ART Grand Prix started the season as the defending teams' champions.Pierre Gasly (pictured in 2019) won the championship.
The 2016 GP2 Series season was the fiftieth season of the second-tier of
Formula One feeder championship and also twelfth and final season under the
GP2 Series moniker, a
motor racing feeder series that was run in support of the
2016 FIA Formula One World Championship. It was the final season run under the "GP2 Series" name, with the championship being rebranded as the
FIA Formula 2 Championship from
2017. It was also originally scheduled to be the final season for the
Dallara GP2/11 chassis that was introduced in
2011 and the
Mecachrome 4.0 litre V8 normally-aspirated engine package that débuted in
the maiden season of the series in 2005 before a brand new chassis and engine package was introduced for 2017, however due to another cost-cutting, the series announced it would keep the current chassis and engine package for one more season.
ART Grand Prix started the season as the defending teams' champions after securing the title–their fourth in the championship–at the series' second visit to the
Bahrain International Circuit in 2015.[1]Prema Racing won the Teams' championship, their first in the series and first attempt, while
Pierre Gasly won the Drivers' championship.
Lazarus left the series at the end of the
2015 season, with their place taken by Prema Racing.[20]
Hilmer Motorsport left the series at the end of the 2015 season. As no replacement team could be found, the grid was left at twenty-two cars.
Status Grand Prix also left the series before the 2016 season due to not being able to find any well-budgeted drivers and also lack of sponsorship for their second season. With the demise of the team, there were no number #16 and #17 cars on the grid.
Arthur Pic, who raced for Campos in 2014 and 2015, switched to Rapax.[12]
Oliver Rowland, who previously raced part-time for MP Motorsport and
Status Grand Prix, is contesting the full season with MP Motorsport, with backing from
Renault.[23]
2015 season champion
Stoffel Vandoorne left the series as the reigning champion is not permitted to continue competing in the series. He joined the
Super Formula with Docomo Team Dandelion Racing.[34]
Points were awarded to the top 10 classified finishers in the Feature race, and to the top 8 classified finishers in the Sprint race. The pole-sitter in the feature race also received four points, and two points were given to the driver who set the fastest lap inside the top ten in both the feature and sprint races. No extra points were awarded to the pole-sitter in the sprint race.
Feature race points
Position
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
10th
Pole
FL
Points
25
18
15
12
10
8
6
4
2
1
4
2
Sprint race points
Points were awarded to the top 8 classified finishers.
† — Drivers did not finish the race, but were classified as they completed over 90% of the race distance.
Notes
^Pertamina Campos Racing competed under a Spanish licence in round 1 and an Indonesian licence for the rest of the season.
^Cecotto competed under a state Venezuelan racing licence.
^Pierre Gasly set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap.
Artem Markelov was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^Norman Nato set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap.
Jordan King was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^Oliver Rowland set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap.
Nobuharu Matsushita was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^Artem Markelov set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap.
Pierre Gasly was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^Nobuharu Matsushita set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap.
Artem Markelov was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^Nobuharu Matsushita set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap.
Sergey Sirotkin was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^Sergio Canamasas set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap.
Pierre Gasly was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^Luca Ghiotto set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap.
Sergey Sirotkin was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^"Enerson heads Schmidt Peterson 1–2–3 in Phoenix test". 26 February 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2016. Ex-GP2 journeyman Andre Negrao, from Brazil, at 22.0128 admitted he was behind the eight ball learning ovals, but felt better by the end of the test.