F3 Spa Recap

Spa was an eventful one. With the championship heating up at the halfway point of the season, every point was crucial. Will we see a new championship leader before the summer break or will Campos Racing's Ugo Ugochowoko hang on?

(Image Credits to Feeder Series Website) 

Sprint Race 

Immediately from the start Brando Badoer came across to cover one of his teammates Pedro Clerot who was equally trying to defend from MP Motorsport and Red Bull Junior, Mattia Colnaghi on the inside of turn one. The silver Hitech of Jin Nakamura came around the outside of Colnaghi to take third place. Nakamura went around the outside of Clerot into Les Combes. 

As all 30 cars entered Les Combes, the second Red Bull Junior backed driver Ernesto Rivera tagged the back of Hiyu Yamakoshi's number eighteen Van Ammersfoort Racing car. Another incident also occurred in the same corner when championship rivals Ugochowoko and Trident's Freddie Slater collided leaving Slater in the barriers and out of the race. 

Nakamura closed in and passed Badoer for the lead. Nothing changed up until the last few corners when Taponen and Rivera battled it out for seventh positions. 

Nakamura won from Badoer and Clerot made it a double Rodin podium. 

Feature Race

As the five red lights went out, everyone made it off the line safely. Going up and past Eau Rouge, Yamakoshi took the lead from Taponen. Lap one is when Yevin David of AIX Racing was stuck in the gravel causing a yellow flag which then turned into a safety car after his duel with Campos’ Theophile Nael. 

On lap six Ugochowoko passed Christian Ho in the third of the Rodin cars. One lap later, the Trident of Freddie Slater went past Taponen for second place and chased down Yamakoshi ahead. Lap eight saw Slater go through the gap left by the leading Van Ammersfoort car to snatch back the lead. Lap nine saw the Red Bull Junior car of Rivera go down the inside of Taponen which was successful but in doing so, he picked up front wing damage from the car in front. 

Colnaghi passed his teammate and in front of them Rivera got past Yamakoshi, while the ART car of Maciej Gladysz passed Noah Strømsted for sixth place. Lap eleven saw Gladysz go by Taponen and then lap twelve saw Rivera take the lead away from Slater with the assist of DRS. In that same lap Bruno Del Pino and Jin Nakamura went down the inside of Ugochowoko. 

Lap thirteen saw Yamakoshi pass Slater for second place. On the final lap Rivera came over the line from Yamakoshi in second and Slater in third. Colnaghi finished fourth from Gladysz in fifth, Kato in sixth, Taponen in seventh,  Nakamura in eighth, Giusti in ninth and Strømsted in tenth after Badoer received a post-race penalty for track limits. 

Going into Budapest, Ugochowoko and Slater are separated by one point at the top of the championship. 

Written by Alexandria Kinsella-Evans ©️ 2026