Ugo Ugochukwu ended Day 1 of the 2026 FIA F3 in-season testing in Spielberg fastest overall after a late improvement in the morning session for Campos Racing. The American driver produced a 1:20.368 to secure the quickest time of the day, despite a strong response from Noah Strømsted in the afternoon. The TRIDENT driver topped the second session with a 1:20.451, although he ultimately fell just 0.083s short of Ugochukwu’s benchmark.
Meanwhile, teams used the opening day to combine qualifying simulations with long-run programmes as they gathered valuable data ahead of the next championship round.
Morning Session: Ugochukwu surges ahead late in the morning
Drivers approached the opening laps cautiously before the pace quickly intensified. James Wharton initially led the way for PREMA Racing, but Brad Benavides soon lowered the benchmark with a 1:21.870 for AIX Racing.
However, the session’s rhythm was disrupted when Kanato Le stopped in the Turn 7 gravel trap, triggering the first Red Flag of the day for ART Grand Prix.
Once the session resumed, Freddie Slater briefly moved TRIDENT to the top of the timesheets before Louis Sharp restored PREMA’s advantage with a 1:20.755. Nevertheless, another interruption followed soon afterwards when José Garfias spun at the final corner, bringing out a second Red Flag.
Following the restart, teams immediately focused on low-fuel performance runs, and the order changed rapidly during the final half hour. Benavides briefly returned to the top before Slater improved once again for TRIDENT. Yet Ugochukwu delivered the decisive lap in the closing stages, securing the fastest time of the morning — and ultimately the day.
Behind him, Tuukka Taponen climbed to second for MP Motorsport, while Slater completed the top three. Brando Badoer finished fourth for Rodin Motorsport ahead of Benavides in fifth.
Importantly, several teams also prioritised mileage, with Benavides completing 38 laps during a productive morning for AIX Racing.
Morning Session Results
- Ugo Ugochukwu – 1:20.368
- Tuukka Taponen – 1:20.441
- Freddie Slater – 1:20.585
- Brando Badoer – 1:20.675
- Brad Benavides – 1:20.749
- Louis Sharp – 1:20.755
- Hiyu Yamakoshi – 1:20.789
- Pedro Clerot – 1:20.902
- Noah Strømsted – 1:20.928
- Jin Nakamura – 1:20.975
- Matteo De Palo – 1:21.005
- James Wharton – 1:21.031
- Bruno Del Pino – 1:21.050
- Maciej Gładysz – 1:21.064
- Alessandro Giusti – 1:21.074
- Gerrard Xie – 1:21.141
- Ernesto Rivera – 1:21.141
- Nandhavud Bhriombhakdi – 1:21.244
- Taito Kato – 1:21.251
- Kanato Le – 1:21.281
- Enzo Deligny – 1:21.483
- Nicola Lacorte – 1:21.615
- Fernando Barrichello – 1:21.693
- Théophile Naël – 1:21.699
- Woohyun Shin – 1:21.752
- José Garfias – 1:21.766
- Fionn McLaughlin – 1:21.796
- Genaro Trappa – 1:21.944
- Yevan David – 1:21.975
- Mattia Colnaghi – 1:22.853
Afternoon session: TRIDENT responds strongly
ART Grand Prix started the afternoon session in impressive fashion, with Taito Kato leading an early 1-2-3 for the French squad. The Japanese driver later improved to a 1:21.407 as ART maintained control of the timesheets.
Shortly afterwards, the session was interrupted again when Strømsted stopped on track and triggered a brief Red Flag. However, the Dane returned later in the afternoon and quickly re-established himself among the front-runners.
As temperatures increased, many teams shifted their focus towards long-run pace and tyre management. Consequently, outright improvements slowed through the middle phase of the session.
That changed in the final hour when TRIDENT switched back to qualifying-style runs and immediately surged to the top of the order. Strømsted led a commanding 1-2-3 for the Italian team ahead of Slater and Matteo De Palo.
Although several drivers improved during the closing stages, nobody managed to better Strømsted’s session-leading time.
Afternoon Session Results
- Noah Strømsted – 1:20.451
- Freddie Slater – 1:20.499
- Nicola Lacorte – 1:20.932
- Louis Sharp – 1:20.947
- Matteo De Palo – 1:21.019
- Tuukka Taponen – 1:21.041
- Alessandro Giusti – 1:21.093
- Ugo Ugochukwu – 1:21.142
- Mattia Colnaghi – 1:21.312
- Jin Nakamura – 1:21.326
- Brad Benavides – 1:21.375
- Théophile Naël – 1:21.388
- Woohyun Shin – 1:21.405
- Taito Kato – 1:21.407
- Nandhavud Bhriombhakdi – 1:21.419
- Fionn McLaughlin – 1:21.424
- Pedro Clerot – 1:21.430
- Bruno Del Pino – 1:21.431
- James Wharton – 1:21.432
- Maciej Gładysz – 1:21.497
- Ernesto Rivera – 1:21.510
- Gerrard Xie – 1:21.526
- Enzo Deligny – 1:21.537
- Yevan David – 1:21.648
- Kanato Le – 1:21.691
- Hiyu Yamakoshi – 1:21.798
- Brando Badoer – 1:21.875
- Fernando Barrichello – 1:22.006
- José Garfias – 1:22.293
- Genaro Trappa – 1:22.662
Campos and TRIDENT lead the early pace after Day 1 of 2026 in-season testing at Spielberg
Day 1 underlined the pace of both Campos Racing and TRIDENT, while MP Motorsport, PREMA Racing and DAMS Lucas Oil also showed encouraging speed across both sessions.
With another full day of testing still to come at Spielberg, teams will now analyse long-run data, refine their setups and continue preparing for the next phase of the FIA Formula 3 season.
