After a demanding and chaotic season, The 2026 Formula 3 season came to its conclusion on Sunday morning as the grid took to the track for one last time with a champion waiting to be crowned. 

Championship contenders Ugo Ugochuckwu and Freddie Slater went into the final race equal on points, the former ahead on countback. A double points finish for Ugochuckwu saw him close the gap after Slater struggled to score points. 

Ugochuckwu lined up on the front row alongside MP Motorsport driver Tuukka Taponen on pole position with Slater down in P8. Rodin’s Pedro Clerot would slot into P3 after taking his maiden F3 win in Saturday’s feature race.

Lights Out

A clean start from the pack would see Taponen hold onto the lead as Ugochuckwu slotted in behind. Slater dropped a place to Yevan David on lap one, settling in behind as the grid all came together. 

Heading onto lap 5, Slater made his first move finding his way past David into turn one. Further back in the pack Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi found the wall at the turn 5, turn 6 chicane but after a brief yellow flag, he got going again. 

A DRS train running all the way to Nicola Lacorte in P23 meant that overtaking was becoming a bit of an issue as the race reached the halfway mark. With 5 laps to go, time was running out for Slater as he sat in P8 with no way past Enzo Deligny in front as Ugochuckwu continued to run in P2. 

One Lap Shoot Out

On lap 17 the safety car came out for the first time during the race as Hiyu Yamakoshi came to a stop. With a lap to go and Yamakoshi’s car rolled off the track, the safety car lights went out to give us a one lap shoot out to end the season. 

Taponen would hold on to take the win, propelling himself onto the championship podium. All eyes would be on Ugochuckwu as he crossed the line in P2 becoming the 2026 Formula 3 champion. Campos RAcing would complete the double after they claimed the teams championship on Saturday. Pedro Clerot held on to P3 taking his second podium of the weekend. 

Closing out the points in the final race was Taito Kato, Mattia Colnaghi, Alessandro Giusti, Deligny, Slater, Ernesto Rivera and David. A P8 finish wouldn’t be enough for Slater to take the crown but solidified his runner up position in the championship. 

A fitting end to a chaotic and entertaining F3 season in 2026 with plenty of highs and lows and a fight to the end. F3 will return in 2027 with a new team and new drivers hoping to write their name in Formula 3 history.

Featured Image Credits: Formula 3 on Instagram