2006 GP2 Series

The 2006 FIA GP2 Series, otherwise known as the 2006 GP2 Season, was the second season of the FIA GP2 Series, staged between April and September 2006 in support of the FIA Formula One World Championship. The season would see Lewis Hamilton secure the title after a season long-battle with Nelson Piquet Jr., winning five races to the Brazilian's four.

Nico Rosberg had won the inaugural 2005 GP2 Series with ART Grand Prix, although the German racer was unable to defend his title due to the new series' rules. ART, who won the Teams Championship in 2005, subsequently employed Hamilton to partner Alexandre Prémat, with the Frenchman starting the season as the favourite.

It was Piquet who claimed first blood at the start of the season, taking victory in the 2006 Valencia Feature Race, while Michael Ammermüller secured the win in the Sprint. Gianmaria Bruni and Ernesto Viso were the next winners, before Hamilton secured a double victory at the Nürburgring.

Prémat picked up a win in Barcelona, while Viso secured his second victory of the season in the corresponding Sprint. Hamilton then took charge of the Championship, securing three wins on the trot in Monte Carlo and Silverstone.

Indeed, it was only when Piquet picked up three straight wins at the Hungaroring and Istanbul that the title fight opened up again, with the Brazilian moving just behind the Brit. Hamilton responded by finishing second in the Sprint, meaning he could win the title in the 2006 Monza Feature Race.

Ultimately, Hamilton would win the title in the Monza Feature, ending the season with a twelve point lead over Piquet. Prémat completed the top three, albeit some 48 points off the pace, as ART secured the title for a second consecutive season.

Calendar
For 2006 the GP2 Series would again implement a twelve round calendar, based around the 2006 FIA Formula One World Championship calendar released in late 2005.

A European Season
However, the GP2 Series would start the season with a stand alone round at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo on 8 - 9 April, before joining F1 for the start of its European season at Imola on 22 - 23 April. The Series would then support the European Grand Prix at the Nürburgring on 6 - 7 May as well as the Spanish Grand Prix on 13 - 14 May. The fifth round of the 2006 GP2 campaign would feature a single race at the Circuit de Monaco in support of the Monaco Grand Prix, ahead of a trip to Silverstone on 10 - 11 June.

After skipping F1's trip to North America over the rest of June, GP2 would return with a pair of races at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours on 15 - 16 July. The German Grand Prix at the Hockenheimring would be GP2's next event on 29 - 30 July, prior to a trip to the Hungaroring on 5 - 6 August. The Series would then head to Istanbul Park to hold its tenth round on 26 - 27 August.

The season would then conclude with a pair of races on consecutive weekends, starting with the Autodromo Nazionale Monza on 9 - 10 September, before the finale at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps on 16 - 17 September. However, the final round was dropped after F1 cancelled the 2006 Belgian Grand Prix, with GP2's attempts to find a replacement faltering.

Schedule
The full calendar for the 2006 FIA GP2 Series Championship is shown below:

Entry List
The full 2006 FIA GP2 Series entry list is outlined below:

Regulations
There were several tweaks to the sporting and technical regulations for the 2006 season, the majority of which were focused on updating the Dallara GP2/05 to increase the amount of wheel-to-wheel racing.

Technical
For 2006 the GP2/05 chassis would receive new rear bodywork, uprated brakes and suspension, as well as new Bridgestone full slick tyres, while Mecachrome introduced a software update and new air intake for their Renault badged engines.

Aerodynamics
The main feature of the 2006 aero-update would be focused on the rear wing, a revised biplane rear wing to replace the triple element version used in 2005. The original triplane design was only to be used at the 2006 Monaco Feature Race, and would be required on all cars at that round, while the new wing was to be used at every other race. The design was intended to increase the amount of downforce produced from the rear wing, while also reducing the amount of turbulence produced to allow cars to follow one another better than in 2005.

Tyres
For 2006 Bridgestone introduced a full slick tyre, after the inaugural GP2 season had used grooved tyres to mirror Formula One. The new tyres would increase mechanical grip and hence play to GP2's plan to increase on-track activity, while Bridgestone were also instructed to manufacturer soft, medium and hard compounds. Bridgestone and the GP2 Series organisers would decide on tyre allocations at each individual race, with drivers having to use both compounds during the Feature race.

Engine and Gearbox
Mecachrome introduced several minor updates to their V8108 engine design, which would still carry Renault badging for the 2006 season. The main change would see the software upgraded on the engine mapping to improve reliability and fuel efficiency. There would also be a symbiotic update from GearTek to the gearbox, with a new software update and updated transverse shafts to improve reliability.

Brakes and Chassis
Elsewhere, Brembo would introduce an updated brake design, purpose built for the GP2 Series after their late addition to the series at the opening round in 2005. The new design saw revisions to the brake callipers and disc bells to improve efficiency and effectiveness.

There would also be updates to the internal cooling structures of the Dallara chassis, with an updated radiator design and oil/water heat exchanger. These were combined with an uprated duct design and revised pipe work layout, while new brackets were installed to better afix the head exchanger. There were also revisions made to the oil degasser.

Sporting
There would be one major revision to the sporting rule book ahead of the 2006 season, with an adjustment to the rules and points for fastest lap. The series opted to reduce the number of points available from two to one, while also introducing a new parameter in order to be eligible to claim the bonus point at all. For 2006 a driver would only be eligible if they started the race from their grid slot once the final grid had been officially published, after several drivers had gambled on starting the race from the pitlane on low fuel in Feature Races to gain the bonus point in 2005.

Championship Points
Outlined below is a full breakdown of the point scoring system for the 2006 FIA GP2 Series:
 * * The fastest lap points were only awarded to a driver who set the fastest lap and completed 90% of the race distance.

Drivers Championship
The full Championship standings from the 2006 FIA GP2 Series Championship for Drivers is outlined below:

Teams Championship
The full Championship standings from the 2006 FIA GP2 Series Championship for Teams is outlined below: