Italian-outfit Trident Motorsport has established itself as a household name in junior single-seaters and continues to compete in the 2025 Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA). Founded in 2006, the team set out to race in GP2, then Europe’s top single-seater category beneath Formula 1, now known as Formula 2. Since then, Trident have expanded their operations and ventured into other series’ like Formula 3 and FRECA. The team has been a vital stepping stone for numerous drivers advancing through the ranks in recent years. Most notably, Trident has enjoyed tremendous success in FIA Formula 3, claiming three consecutive Drivers’ titles since 2023 with Gabriel Bortoleto, Leonardo Fornaroli and newly crowned champion Rafael Câmara.
However, our focus here remains on their history in FRECA. Since joining the series in 2022, the Italian-outfit is yet to walk away from a season with any of the two main titles. While they haven’t been able to match the success they enjoy in Formula 3, under the guidance of Team Manager Luca Zerbini, Trident’s 2025 FRECA season has been relatively strong so far, marked by several important milestones.
In 2025, the team’s lineup features three full-time drivers: Ruiqi Liu, Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi and Matteo De Palo. To date, they have claimed two wins and four podium-finishes with De Palo at the wheel. Ahead of the next round at the Red Bull Ring, we take a look at Trident’s 2025 FRECA journey thus far.
Ruiqi Liu (#5)
Born in 2006, Liu spent most of his karting career in Asia and raced against names like Gerrard Xie and Bianca Bustamante along the way. Making his single-seater debut at the end of 2022, the Chinese driver competed in the Lausitzring round of the ADAC Formula 4 Championship, where he secured a best finish of 9th. That same year, Liu contested in the final two rounds of the Italian F4 Championship but only managed a best finish of 28th.
In 2023, Liu began the year with a campaign in the Formula Winter Series with US Racing, finishing 4th in the Championship with three podium-finishes and a fastest lap. However, for his main campaign that year, the Chinese driver secured a full-time drive in the Italian F4 Championship, partnering with US Racing again. Having failed to score points and only recording a best finish of 13th, Liu ultimately placed 30th in the Drivers’ Standings, the lowest of his full-time teammates. Only later that year, Liu’s arrival to the FRECA grid was announced ahead of the 2024 season.
Having took part in Winter testing with the team, Trident announced Liu as part of their 2024 FRECA lineup for his rookie FRECA campaign, where he partnered current F3 drivers Roman Bilinski and Nicola Lacorte. Last season proved challenging for the Chinese driver, who collected only two points last year. Returning to the team this season with renewed determination, it hasn’t been smooth sailing for Liu. He has yet to find some rhythm in 2025 as he walked away from the first five rounds with no points finishes. But, luckily for Liu, his fortunes turned at Imola where he claimed his first points of the season after his P9 finish in Race 2.
Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi (#7)
Like Liu, Thai driver Nandhavud “Jem” Bhirombhakdi returned to the grid this season. Following a much shorter karting path than most, he only spent two years in kart before the Thai driver stepped up to single-seater racing in 2022. Bhirombhakdi made his single-seater debut when raced in the Formula 4 UAE Championship with Xcel Motorsport. With a best finish of 15th, the Thai driver wrapped up his season without having scored any points and finished 34th in the Drivers’ Standings.
However, for his main campaign, Bhirombhakdi’s focus was the ADAC Formula 4 Championship with Jenzer Motorsport. Having achieved a best finish of sixth at Lausitzring, the Thai driver enjoyed more success as he ended the season in 14th with 38 points to his name. Additionally, Bhirombhakdi would then go on to compete in Italian F4 with Jenzer as well.
Bhirombhakdi started the 2023 season by contesting in the Formula 4 UAE Championship. Joining the Italian F4 grid with PHM Racing, he topped the pre-season test with the team and showed a relative improvement. However, it was only during his time in the Formula 4 CEZ Championship that would see him claim his maiden Formula 4 podium in the opening race at the Red Bull Ring. Subsequently, he participated in the Euro 4 Championship as well.
In 2024, Bhirombhakdi’s sole focus was on his rookie FRECA campaign. However, it proved to be an extremely disappointing season, with no points scored. After a season with KIC Motorsport, the Thai driver moved to Trident for the 2025 FRECA season and has accumulated 8 points so far. With a best finish of 8th, Bhirombhakdi would definitely hope to take a step forward and target higher finishes in the remaining four rounds.
Matteo De Palo (#8)
Italian driver Matteo De Palo has been Trident’s standout and top performer, consistently adding to his and the team’s hopes of closing in on current championship leader Freddie Slater. Currently P2 in the Drivers’ Standings, De Palo sits just 16 points shy of the championship lead. Since his single-seater debut in 2023, the Italian has now found himself in the best possible opportunity to secure a title for the first time. In 2023, he made his debut in the Spanish F4 Championship, claiming one win, one pole position and three podiums to finish fifth with 171 points—a result built on strong consistency. That same year, De Palo also competed in the Formula Winter Series, Italian F4 and British F4 Championships.
To begin his 2024, the Italian joined the Formula Regional Middle East Championship with Saintéloc Racing for six races and managed to score 8 points. Subsequently, he would go on to continue with Saintéloc Racing for his rookie FRECA campaign. Managing to score 29 points, the Italian finished the season 17th in the drivers standings. This year, De Palo returned to the grid with Trident for his second campaign—one that has been considerably successful.
Trident’s hopes lie in De Palo’s success
After topping the first day of pre-season testing, De Palo began his season strongly during the first round in Misano. Setting the pace in Group A during Qualifying 1, the Italian secured a front-row start alongside Slater. With a strong launch off the line, he seized the opportunity to claim the lead and went on to secure his first win of the year—also marking Trident’s first FRECA victory. The success didn’t stop there for De Palo. In Race 2, he went on to cross the line and secured himself a solid P3 finish. Round 2 at Spa brought further success for the Italian as he finished P2 in Race 1. Following a point-scoring finish in Race 2, De Palo moved up to claim the championship lead as he surpassed Slater with 66 points.
The following round at Zandvoort saw De Palo score points, though no podiums came his way this time. However, it wasn’t long before he returned to the top step of the podium in Hungary during Race 1, where he crossed the line victorious for the second time in 2025. Another podium came during the fifth round at Paul Ricard, where he finished P2 in Race 1. But, since then, a string of consistent points finishes has kept De Palo firmly in contention for the championship as he now trails behind Slater.
Out of the team’s 180 points, 170 of them have come from De Palo. While Liu and Bhirombhakdi continue to struggle with consistency, De Palo’s reliability has been a key strength in helping Trident remain within the Top 5 of the Teams’ Championship. With four rounds remaining, De Palo would hope to close the gap to Slater, as Liu and Bhirombhakdi’s search for stronger results continue.
