After his two appearances last season, Jesse Carrasquedo makes the step up to his full maiden Formula 3 season in 2026. The Mexican driver finished eight in the Eurocup-3 Spanish Winter Championship, and fifth in Eurocup-3 in 2025.
The young driver will race with Van Amersfoort Racing, with whom he is already familiar after having competed with them earlier in FRECA. Speaking about the opportunity, Carrasquedo stated:
“I’m very excited to be racing with Van Amersfoort Racing. I was with them in 2022 and they were welcoming, and I really like the team, and especially for F3.
“I have worked most of my career towards this, and after two years in Eurocup, I think it was deserved, and I’m super excited to work and to do the best possible job with the team.”
Building on prior experience
Carrasquedo went on to explain how his F3 outings in 2025 could help him this season.
“I think the Red Bull Ring weekend was very useful, especially with the tyres, that are very important and the key reason to go fast or slow.
“It’s the tyres and how you warm them up. So, I think I learned quite a lot from those two rounds, and I learned how the championship works. To just get a little bit of feeling before you actually do the championship is always very good.”
In addition to his outings with Hitech TGR last season, the rookie took part in F3 post-season testing. The Mexican driver is confident he can build on his experience from last season and better understand F3 cars and Pirelli tyres this year.
Working relationships and focus on tyres
The rookie said his main focus during post-season testing was learning the Pirelli tyres.
“We worked a lot with the team. I was with my engineer for next year
“We literally just worked on tyres. We didn’t focus on anything else. And those tests were, I think, really, really helpful to understand even more about the tyres and to get a good feeling in the car
“I think how you get along with your engineer and the work ethic is quite important, especially because you’re going to spend a whole year with them.“
Carrasquedo explained that team dynamics are immensely important to him, particularly the working relationship between the driver and the engineer. Although the Dutch team had a tough 2025 season, the rookie will hope for a successful maiden season with them as he continues to strengthen their relationship.
“Your performance is related to your engineer and how you work with them. It’s not just you in the car driving. It’s also all of the team’s efforts. And I think just getting a good feeling with your engineers is very crucial to your season in general.”
While he remains excited for all of 2026, he is most looking forward to driving around the Monte Carlo circuit. The Monaco circuit remains the dream of many young drivers, and it will be interesting to see what he can do on the narrow streets.
“I think the one I’m most excited for is Monaco, because I’ve never been there. So I think Monaco is going to be the one I’m looking forward to the most, it has been my dream since I was a child.”
