Hiyu Yamakoshi claimed victory in a chaotic Sprint Race at the 2026 F3 Monaco GP, view the full race report here.
Following an almost three-month break, Formula 3 returned to action on the streets of Monaco with Free Practice, topped by Campos Racing’s Théophile Naël. Rookie Naël continued his strong form in Qualifying, taking his second F3 pole position with a time of 1:24.471, while Hiyu Yamakoshi claimed reverse-grid pole for the Sprint Race.
However, after Qualifying, the stewards handed Noah Strømsted a three-place grid penalty for both races after impeding Tuukka Taponen during Group A Qualifying. Originally set to start the Sprint Race in P3, the TRIDENT driver will now start in P6.
As preparations for the Sprint Race concluded, Yamakoshi lined up on the front row alongside Gerrard Xie in P2. Pedro Clerot started in P3, while Bruno del Pino and Alessandro Giusti completed the top five.
Lights out for Monaco’s F3 Sprint Race
At lights out, Yamakoshi led the field away as Clerot cut the Turn 1 corner, with the remainder of the field following. Drama struck early with a multi-car collision at the hairpin that brought out a safety car and, soon after, a red flag. Four drivers, including Taponen, Brando Badoer, Brad Benavides, and Christian Ho, retired due to damage sustained in the incident.
During the red flag, Race Control noted Enzo Deligny for leaving the track and gaining an advantage on the opening lap. The F3 Monaco GP Sprint Race resumed at 11:25 local time with a rolling start and with 22 minutes remaining.
Yamakoshi led the field away once again and instantly took control of the race. Meanwhile, Clerot let del Pino through to P3 after receiving clear instructions from his Rodin Motorsport race engineer.
Hairpin drama continues
Another multi-car incident occurred at the hairpin with 17 minutes left, as Freddie Slater spun Ernesto Rivera around in an attempt to overtake, stopping Naël, who was behind. A brief safety car was deployed, but all three drivers soon resumed despite dropping to the back of the grid. Running in P24, Slater received a 10-second penalty for causing the collision.
The Sprint Race continued with 14 minutes remaining as Yamakoshi made another strong restart. The Van Amersfoort Racing driver soon extended his lead over Xie to 0.9s.
Final moments
With 8 minutes to go, a brief virtual safety car was brought out due to debris at the exit of Turn 16. Misfortune arrived for Rivera, who made his way into the pits to retire due to issues with his Campos Racing car. Meanwhile, Race Control noted Matteo De Palo and Nicola Lacorte for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.
Despite the constant interruptions, Hiyu Yamakoshi remained composed and drove from reverse-grid pole to his maiden Sprint Race victory. Gerrard Xie finished P2, while Bruno del Pino completed the podium.
