2026 | Spanish F4 | Valencia | Coronel takes early lead after Valencia double

The 2026 Spanish F4 Championship opened with drama, penalties and sharp racing at the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia. Right away, Vivek Kanthan showed outright speed by taking both pole positions. However, Rocco Coronel turned race pace and consistency into the biggest reward of the weekend.

Coronel left the opening round with two victories and the championship lead. Moreover, Noah Monteiro built momentum with a hat-trick of podiums, while Aleix Piñera impressed with a breakthrough weekend near the front. Although Kanthan won on the road and later took a clear victory in race three, penalties in the opening race limited his points haul and changed the early shape of the title fight.

2026 Spanish F4: Valencia: Qualifying 1: Kanthan edges Coronel in a tight first session

To begin the competitive action, Kanthan took pole in the first qualifying session with a lap of 1:33.815. Coronel stayed right with him and missed top spot by only 0.010 seconds, which immediately set up a direct fight between the pair. Piñera also stayed firmly in the mix and ended the session only 0.082s off pole, so the front of the field looked exceptionally close.

That narrow spread mattered because it framed the opening race battle. Kanthan had the advantage of clean air and track position, yet Coronel clearly had the pace to apply pressure from the first corner onwards. Therefore, qualifying one did not simply identify the fastest driver; it also established the rivalry that defined much of the weekend.

Qualifying 1: Top 3

1. Vivek Kanthan, 1:33.815
2. Rocco Coronel, +0.010s
3. Aleix Piñera, +0.082s

2026 Spanish F4: Valencia: Race 1: Coronel inherits victory after Kanthan’s penalties

Next, Race 1 delivered the first major twist of the season. Kanthan started from pole and immediately moved to defend from Coronel. In doing so, he forced Coronel partly onto the grass on the run to the first corner. Soon afterwards, Rodrigo Martínez went off and became stranded in the gravel, which brought out the safety car and neutralised the race.

When racing resumed, Kanthan controlled the event well and gradually opened a gap to Coronel. He crossed the line 3.954 seconds clear and appeared to have secured a convincing victory on the road. Nevertheless, the stewards later intervened. They handed Kanthan a five-second penalty for forcing Coronel off at the start, and they added another 10 seconds for erratic speed changes behind the safety car. As a result, Kanthan dropped to 10th, Coronel inherited victory, and the order behind him shifted dramatically.

That decision handed Coronel his first Spanish F4 win and gave him a powerful start to the season. At the same time, Piñera climbed to second for his first career podium, while Monteiro inherited third and began a remarkable run of podium finishes.

Race 1 – Full Results

1. #23 Rocco Coronel
2. #6 Aleix Piñera
3. #81 Noah Monteiro
4. #37 Ty Fisher
5. #44 Elliot Kaczynski
6. #40 Kasper Schormans
7. #77 Andrej Petrovic
8. #46 Nathan Tye
9. #21 Borys Lyzen
10. #22 Vivek Kanthan
11. #88 Miki Blascos
12. #38 Daniel Kelleher
13. #32 Simon Bulbarella
14. #24 Beau Lowette
15. #7 Felipe Reijs
16. #80 Sebastián Frigolet
17. #10 Luna Fluxà
18. #28 Max Radeck
19. #9 Jean Paul Karras
20. #73 Fausto Arnaudo
21. #39 Louis Cochet
22. #8 Jacob Micallef
23. #12 Philippe Armand Karras
24. #71 Sam Urus
25. #27 Alexander Chartier
26. #83 Alfons Miettinen
27. #94 Jorden Moodley
28. #74 Pablo Riccobono
29. #78 Maria Neto
30. #17 Nacho Tuñón
31. #5 Sandro Pérez
32. #15 Jensen Burnett
33. #18 Zoe Florescu
34. #13 Rodrigo Martínez

2026 Spanish F4: Valencia: Race 2: Coronel converts pace into a second straight win

After that, Race 2 gave Coronel the chance to prove that he did not need a steward’s decision to win. Piñera’s second-fastest lap from race one earned him pole, but Coronel attacked decisively into the first corner and took the lead. That move gave him control, yet the race soon turned chaotic behind him.

Kanthan pressured Piñera for second and ran side by side with him before contact at the next corner spun the American driver into danger. Andrej Petrović crashed heavily into Kanthan, and Pablo Riccobono Bello then hit the stranded cars as well. The incident forced a red flag, although all three drivers escaped injury. Consequently, the race paused before officials reset the field for a rolling restart.

Once the action resumed, Coronel handled the restart cleanly and never gave away the lead. Monteiro later tried to attack Piñera for second, but Piñera held firm. In the end, the podium repeated the revised race one classification exactly, with Coronel first, Piñera second and Monteiro third. Therefore, Coronel ended Saturday with a perfect score from the first two races and a clear early advantage in the standings.

Race 2 – Full Results

1. #23 Rocco Coronel
2. #6 Aleix Piñera
3. #81 Noah Monteiro
4. #37 Ty Fisher
5. #15 Jensen Burnett
6. #21 Borys Lyzen
7. #40 Kasper Schormans
8. #17 Nacho Tuñón
9. #46 Nathan Tye
10. #38 Daniel Kelleher
11. #88 Miki Blascos
12. #10 Luna Fluxà
13. #8 Jacob Micallef
14. #73 Fausto Arnaudo
15. #18 Zoe Florescu
16. #7 Felipe Reijs
17. #39 Louis Cochet
18. #9 Jean Paul Karras
19. #32 Simon Bulbarella
20. #71 Sam Urus
21. #78 Maria Neto
22. #12 Philippe Armand Karras
23. #5 Sandro Pérez
24. #27 Alexander Chartier
25. #80 Sebastián Frigolet
26. #94 Jorden Moodley
27. #28 Max Radeck
28. #13 Rodrigo Martínez
29. #83 Alfons Miettinen
30. #22 Vivek Kanthan
31. #77 Andrej Petrovic
32. #44 Elliot Kaczynski
33. #24 Beau Lowette
34. #74 Pablo Riccobono

2026 Spanish F4: Valencia: Qualifying 2: Kanthan bounces back in damp conditions

On Sunday, Kanthan responded strongly by taking a second pole position in qualifying two. He set a 1:47.140 in damp conditions, which underlined both his confidence and his raw speed across varying grip levels. Monteiro secured second, 0.173s behind, while Borys Łyżeń took third and positioned himself for a breakthrough result.

This session mattered because it reopened Kanthan’s weekend. Up to that point, penalties and incidents had overshadowed his pace. However, another pole confirmed that he remained one of the fastest drivers in the field. In addition, Monteiro’s front-row start placed him in an ideal position to continue his steady points haul.

Qualifying 2 – Top 3

1. Vivek Kanthan, 1:47.140
2. Noah Monteiro, +0.173s
3. Borys Łyżeń, +0.680s

2026 Spanish F4: Valencia: Race 3: Kanthan wins on the road as Coronel limits the damage

Finally, race three gave Kanthan the result his speed deserved. He launched well from pole in slightly damp conditions and quickly built a gap over Monteiro, who instead came under pressure from Łyżeń and Nathan Tye. As the laps unfolded, Kanthan stayed out of trouble while several fights and incidents disrupted the field behind him.

The safety car appeared three times. First, Luna Fluxá became stranded in the gravel at Turn 8 on lap two. Then Max Radeck beached his car at Turn 12 on lap six. Later, Sam Urus and Sebastián Frigolet collided after running wide together, while Nacho Tuñón also hit Elliot Kaczynski and sent him into the gravel. Those interruptions repeatedly broke the rhythm of the race, yet Kanthan mastered each restart and never surrendered control.

At the chequered flag, Kanthan secured his first Spanish F4 victory ahead of Łyżeń and Monteiro. Coronel finished fourth rather than on the podium, but that result still served him well because he limited the points loss to his closest rivals. Thus, even without a third consecutive podium, he retained the championship lead at the end of the weekend.

Race 3 – Full Results

1. #22 Vivek Kanthan
2. #21 Borys Lyzen
3. #81 Noah Monteiro
4. #23 Rocco Coronel
5. #40 Kasper Schormans
6. #38 Daniel Kelleher
7. #46 Nathan Tye
8. #15 Jensen Burnett
9. #11 Rahim Alibhai
10. #7 Felipe Reijs
11. #6 Aleix Piñera
12. #73 Fausto Arnaudo
13. #8 Jacob Micallef
14. #18 Zoe Florescu
15. #17 Nacho Tuñón
16. #9 Jean Paul Karras
17. #24 Beau Lowette
18. #37 Ty Fisher
19. #77 Andrej Petrovic
20. #12 Philippe Armand Karras
21. #83 Alfons Miettinen
22. #94 Jorden Moodley
23. #39 Louis Cochet
24. #13 Rodrigo Martínez
25. #71 Sam Urus
26. #32 Simon Bulbarella
27. #27 Alexander Chartier
28. #5 Sandro Pérez
29. #78 Maria Neto
30. #74 Pablo Riccobono
31. #44 Elliot Kaczynski
32. #80 Sebastián Frigolet
33. #28 Max Radeck
34. #10 Luna Fluxà
35. #88 Miki Blascos

Drivers’ Standings after Round 1: Coronel leads, Monteiro stays close

After three races, Coronel leads the drivers’ standings with 55 points. That total reflects more than outright speed. He stayed near the front all weekend, capitalised fully when Kanthan lost points in race one, and added another clear win in race two. Consequently, he leaves Valencia with the strongest early position.

Monteiro sits second on 43 points and arguably produced one of the most disciplined weekends in the field. He did not win a race, yet he collected three third places and avoided major setbacks. That consistency keeps him firmly in touch with Coronel. Behind them, Piñera holds third on 33 points after a breakthrough opening round, while Kanthan’s 31 points underline how expensive those race-one penalties proved to be. Had he kept his opening victory, he would have left Valencia in a much stronger position.

Further down, Łyżeń’s strong Sunday moves him to fifth on 27 points, while Ty Fisher and Kasper Schormans round out the top seven on 22 points each. Therefore, the early standings already show a split between the headline contenders and the chasing group, although one strong weekend could still reshuffle the order completely.

Drivers’ Standings

1. Rocco Coronel – 55
2. Noah Monteiro – 43
3. Aleix Piñera – 33
4. Vivek Kanthan – 31
5. Borys Lyzen – 27
6. Ty Fisher – 22
7. Kasper Schormans – 22
8. Jensen Burnett – 12
9. Nathan Tye – 11
10. Elliot Kaczynski – 10
11. Daniel Kelleher – 8
12. Andrej Petrovic – 6
13. Nacho Tuñón – 2
14. Rahim Alibhai – 2
15. Felipe Reijs – 1
16. Miki Blascos – 0
17. Fausto Arnaudo – 0
18. Luna Fluxà – 0
19. Jacob Micallef – 0
20. Simon Bulbarella – 0
21. Zoe Florescu – 0
22. Beau Lowette – 0
23. Jean Paul Karras – 0
24. Sebastián Frigolet – 0
25. Louis Cochet – 0
26. Max Radeck – 0
27. Philippe Armand Karras – 0
28. Sam Urus – 0
29. Alfons Miettinen – 0
30. Maria Neto – 0
31. Jorden Moodley – 0
32. Sandro Pérez – 0
33. Alexander Chartier – 0
34. Rodrigo Martínez – 0
35. Pablo Riccobono – 0

Teams’ Standings: MP Motorsport edges Griffin Core after Valencia

Alongside the drivers’ battle, the teams’ championship also took shape at Valencia. MP Motorsport leaves the opening round on top with 77 points, although Griffin Core remains firmly in contention on 70. That narrow margin reflects how closely matched the leading outfits looked across the weekend.

MP Motorsport built its lead through Rocco Coronel’s outstanding form and consistent support from Kasper Schormans. Griffin Core, meanwhile, stayed close thanks to Noah Monteiro’s three podiums and Vivek Kanthan’s pole positions and race-three win. However, Kanthan’s race-one penalties ultimately cost Griffin Core valuable points in the standings.

Behind the top two, KCL Motorsport secured third on 39 points after Borys Łyżeń and Jensen Burnett delivered a productive weekend. Tecnicar followed in fourth with 33 points, largely through Aleix Piñera’s strong start to the season. Drivex completed the top five on 21 points, while Campos Racing and T-Code shared sixth place on eight points each.

Further back, Monlau Motorsport scored two points, whereas TC Racing, G4 Racing, DXR and GRS Team all left Valencia without opening their accounts. Even so, the season remains young, and one strong weekend could quickly reshape the order.

Teams’ Standings

1. MP Motorsport – 77
2. Griffin Core – 70
3. KCL Motorsport – 39
4. Tecnicar – 33
5. Drivex – 21
6. Campos Racing – 8
7. T-Code – 8
8. Monlau Motorsport – 2
9. TC Racing – 0
10. G4 Racing – 0
11. DXR – 0
12. GRS Team – 0

Conclusion

In the end, Valencia gave the Spanish F4 season a compelling opening chapter. Kanthan showed the strongest one-lap pace and left with two pole positions plus a race-three victory. Even so, Coronel made better use of the whole weekend. He combined composure, racecraft and consistency to take two wins and the early championship lead.

At the same time, the team battle already looks intense. MP Motorsport holds a slender advantage over Griffin Core, while KCL Motorsport and Tecnicar remain close enough to capitalise on any slip-ups. Therefore, both championships head to the next round with real momentum and plenty of unanswered questions.