2026 | FREC | Hungaroring | Free Practice | Olivieri fastest overall as Almaosherji tops FP2

Emanuele Olivieri set the fastest lap of Friday’s FIA Formula Regional European Championship (FREC) running at the Hungaroring, while Saqer Almaosherji topped the second Free Practice session.

The R-ace GP rookie led Free Practice 1 with a 1:38.146, continuing his momentum after claiming his maiden FREC victory at Monza two weeks ago. He finished 0.085s clear of Alexander Abkhazava, while championship leader Sebastian Wheldon completed the opening-session top three.

Almaosherji then put G4 Racing on top in Free Practice 2 with a 1:38.466. Although his afternoon benchmark did not beat Olivieri’s earlier lap, it gave him first place in a closely matched second session, where the top 26 drivers again finished within one second.

Olivieri strikes late in Free Practice 1

Olivieri arrived at the Hungaroring for the first time and quickly adapted to the Hungarian venue.

The 17-year-old became the first driver to enter the 1:38s during the opening session, posting a 1:38.840 with just over 30 minutes remaining. That lap held the lead for a long spell before the final phase brought a rapid sequence of improvements.

Jan Przyrowski briefly moved to the top for RPM before Wheldon took control for MP Motorsport. Abkhazava then lowered the benchmark to 1:38.231, while Rashid Al Dhaheri, who topped Thursday running, moved into second and pushed Wheldon down to third.

However, Olivieri responded in the closing minutes. First, he improved by more than four tenths to move back into contention. Then, with three minutes remaining, he delivered a 1:38.146 to reclaim first place and secure the fastest lap of the day.

R-ace GP places three cars inside the top five

Abkhazava finished second in Free Practice 1 after setting his best time on lap 14 of 21. Wheldon followed in third, 0.185s behind Olivieri.

R-ace GP also placed Yuki Sano and Al Dhaheri in fourth and fifth. Sano finished only 0.002s ahead of Al Dhaheri, giving the team three cars inside the top five.

Rodin Motorsport followed with Alex Ninovic in sixth and Reza Seewooruthun in seventh. Dion Gowda placed eighth for Van Amersfoort Racing, while Przyrowski and Kean Nakamura-Berta completed the top 10.

The field remained tightly packed. Only 0.498s covered the first 10 drivers, while 26 cars finished within 0.962s of Olivieri’s benchmark.

2026 FREC Hungaroring Free Practice 1 results

1. #73 Emanuele Olivieri (R) (R-ace GP): 1:38.146
2. #15 Alexander Abkhazava (MP Motorsport): +0.085s
3. #98 Sebastian Wheldon (MP Motorsport): +0.185s
4. #12 Yuki Sano (R-ace GP): +0.249s
5. #71 Rashid Al Dhaheri (R-ace GP): +0.251s
6. #2 Alex Ninovic (Rodin Motorsport): +0.268s
7. #4 Reza Seewooruthun (Rodin Motorsport): +0.403s
8. #55 Dion Gowda (Van Amersfoort Racing): +0.450s
9. #8 Jan Przyrowski (RPM): +0.487s
10. #51 Kean Nakamura-Berta (PREMA Racing): +0.498s
11. #7 Andrea Dupé (Van Amersfoort Racing): +0.509s
12. #87 Kai Daryanani (Trident Motorsport): +0.518s
13. #69 Reno Francot (CL Motorsport): +0.571s
14. #27 Matteo Giaccardi (ART Grand Prix): +0.573s
15. #60 Tomass Stolcermanis (R) (PREMA Racing): +0.617s
16. #88 Salim Hanna (PREMA Racing): +0.639s
17. #24 Jules Roussel (CL Motorsport): +0.658s
18. #11 Francisco Macedo (Van Amersfoort Racing): +0.698s
19. #78 Gabriel Gomez (R) (Rodin Motorsport): +0.710s
20. #19 Kabir Anurag (ART Grand Prix): +0.801s
21. #5 Miguel Costa (RPM): +0.806s
22. #67 Marcus Saeter (R) (G4 Racing): +0.815s
23. #14 Noah Lisle (CL Motorsport): +0.840s
24. #28 Chi Zhenrui (MP Motorsport): +0.889s
25. #33 Maksimilian Popov (Trident Motorsport): +0.953s
26. #3 Saqer Almaosherji (G4 Racing): +0.962s
27. #47 Andrija Kostic (Trident Motorsport): +1.080s
28. #23 Rahim Alibhai (R) (G4 Racing): +1.287s
29. #95 Alexandre Munoz (R) (ART Grand Prix): +1.431s
30. #99 Giovanni Maschio (RPM): +1.646s

Almaosherji takes over in Free Practice 2

Almaosherji rebounded strongly in the afternoon after finishing 26th in the opening session.

Mattéo Giaccardi spent much of Free Practice 2 at the top after producing a 1:39.067 early in the session. Francisco Macedo then moved ahead with a 1:38.984, but the Van Amersfoort Racing driver lost that lap to track limits.

With 12 minutes remaining, Abkhazava jumped to first with a 1:38.634. Wheldon then went faster on track with a 1:38.172, although officials deleted that lap for exceeding track limits.

Almaosherji seized the opportunity with a late 1:38.466. That effort put him 0.021s ahead of Wheldon’s best valid lap and secured the top spot in Free Practice 2.

G4 Racing leads the rookie order in FP2

Wheldon ended the afternoon second with a 1:38.487, while Marcus Saeter completed the top three for G4 Racing.

Saeter also led the rookie classification after setting a 1:38.589. His performance placed him 0.238s ahead of ART Grand Prix rookie Alexandre Munoz, while PREMA Racing’s Tomass Stolcermanis finished third among the rookies.

Abkhazava and Nakamura-Berta recorded identical 1:38.634 laps, taking fourth and fifth respectively. Munoz followed in sixth, ahead of Salim Hanna, Ninovic, Al Dhaheri and Stolcermanis.

Further back, Olivieri finished 21st in FP2 with a 1:39.193. However, his Free Practice 1 lap remained the fastest time recorded across Friday’s running.

2026 FREC Hungaroring Free Practice 2 results

1. #3 Saqer Almaosherji (G4 Racing): 1:38.466
2. #98 Sebastian Wheldon (MP Motorsport): +0.021s
3. #67 Marcus Saeter (R) (G4 Racing): +0.123s
4. #15 Alexander Abkhazava (MP Motorsport): +0.168s
5. #51 Kean Nakamura-Berta (PREMA Racing): +0.168s
6. #95 Alexandre Munoz (R) (ART Grand Prix): +0.361s
7. #88 Salim Hanna (PREMA Racing): +0.420s
8. #2 Alex Ninovic (Rodin Motorsport): +0.493s
9. #71 Rashid Al Dhaheri (R-ace GP): +0.495s
10. #60 Tomass Stolcermanis (R) (PREMA Racing): +0.527s
11. #5 Miguel Costa (RPM): +0.542s
12. #12 Yuki Sano (R-ace GP): +0.552s
13. #11 Francisco Macedo (Van Amersfoort Racing): +0.559s
14. #8 Jan Przyrowski (RPM): +0.576s
15. #27 Matteo Giaccardi (ART Grand Prix): +0.601s
16. #7 Andrea Dupé (Van Amersfoort Racing): +0.641s
17. #99 Giovanni Maschio (RPM): +0.654s
18. #78 Gabriel Gomez (R) (Rodin Motorsport): +0.672s
19. #47 Andrija Kostic (Trident Motorsport): +0.694s
20. #33 Maksimilian Popov (Trident Motorsport): +0.715s
21. #73 Emanuele Olivieri (R) (R-ace GP): +0.727s
22. #23 Rahim Alibhai (R) (G4 Racing): +0.785s
23. #87 Kai Daryanani (Trident Motorsport): +0.809s
24. #55 Dion Gowda (Van Amersfoort Racing): +0.852s
25. #4 Reza Seewooruthun (Rodin Motorsport): +0.863s
26. #19 Kabir Anurag (ART Grand Prix): +0.886s
27. #28 Chi Zhenrui (MP Motorsport): +1.216s
28. #69 Reno Francot (CL Motorsport): +2.334s
29. #24 Jules Roussel (CL Motorsport): +2.374s
30. #14 Noah Lisle (CL Motorsport): +2.378s

Close field sets up Qualifying battle

The Hungaroring Free Practice results suggested another tightly contested FREC weekend.

Olivieri, Abkhazava, Wheldon and Al Dhaheri all featured near the front during Friday, while Almaosherji and Saeter pushed G4 Racing into contention during the afternoon. MP Motorsport also placed Wheldon and Abkhazava inside the top four in both sessions.

However, track limits played a significant role, particularly in FP2. Wheldon lost the fastest lap of the afternoon, while Macedo also dropped back after losing a lap that would have placed him near the top.

The championship now moves into Qualifying 1 on Saturday at 11:35 local time, with the field split into Groups A and B. Race 1 follows at 18:20 and will run over 30 minutes plus one lap.

Qualifying 2 begins on Sunday at 08:30, before Race 2 concludes the Hungaroring weekend at 15:55.