2026 | FREC | Paul Ricard | Free Practice | Nakamura-Berta tops FP1, Wheldon fastest overall in FP2

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Kean Nakamura-Berta topped the opening Free Practice session at Paul Ricard as Formula Regional European Championship (FREC) returned to action for Round 6 of the 2026 season.

The PREMA Racing driver set the pace with a 1:59.187, finishing more than three tenths clear of team-mate Salim Hanna in an uninterrupted session.

Rodin Motorsport’s Alex Ninovic climbed to third with a late improvement after the chequered flag had fallen, edging out PREMA Racing’s Tomass Stolcermanis, who finished as the leading Rookie.

Championship leader Rashid Al Dhaheri ended the session in seventh, behind R-ace GP team-mate Emanuele Olivieri. Miguel Costa (RPM), Reza Seewooruthun (Rodin Motorsport) and Sebastian Wheldon (MP Motorsport) completed the top ten.

Al Dhaheri was the first driver to break the two-minute barrier in the early stages of the session, setting a 1:59.995 with just under 30 minutes remaining to move 0.074 seconds ahead of Rodin Motorsport’s Gabriel Gomez.

The benchmark was soon lowered by Van Amersfoort Racing’s Francisco Macedo, who posted a 1:59.843 to move to the top of the timesheets.

Wheldon then moved into second with a 1:59.925 before improving on his next lap to a 1:59.767, taking over at the head of the field.

With seven minutes remaining, Nakamura-Berta produced a 1:59.353 to move into first place.

PREMA Racing team-mates Hanna and Stolcermanis followed him up the order, with Hanna ending up just 0.160 seconds off the pace, while Stolcermanis set a 1:59.592 to move into third.

In the closing moments, Nakamura-Berta improved once more to a session-best 1:59.187.

Wheldon, one of the first drivers to take the chequered flag, slipped down to ninth, while Ninovic delivered a late improvement to secure third place and relegate Stolcermanis to fourth by the end of the session.

2026 FREC Paul Ricard Free Practice 1 results

#51 Kean Nakamura-Berta (PREMA Racing): 1:59.187
#88 Salim Hanna (PREMA Racing): +0.326
#2 Alex Ninovic (Rodin Motorsport): +0.367
#60 Tomass Stolcermanis (R) (PREMA Racing): +0.405
#33 Maksimilian Popov (Trident Motorsport): +0.432
#73 Emanuele Olivieri (R) (R-ace GP): +0.438
#71 Rashid Al Dhaheri (R-ace GP): +0.457
#5 Miguel Costa (RPM): +0.489
#4 Reza Seewooruthun (Rodin Motorsport): +0.516
#98 Sebastian Wheldon (MP Motorsport): +0.552
#11 Francisco Macedo (Van Amersfoort Racing): +0.587
#67 Marcus Saeter (R) (G4 Racing): +0.618
#78 Gabriel Gomez (R) (Rodin Motorsport): +0.664
#69 Reno Francot (CL Motorsport): +0.652
#15 Alexander Abkhazava (MP Motorsport): +0.658
#19 Kabir Anurag (ART Grand Prix): +0.747
#8 Jan Przyrowski (RPM): +0.774
#3 Saqer Almaosherji (G4 Racing): +0.788
#47 Andrija Kostic (Trident Motorsport): +0.793
#87 Kai Daryanani (Trident Motorsport): +0.801
#12 Yuki Sano (R-ace GP): +0.835
#28 Chi Zhenrui (MP Motorsport): +0.867
#95 Alexandre Munoz (R) (ART Grand Prix): +0.922
#55 Dion Gowda (Van Amersfoort Racing): +0.968
#7 Andrea Dupé (Van Amersfoort Racing): +0.974
#27 Matteo Giaccardi (ART Grand Prix): +1.006
#24 Jules Roussel (CL Motorsport): +1.200
#23 Rahim Alibhai (R) (G4 Racing): +1.246
#99 Giovanni Maschio (RPM): +1.560
#14 Noah Lisle (CL Motorsport): +1.778

Wheldon tops FP2, fastest driver overall on Friday

Sebastian Wheldon topped the second Free Practice session at Paul Ricard to finish the opening day of the sixth round of the 2026 FRECA season as the fastest driver overall.

The MP Motorsport driver set a 1:58.588 in the afternoon session to improve on Kean Nakamura-Berta’s morning benchmark of 1:59.187, with Maksimilian Popov finishing just 0.079s behind in second for Trident Motorsport.

Championship leader Rashid Al Dhaheri completed the top three, just over one tenth off the pace, ahead of R-ace GP team-mate Emanuele Olivieri, who was the fastest Rookie.

MP Motorsport’s Zhenrui Chi and Alexander Abkhazava finished fifth and sixth respectively, while Reno Francot continued to feature among the frontrunners in seventh.

Nakamura-Berta ended the afternoon session in eighth. Rodin Motorsport’s Gabriel Gomez was ninth, while Jules Roussel and Alexandre Munoz completed the top 11.

Olivieri and Al Dhaheri initially led the way in the afternoon session, with the Italian setting the benchmark at 1:59.432 with 30 minutes remaining.

Francot and Popov were among the early pace-setters and became the first drivers to break the two-minute barrier before Popov moved to the top with a 1:59.338.

Olivieri soon reclaimed first place with a 1:59.040, before Abkhazava set a 1:58.922 to move to the top of the timesheets. Al Dhaheri responded with a 1:58.711, while Popov closed to within 0.032s of the championship leader with a strong final sector.

Wheldon then moved into contention, climbing to third just 0.013s behind Popov and less than one tenth ahead of Olivieri. The MP Motorsport driver went on to set the fastest lap of the day, posting a 1:58.588 to take the top spot.

Popov ultimately finished second, 0.079s behind Wheldon, while Al Dhaheri completed the top three.