Race 3 brought the opening round of the 2026 FRME Trophy to a dramatic conclusion at Yas Marina. Following the chaos of Race 2, drivers faced another stop-start contest shaped by Safety Cars, a red flag and a disrupted start. Despite the interruptions, R-ace GP’s Rashid Al Dhaheri delivered a composed and authoritative drive from pole position, controlling every restart to claim victory and complete a dominant weekend performance.
From Race 2 chaos to Race 3 showdown
Race 2 had set the tone for an unpredictable finale. Multiple Safety Car periods, several collisions and a decisive drive-through penalty reshuffled the order, allowing MP Motorsport’s Christian Ho to seize victory ahead of Miguel Costa and Alex Ninovic. With tyre management and restart execution proving decisive, teams entered Race 3 fully aware that composure would once again determine the outcome.
Grid and pre-race build-up
For the weekend finale, Rashid Al Dhaheri started from pole position after topping the times in Qualifying 2. He lined up alongside Rodin Motorsport’s Alex Ninovic, who carried momentum from his Race 2 podium. Kean Nakamura-Berta and Alex Powell occupied row two, both aiming to rebound after difficult races earlier in the weekend.
Behind them, Race 2 winner Christian Ho started sixth alongside rookie standout Maksimilian Popov. Further back, drivers such as Taito Kato, Kabir Anurag and Francisco Macedo prepared to recover from mixed fortunes. Unlike Race 2, the formation lap ran without incident, and all 29 starters lined up cleanly for the start.
Start-line drama and early battles
When the lights went out, Al Dhaheri reacted sharply and surged into the lead. However, Ninovic stalled on the grid, echoing the Race 2 start drama suffered by his team-mate Reza Seewooruthun. Drivers behind fanned out to avoid contact, preventing a repeat of the earlier red-flag incident.
Powell capitalised immediately, launching strongly from row three to claim second place and remain within striking distance of the leader. Meanwhile, Ho also made a clean getaway, passing Popov around the outside of the hairpin to move into third.
Despite the stalled start, Ninovic rejoined and continued in 23rd. Several others, including Yuhao Fu, Miguel Costa, Alceu Feldmann Neto, Alexander Abkhazava, Salim Hanna and Francisco Macedo, also recovered after difficult launches. Race Control placed the race start under investigation.
Early laps and first Safety Car
Al Dhaheri led confidently into the second lap, with Powell shadowing him closely. However, Feldmann Neto soon appeared to struggle with a car issue, placing his race in jeopardy. Further back, Dion Gowda battled Jan Przyrowski for tenth, while a three-way fight developed between Nakamura-Berta, Popov and Anurag, with Anurag narrowly holding fourth.
Shortly afterwards, Miguel Costa and Enea Frea returned to the pit lane and retired, becoming the first casualties of the race.
With 21 minutes remaining, the Safety Car emerged after August Raber went off at Turn 12, neutralising the action across the circuit.
Restart pressure and rising intensity
Once racing resumed with just over 17 minutes on the clock, Al Dhaheri controlled the restart effectively and pulled clear of Powell through Turn 9. Behind them, Nakamura-Berta launched an immediate attack on Ho for third, but Ho defended resolutely and retained position.
As the race passed its halfway point, Anurag suffered a brief moment of oversteer but recovered as contact behind dropped Salim Hanna and Matteo Giaccardi to the back. Meanwhile, Powell set the fastest lap as he attempted to close the gap to the leader, although Al Dhaheri remained untroubled at the front.
Red flag after heavy impact
The midfield then erupted into another dramatic moment. Giovanni Maschio, Sebastian Wheldon and Kai Daryanani ran three-wide down the main straight, with Ninovic involved in the battle further back. Moments later, Maschio crashed heavily into the wall at the finish line.
Race Control deployed the Safety Car before escalating to a red flag due to the amount of debris on track. Medical staff assessed Maschio at the scene, and although he escaped unharmed, his car sustained significant damage. During the stoppage, Maxim Rehm retired in the pit lane.
Final restart and sprint to the flag
After a lengthy interruption, the Safety Car led the field out with just 11 minutes remaining. Drivers spent the opening laps rebuilding tyre temperature before the Safety Car peeled in, leaving five minutes of green-flag racing.
Al Dhaheri executed a near-perfect restart, once again holding Powell at bay. Behind them, Ho and Nakamura-Berta resumed their fight for the final podium position. On the following lap, Anurag passed Nakamura-Berta to move into fourth.
Soon after, Daryanani stopped at the side of the circuit in Sector 1, ending his race with just over two minutes remaining. Further back, Gerrard Xie passed Przyrowski for 12th, before Ninovic continued his recovery drive by overtaking both to claim the position.
As the clock reached zero, Al Dhaheri led the remaining 23 drivers onto the final lap. Calm and unchallenged, he closed out the race to take a commanding victory from start to finish. Powell secured second place after a strong and mature drive, while Ho completed the podium in third.
Race 3: Standings: 2026 FRME: Round 1: Yas Marina (Provisional)
- Rashid Al Dhaheri
- Alex Powell
- Christian Ho
- Kabir Anurag
- Kean nakamura-Berta
- Maksimilan Popov
- Zhenrui Chi
- Andrija Kostic
- Artem Severiukhin
- Yuki Sano
- Dion Gowda
- Alex Ninovic
- Gerrard Xie
- Jan Przyrowski
- Sebastian Wheldon
- Yuhao Fu
- Alceu Feldmann Neto
- Alexander Abkhazava
- Jules Roussel
- Francisco Macedo
- Salim Hanna
- Matteo Giaccardo
- Andrea Dupé
- Kai Daryanani (+2 laps)
- Giovanni Maschio (+6 laps)
- Maxim Rehm (+6 laps)
- August Raber (+10 laps)
- Miguel Costa (+11 laps)
- Enea Frey (+11 laps)
Note that Taito Kato, Mihael Belov and Reza Seewooruthun did not start the race due to damage to their cars sustained during Race 2 incidents
Pole Position: Rashid Al Dhaheri
Fastest Lap: Rashid Al Dhaheri
Winning Driver: Rashid Al Dhaheri
Winning Team: R-ace GP
Rookie Winner: Alex Powell
