2026 | FREC | Spa-Francorchamps | Qualifying 1 | Munoz claims pole, Al Dhaheri to start on the front row

Qualifying 1 for the 2026 FIA Formula Regional European Championship (FREC) at Spa-Francorchamps delivered a tightly contested battle across both groups, with lap times continuing to tumble as the sessions progressed. Rashid Al Dhaheri emerged quickest in Group A ahead of Championship leader Sebastian Wheldon, while Group B proved even faster as rookie Alexandre Munoz snatched pole position away in the closing moments of the session.

Kean Nakamura-Berta, Alex Ninovic and Marcus Sæter were all firmly in the fight throughout the session, as the incredibly close margins once again highlighted the competitiveness of the 2026 FREC field.

2026 FREC: Spa-Francorchamps: Qualifying 1: Group A: Al Dhaheri goes the fastest

For much of the opening half of Qualifying 1 Group A, the drivers focused on building tyre temperature and finding consistency around the circuit, with the first representative lap times only beginning to appear once the session entered its final six minutes.

Gowda was the first driver to put a benchmark on the board with a 2:15.719, although he was quickly displaced as the rest of the field crossed the line with progressively faster times. Przyrowski became the first driver to break into the 2:14s, setting a 2:14.984 before Championship leader Sebastian Wheldon moved to the top with a 2:14.613.

However, Rashid Al Dhaheri responded almost immediately, edging ahead of Wheldon with a 2:14.559 to take provisional control of the session.

On the final runs, Al Dhaheri improved once again with a 2:14.523, cementing himself at the top of Group A. Wheldon finished second quickest with a 2:14.613, while Sano slotted into P3, just 0.061s behind Wheldon in an incredibly close session.

Group A Results: Top 10

1. #71 Rashid Al Dhaheri – R-ace GP – 2:14.523
2. #98 Sebastian Wheldon – MP Motorsport – +2:14.613
3. #12 Yuki Sano – R-ace GP – +2:14.674
4. #73 Emanuele Olivieri – R-ace GP – + 2:14.699
5. #4 Reza Seewooruthun – Rodin Motorsport – + 2:14.704
6. #99 Giovanni Maschio – RPM – + 2:14.882
7. #24 Jules Roussel – CL Motorsport – + 2:14.887
8. #87 Kai Daryanani – Trident Motorsport – + 2:14.897
9. #28 Zhenrui Chi – MP Motorsport – + 2:14.932
10. #60 Tomass Štolcermanis – PREMA Racing – + 2:14.975

2026 FREC: Spa-Francorchamps: Qualifying 1: Group B: Munoz claims pole for Race 1

Much like Group A, the Group B drivers spent the opening stages of the 15-minute session building tyre temperature and preparing for their representative qualifying laps.

Once the push laps began, many drivers initially sat in the 2:16s, but rookie Marcus Sæter quickly raised the benchmark, going faster than Al Dhaheri’s Group A effort with a 2:14.518. Popov slotted in just behind on a 2:14.520, before Kean Nakamura-Berta delivered an impressive lap to move to the top with a 2:14.084, almost two-tenths clear of Sæter.

Francot and Munoz then inserted themselves between the leading drivers with laps of 2:14.232 and 2:14.365 respectively, while Alex Ninovic emerged as Nakamura-Berta’s closest challenger, setting a 2:14.107.

However, as the chequered flag fell and the final laps were completed, rookie Alexandre Munoz delivered a late improvement to jump to the top of the timings with a 2:14.070, narrowly edging out Nakamura-Berta and Ninovic to secure pole position.

Group B Results: Top 10

1. #95 Alexandre Munoz – ART Grand Prix – 2:14.070
2. #51 Kean Nakamura-Berta – PREMA Racing – + 2:14.084
3. #2 Alex Ninovic – Rodin Motorsport – + 2:14.107
4. #78 Gabriel Gomez – Rodin Motorsport – + 2:14.222
5. #69 Reno Francot – CL Motorsport – + 2:14.232
6. #33 Maksimilian Popov – Trident Motorsport – + 2:14.306
7. #88 Salim Hanna – PREMA Racing – + 2:14.462
8. #27 Matteo Giaccardi – ART Grand Prix – + 2:14.503
9. #67 Marcus Sæter – G4 Racing – + 2:14.518
10. #47 Andrija Kostić – Trident Motorsport – + 2:14.568