2026 F3 Pre-Season Testing | Barcelona | Slater tops Day 2; Ugochukwu leads afternoon running

The second day of pre-season testing for the 2026 F3 Championship in Barcelona saw some intense competition and impressive performances. TRIDENT’s Freddie Slater topped the morning session, while Campos Racing’s Ugo Ugochukwu claimed the afternoon honours. As teams continue to fine-tune their setups and strategies, Day 2 showed the potential for some exciting battles this season.

Morning Session: Slater leads as TRIDENT and ART emerge competitive

The morning session started with a focus on one-lap pace, and it didn’t take long for drivers to begin setting competitive times. Initially, PREMA Racing’s Louis Sharp set the pace on used hard tyres with a time of 1:30.084, which gave him a slim advantage of 0.186 seconds over Japan’s Taito Kato. However, the TRIDENT team quickly responded, with Noah Stromsted jumping to the top after fitting a fresh set of tyres. His lap time of 1:28.417 gave him a one-second gap over his teammate Matteo De Palo in second.

As the session continued, more drivers began to show their true pace. Notably, MP Motorsport’s Tuukka Taponen set an impressive 1:28.064, briefly taking the lead. Then, DAMS Lucas Oil’s Gerrard Xie struck back with a 1:27.792, followed by Théophile Nael, who was just 0.083 seconds behind. But as the clock ticked down, Stromsted returned to the top, only for Taponen to set an even faster time of 1:27.402, pushing him to the front for a short time.

Despite the late improvements, it was ART Grand Prix’s Taito Kato who briefly held the lead with a 1:27.317. However, Freddie Slater was not to be outdone. The British driver set a strong lap of 1:27.020, which ultimately remained the fastest time of the morning session. By the end of the session, Slater’s 1:27.020 was 0.297 seconds quicker than Kato’s, leaving him in the top spot.

Morning session standings:

1. Freddie Slater – TRIDENT – 1:27.020
2. Noah Stromsted – TRIDENT – 1:27.308
3. Taito Kato – ART Grand Prix – 1:27.317
4. Maciej Gladysz – ART Grand Prix – 1:27.320
5. Tuukka Taponen – MP Motorsport – 1:27.273
6. Brad Benavides – AIX Racing – 1:27.471
7. Kanato Le – ART Grand Prix – 1:27.555
8. Hiyu Yamakoshi – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:27.574
9. Matteo De Palo – TRIDENT – 1:27.663
10. Gerrard Xie – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:27.792
11. James Wharton – PREMA Racing – 1:27.852
12. Théophile Nael – Campos Racing – 1:27.875
13. Nicola Lacorte – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:27.875
14. Louis Sharp – PREMA Racing – 1:27.917
15. Alessandro Giusti – MP Motorsport – 1:27.932
16. Mattia Colnaghi – MP Motorsport – 1:27.963
17. Yevan David – AIX Racing – 1:28.038
18. Enzo Deligny – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:28.044
19. Bruno del Pino – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:28.081
20. Ugo Ugochukwu – Campos Racing – 1:28.086
21. Tim Tramnitz – Hitech – 1:28.144
22. Jin Nakamura – Hitech – 1:28.155
23. Brando Badoer – Rodin Motorsport – 1:28.241
24. Patrick Heuzenroeder – Campos Racing – 1:28.327
25. Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:28.385
26. Fionn McLaughlin – Hitech – 1:28.484
27. José Garfias – PREMA Racing – 1:28.681
28. Fernando Barrichello – AIX Racing – 1:28.756
29. Pedro Clerot – Rodin Motorsport – 1:29.069
30. Christian Ho – Rodin Motorsport – 1:29.118

Afternoon session: Ugochukwu takes the lead

After a break, the focus shifted to long run practice in the afternoon. Teams fitted their cars with older hard tyres to prepare for race scenarios. Van Amersfoort Racing’s Bruno del Pino initially set the pace with a 1:32.219, but AIX Racing’s Fernando Barrichello soon displaced him with a 1:31.566.

As the afternoon wore on, Slater put in a solid effort with a 1:31.408, momentarily reclaiming the top spot. However, AIX Racing’s Brad Benavides and Hitech’s Tim Tramnitz also showed competitive pace, both setting times in the 1:30 bracket.

Campos Racing were the team to watch late in the session. Ugo Ugochukwu fitted a fresh set of hard tyres and posted a quick 1:28.241, passing everyone to set the fastest time of the afternoon. His teammate, Patrick Heuzenroeder, followed closely behind in second with a 1:28.444, while Nael secured third.

Despite several drivers trying to improve their lap times, a red flag was called with two minutes remaining when Enzo Deligny stopped in the gravel. This meant that Ugochukwu’s time remained unbeaten, securing him the top spot for the afternoon session.

Afternoon session standings:

1. Ugo Ugochukwu – Campos Racing – 1:28.241
2. Patrick Heuzenroeder – Campos Racing – 1:28.444
3. Théophile Nael – Campos Racing – 1:28.655
4. Brando Badoer – Rodin Motorsport – 1:29.153
5. Christian Ho – Rodin Motorsport – 1:29.317
6. Enzo Deligny – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:29.564
7. Bruno del Pino – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:29.864
8. Fionn McLaughlin – Hitech – 1:30.077
9. Tim Tramnitz – Hitech – 1:30.248
10. Jin Nakamura – Hitech – 1:30.260
11. Pedro Clerot – Rodin Motorsport – 1:30.321
12. Brad Benavides – AIX Racing – 1:31.331
13. Freddie Slater – TRIDENT – 1:31.408
14. Fernando Barrichello – AIX Racing – 1:31.566
15. Noah Stromsted – TRIDENT – 1:31.970
16. Gerrard Xie – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:32.059
17. Yevan David – AIX Racing – 1:32.220
18. Matteo De Palo – TRIDENT – 1:32.232
19. Alessandro Giusti – MP Motorsport – 1:32.301
20. Maciej Gladysz – ART Grand Prix – 1:32.384
21. Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:32.394
22. Tuukka Taponen – MP Motorsport – 1:32.410
23. Nicola Lacorte – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:32.469
24. Hiyu Yamakoshi – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:32.536
25. Louis Sharp – PREMA Racing – 1:32.679
26. José Garfias – PREMA Racing – 1:32.680
27. James Wharton – PREMA Racing – 1:32.820
28. Kanato Le – ART Grand Prix – 1:33.118
29. Mattia Colnaghi – MP Motorsport – 1:33.118
30. Taito Kato – ART Grand Prix – No time