James Hedley has withdrawn from the 2025 Monte Carlo FIA F3 round after sustaining a hand injury during Saturday’s Sprint Race in Monaco. The AIX Racing driver collided with Van Amersfoort Racing’s Ivan Domingues before the Portier corner on the opening lap. Both drivers retired immediately, bringing out an early Safety Car period. After a thorough medical assessment, the FIA Medical Delegates deemed Hedley unfit to continue, ruling him out of Sunday’s Feature Race. The team confirmed the news on Saturday, marking an abrupt and disappointing end to Hedley’s Monaco weekend.
A difficult weekend in Monaco
Hedley’s weekend was challenging from the start. He qualified 15th in Group A during the qualifying session, placing him towards the back of the grid for both the Sprint and Feature Races.
For the Feature Race, he was set to start alongside DAMS Lucas Oil driver Nicola Lacorte, whom the Stewards allowed to race despite his disqualification from Qualifying.
Unfortunately, Hedley’s Sprint Race ended on the first lap after his collision with Domingues forced him to retire immediately. His injury sustained in the accident prevented him from taking part in Sunday’s main event, ending his, admittedly poor, chances of scoring points in Monaco.
A recent return to F3
AIX Racing signed Hedley ahead of the Imola round to replace Javier Sagrera, marking his recent return to F3. At Imola, he qualified 23rd and finished 18th in the Sprint Race and 24th in the Feature Race. His return to the series came after competing in the Formula Regional Middle East Championship and following earlier campaigns in GB3 and British F4, where he demonstrated promise and resilience.
Uncertain outlook on recovery and next steps
At this stage, AIX Racing have not confirmed whether they will need to appoint a replacement driver for the upcoming rounds or whether Hedley will regain fitness to compete again soon. With the 2025 Barcelona F3 Round quickly approaching, however, fans and the team alike will be eager for news as they wait to see him back on track after this unfortunate setback.
