Maksimilian Popov became the sixth different winner representing six different teams in the opening seven races of the 2026 Formula Regional European Championship (FREC) season after converting pole position into victory in Race 3 of the Spa-Francorchamps weekend.
After securing the first pole position of his single-seater career in the 2026 FREC Sunday morning’s Qualifying 2 session, the Trident driver delivered a composed lights-to-flag performance, maintaining control throughout a race interrupted by two late Safety Car periods.
Major milestone for Popov in FREC
The victory marks a major milestone for Popov, who has shown flashes of speed throughout his rookie campaign in FREC, but had yet to stand on the top step of the podium. Starting from pole, he never relinquished the lead despite pressure from those behind and a pair of late cautions that ultimately resulted in the race finishing under Safety Car conditions.
Behind him, Alexander Abkhazava produced one of the drives of the race. The MP Motorsport driver climbed three positions from his starting spot to secure second place and celebrate his maiden podium in Formula Regional competition.
Rashid Al Dhaheri continued his impressive run of consistency for R-ace GP, crossing the line in third and setting the fastest lap of the race. The bonus point for fastest lap was enough to move him to the top of the championship standings, giving him a one-point advantage over previous leader Sebastian Wheldon, who could only manage 10th place.
Jan Przyrowski added another strong result to his growing rookie campaign, bringing his RPM machine home in fourth after starting from the second row. Kean Nakamura-Berta followed in fifth for PREMA Racing, while Alex Ninovic secured sixth place for Rodin Motorsport.
Three rookies followed closely behind, with Marcus Saeter finishing seventh for G4 Racing, ahead of Emanuele Olivieri in eighth and Saturday’s Race 1 winner Alexandre Munoz in ninth.
Popov retains lead at the start
When the lights went out, Popov made an excellent launch from pole position to hold the lead into La Source ahead of Al Dhaheri.
Behind them, Munoz attempted an ambitious move around the outside at the end of the Kemmel Straight and briefly emerged at the front of the field. However, the ART Grand Prix driver cut the chicane during the manoeuvre and was forced to hand the position back, allowing Popov to remain in front.
The move also enabled Al Dhaheri to regain second place after briefly dropping to third. The Emirati driver completed a move on Munoz at La Source on lap three and immediately began trying to close the gap to the race leader.
Abkhazava charges forward
While Popov controlled the pace at the front of Race 3, the battle behind him remained intense.
Przyrowski settled into fourth position ahead of Abkhazava, Ninovic and Olivieri during the opening laps. However, Abkhazava soon began making progress, overtaking Munoz to move into podium contention before the Frenchman also lost out to Przyrowski.
Further back, Wheldon endured a difficult race. The championship leader slipped to seventh before later losing another position to Olivieri, while Ninovic also found a way past Munoz to secure fifth place.
By the midpoint of the race, the order at the front had stabilised, with Popov leading Abkhazava, Al Dhaheri and Przyrowski.
Late Safety Cars end the contest
The race’s first interruption arrived with 11 minutes and 30 seconds remaining when Saqer Almaosherji stopped at the Bus Stop chicane following contact with Miguel Costa.
The Safety Car was deployed, wiping out Popov’s advantage and bringing the field back together.
Although racing briefly resumed, another incident further down the order involving Salim Hanna and Dion Gowda triggered a second Safety Car almost immediately.
With insufficient time remaining for a restart, the race ended behind the Safety Car, allowing Popov to cruise to a breakthrough victory and become the latest new winner in what is proving to be one of the most competitive Formula Regional European Championship seasons in recent memory.
2026 FREC: Spa-Francorchamps Race 3 results
- #33 Maksimilian Popov – Trident Motorsport
- #15 Alexander Abkhazava – MP Motorsport
- #71 Rashid Al Dhaheri – R-ace GP
- #8 Jan Przyrowski – RPM
- #51 Kean Nakamura-Berta – PREMA Racing
- #2 Alex Ninovic – Rodin Motorsport
- #67 Marcus Sæter – G4 Racing
- #73 Emanuele Olivieri – R-ace GP
- #95 Alexandre Munoz – ART Grand Prix
- #98 Sebastian Wheldon – MP Motorsport
- #28 Zhenrui Chi – MP Motorsport
- #4 Reza Seewooruthun – Rodin Motorsport
- #24 Jules Roussel – CL Motorsport
- #27 Matteo Giaccardi – ART Grand Prix
- #7 Andrea Dupé – Van Amersfoort Racing
- #12 Yuki Sano – R-ace GP
- #78 Gabriel Gomez – Rodin Motorsport
- #87 Kai Daryanani – Trident Motorsport
- #99 Giovanni Maschio – RPM
- #69 Reno Francot – CL Motorsport
- #88 Salim Hanna – PREMA Racing
- #47 Andrija Kostić – Trident Motorsport
- #11 Francisco Macedo – Van Amersfoort Racing
- #9 Thomas Strauven – CL Motorsport
- #19 Kabir Anurag – ART Grand Prix
- #23 Rahim Alibhai – G4 Racing
- #60 Tomass Štolcermanis – PREMA Racing
- #55 Dion Gowda – Van Amersfoort Racing
NC:
- #5 Miguel Costa – RPM
- #3 Saqer Almaosherji – G4 Racing
