint race at the Yas Marina Circuit.

In the current Formula 2 campaign, Tsolov has established himself as a title contender. Despite Invicta being widely tipped as the pre-season favourite, the Bulgarian has recorded six victories, including a historic one-two finish at Silverstone, and led the championship standings for much of the season.

He subsequently lost the lead following the feature race in Baku. Two rounds remain, in Lusail and Abu Dhabi, although their status is subject to the ongoing situation in the Middle East.

Tsolov had his first experience in Formula 1 in August, when he tested the 2025 Racing Bulls car and completed 702 kilometres which allowed him to secure the remaining points required for an FIA Super Licence.

Photo: Instagram/Nikola_Tsolov