The 2025 Macau GP saw intense action and thrilling drama throughout the FIA Formula Regional (FR) World Cup Main Race. Held on the iconic Guia Circuit, the 15-lap race unfolded under clear, warm conditions, delivering high-stakes battles, multiple Safety Car periods, and a dramatic series of twists. After a dominant performance in the Qualifying Race, Freddie Slater started from pole but was soon faced with fierce competition from Mari Boya, Théophile Naël, and a host of other talented drivers. As the race progressed, incidents and accidents shook up the order, leading to a gripping finale that culminated in a dramatic late-race restart. In the end, it was Naël who seized the lead in the final laps, securing his first victory of the weekend, while Boya and Enzo Deligny completed the podium.
Slater shows strong form in dominant Qualifying Race
The 10-lap Qualifying Race unfolded under warm conditions and delivered action from the very beginning. SJM Theodore Prema Racing’s Freddie Slater made a superb launch, overtaking KCMG Enya Pinnacle Motorsport’s Théophile Naël into Turn 1 and immediately pulling clear. Meanwhile, Naël’s poor getaway allowed ART Grand Prix’s Evan Giltaire and KCMG Enya Pinnacle Motorsport’s Mari Boya to move ahead. Although Boya repeatedly attacked Giltaire into Lisboa, the ART driver defended firmly. Furthermore, an opening-lap collision forced Evans GP’s Oscar Wurz into retirement, though all remaining cars continued. Consequently, Slater steadily extended his advantage and ultimately won by more than five seconds. Boya secured second, Naël recovered to third with the fastest lap, and Giltaire and ART Grand Prix’s Taito Kato completed the top five. Additionally, post-race fines for Slater and R-ace GP’s Enzo Deligny for pit-lane speeding did not affect the final result.
Slater on pole with Boya challenging from P2
At the very front, the line-up reflected the rhythm of the Qualifying Race. Freddie Slater, therefore, started from pole for SJM Theodore Prema Racing, while Théophile Naël lined up P2 for KCMG Enya Pinnacle Motorsport, eager to improve after his earlier recovery. Furthermore, Mari Boya, also representing KCMG, secured P3 following his persistent challenges on Giltaire. In addition, ART Grand Prix’s Evan Giltaire and his team-mate Taito Kato filled P4 and P5, respectively, thereby giving ART a strategically powerful second row.
Immediately behind the front runners, the upper midfield formed a dense and competitive group. Enzo Deligny, for example, began P6 for R-ace GP, closely followed by Mattia Colnaghi in P7 for PHM Racing. Moreover, James Egozi secured P8 for Saintéloc Racing, while Noah Strømsted placed Trident Motorsport in P9. Simultaneously, Rashid Al Dhaheri ensured that SJM Theodore Prema Racing placed both cars inside the top ten by starting P10. Continuing this tightly contested section, Matteo De Palo (R-ace GP) and José Garfias (PHM Racing) shared row six in P11 and P12. Furthermore, Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak (Trident), Jin Nakamura (R-ace GP), and Kanato Le (ART Grand Prix) formed the competitive cluster occupying P13, P14, and P15.
A challenging recovery ahead for drivers at the back
Moving further down the order, the lower midfield featured a varied set of competitors. Hiyu Yamakoshi, for instance, started P16 for Evans GP, just ahead of Tokiya Suzuki and Yuki Sano, who together formed a TOM’S Formula pairing in P17 and P18. Additionally, Charlie Wurz began P19 for Evans GP, aiming to rebound after a complicated Qualifying Race. Meanwhile, Owen Tangavelou lined up P20 for Saintéloc Racing, hoping to gain ground early. Moreover, Kiyoshi Umegaki took P21 for Van Amersfoort Racing, followed by Reza Seewooruthun in P22 for Trident Motorsport.
Finally, the back of the grid brought together drivers seeking recovery. Charles Leong, therefore, started P23 for SJM Theodore Prema Racing, while Tymek Kucharczyk lined up P24 for Van Amersfoort Racing. Additionally, Enzo Yeh filled P25 for PHM Racing, and Zhenrui (Newman) Chi, who received a penalty for a starting infringement, began P26 for Van Amersfoort Racing. Lastly, Oscar Wurz, unable to finish the Qualifying Race after first-lap contact, started P27 for Evans GP, thus closing out the full 27-car grid.
Boya claims the lead on Lap 1 as a four-car pile-up sees the first Safety Car and three retirements
The 15-lap race began at 15:30 local time under clear, dry, and warm conditions. However, the start was anything but smooth. Tangavelou was unable to begin the formation lap, and his car was subsequently pushed into the pit lane, leaving his grid spot vacant as the remaining 26 drivers lined up at the starting line. Slater was the first to take this spot, angling his car as he prepared for the start. It was a tricky position on the Guia Circuit, especially with the fast-starting Boya alongside him.
Ultimately, this positioning proved detrimental to Slater’s launch. Although he got off the line well, the time it took to re-angle his car allowed Boya, who also had a strong start, the opportunity to pull alongside him into Turn 1. Boya then surged ahead, and although Slater remained a fierce challenger, Boya held on to the lead. A Yellow Flag was shown at Turn 4, further complicating matters.
Just behind, Naël, who had tried to challenge the front runners at the start, was overtaken by Deligny, who claimed third place. Meanwhile, Colnaghi, starting from P7, made significant progress, moving up to P5 ahead of Kato. Egozi also improved, advancing to P7 after passing Giltaire, who had dropped back from his fourth-place start. Al Dhaheri moved into P9, getting ahead of Strømsted, who found himself a position down in P10.
However, any further progress among the front runners was soon halted by a dramatic four-car pile-up at San Francisco Hill. Charlie Wurz was tagged from behind, triggering a chain reaction that took out Umegaki, Seewooruthun, and Chi. Although Wurz managed to return to racing, the other three drivers were not so lucky and were forced to retire. In response, Race Control deployed the Safety Car, effectively neutralising the race and bringing the action to a temporary halt.
Slater reclaims the lead with 10 laps to go
Racing resumed on Lap 4 with Boya holding on to the lead, ahead of Slater and Deligny. However, thanks to the Safety Car period, the gap had narrowed, and Slater quickly seized the opportunity. Using the slipstream, he retook the lead through Lisboa, despite Boya’s best efforts. Slater immediately pulled away, building a gap of around 0.8 seconds, which limited Boya’s chances of reattacking.
Meanwhile, Naël, who had lost position to Deligny, began to pressure the Frenchman for third place. He stayed within 0.6 seconds, setting up a potential overtake into Lisboa. Though he couldn’t make the move, Naël stayed right on Deligny’s tail. By Lap 5, Deligny, more than two seconds behind Boya, focused on defending third place rather than challenging for second.
On Lap 6, Boya closed the gap to about 0.4 seconds, but despite his best efforts, he couldn’t threaten Slater’s lead. As they crossed the line at the start of Lap 7, Boya fell back, losing the slipstream and allowing Slater to extend his advantage. Meanwhile, a fierce battle for P7 raged between Egozi, Giltaire, Al Dhaheri, and Strømsted, with less than 1.5 seconds separating the four. However, despite their closeness, none could find a way past, and they engaged in careful risk management to avoid incidents.
On Lap 7, Naël again went side-by-side with Deligny into Lisboa but locked up, losing ground. As Boya’s pace continued to drop, Deligny found some breathing room. Slater, however, set another fastest lap, building a gap of over three seconds to Boya by Lap 8. Just then, Oscarr Wurz crashed into Lisboa, bringing out another Safety Car. Before the deployment, De Palo passed Egozi for P10.
Boya reclaims lead; Slater’s race ends in a crash
As racing resumed, Slater maintained his lead, but Boya, with the gap once again narrowed, found himself in prime position to challenge for the top spot. Behind them, Naël in P4 was putting pressure on Deligny in P3, with Colnaghi just behind in P5. Kato, in P6, led Deligny in P7, while Al Dhaheri in P8, Strømsted in P9, and De Palo rounded out the top 10.
With five laps to go, Slater got off to a strong restart, quickly building a gap of over 0.5 seconds. Boya, however, had a brief moment of hesitation, allowing Deligny to close in. But Boya recovered well, mirroring Slater’s pace and diving into Lisboa to snatch back the lead. Meanwhile, Deligny lost a bit of ground and was placed under investigation for potentially moving under braking.
Slater, refusing to back down, pushed hard to stay on Boya’s tail, hoping to retake the lead. This forced Boya to defend vigorously. However, Slater’s pursuit took a turn for the worse as he clipped the wall exiting R Bend, damaging his suspension and ultimately ending his race.
Race control quickly deployed another Safety Car to neutralise the action, halting the increasingly intense battle for P2 between Deligny and Naël. Naël, who had been pushing hard to take second, was forced to settle back into P3 while marshals worked to recover Slater’s stricken car.
Naël seizes the lead after a powerful restart as race ends under fourth Safety Car
With two laps remaining, Race Control released the remaining drivers, and Naël, in P3, made the best restart of the lot. He surged past both Boya and Deligny to claim the lead. However, the restart was far from smooth for the rest of the field. Al Dhaheri clipped the barrier on the straight and retired with terminal damage, while Tokiya Suzuki made contact, ending his race in the Lisboa escape road with a broken suspension. Just further up the track, Nakamura and Leong collided, adding to the chaos.
After so many incidents, and with the stricken cars needing recovery, Race Control had no choice but to deploy yet another Safety Car. The field was neutralised once again, with the Safety Car leading the drivers across the finish line. As a result, Naël took the win, while Boya and Deligny were forced to settle for second and third, respectively.
2025 Macau GP: FIA FR World Cup: Main Race: Results
- Théophile Naël
- Mari Boya
- Enzo Deligny
- Mattia Colnaghi
- Taito Kato
- Evan Giltaire
- Noah Strømsted
- Matteo De Palo
- Yuki Sano
- José Garfias
- Kanato Le
- Hiyu Yamakoshi
- Tymek Kucharczyk
- James Egozi
- Enzo Yeh
- Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak
- Owen Tangavelou
- Charlie Wurz
- Jin Nakamura – Retired (Lap 14 – Accident)
- Rashid Al Dhaheri – Retired (Lap 13 – Accident)
- Charles Leong – Retired (Lap 13 – Accident)
- Tokiya Suzuki – Retired (Lap 13 – Accident)
- Freddie Slater – Retired (Lap 11 – Accident)
- Oscar Wurz – Retired (Lap 8 – Accident)
- Kiyoshi Umegaki – DNF (Lap 1 – Accident)
- Reza Seewooruthun – DNF (Lap 1 – Accident)
- Zhenrui (Newman) Chi – DNF (Lap 1 – Accident)
A thrilling conclusion to the 2025 Macau GP as Naël seizes victory
The 2025 Macau GP Main Race lived up to its reputation for drama and unpredictability, with thrilling racing, crashes, and strategic moves defining the outcome. Théophile Naël’s powerful restart in the final laps earned him the victory after a chaotic and action-packed race. Despite a strong challenge from Mari Boya and Enzo Deligny, it was Naël’s resilience and speed that ultimately saw him cross the line in first place. As the race concluded under the fourth Safety Car, the results reflected both the skill and misfortune of the competitors, with several drivers forced to retire following on-track incidents. The Macau GP once again proved to be a true test of both speed and strategy, with the Guia Circuit living up to its reputation as one of the most challenging and exciting tracks in the motorsport world.
