Kean Nakamura-Berta credited his experience at Monza and PREMA Racing’s strong performance after claiming his second victory of the 2026 FIA Formula Regional European Championship (FREC) season.
The pole-sitter led the opening race of the weekend from start to finish, although Emanuele Olivieri briefly moved ahead during a late battle at the first chicane. Nakamura-Berta immediately responded, reclaimed first place and crossed the line 0.705 seconds ahead of the R-ace GP driver.
Olivieri secured second place and topped the Rookie classification at his home event. Meanwhile, Salim Hanna completed the podium in third and gave PREMA Racing two cars inside the top three.
Nakamura-Berta credits experience and PREMA performance
Nakamura-Berta entered the weekend with confidence after previously producing strong results at Monza. He converted that familiarity into pole position before controlling a race that featured an opening-lap accident, a Safety Car restart and sustained pressure from Olivieri.
The British-Japanese driver also drew on the experience he gained during two seasons in Italian Formula 4. That knowledge helped him manage the slipstream, push-to-pass strategy and repeated attacks that typically define racing at Monza.
“Monza is statistically my strongest circuit and it’s always a place where I really enjoy driving. The team has done an incredible job throughout the weekend and the car has been competitive from the very start.
“PREMA Racing has traditionally been very strong at the Italian circuits, and I think my experience here from two seasons in Italian F4 has also helped me understand how to manage the race. It’s a combination of many factors, but overall everything came together perfectly today.”
Nakamura-Berta retained the lead through a chaotic opening lap before the Safety Car brought the field back together. After the restart, he managed the gap while Olivieri recovered second place from Hanna and began closing on the PREMA Racing driver.
Olivieri reduced the margin to six-tenths by lap six and eventually launched his strongest attack at the beginning of lap 11. However, Nakamura-Berta fought back immediately and reclaimed the position before controlling the remaining laps.
The victory delivered his second win of the campaign and moved him into the championship lead. Moreover, it continued PREMA Racing’s traditionally strong record at Italian circuits.
Olivieri celebrates home podium and Rookie victory in Monza
Olivieri started alongside Nakamura-Berta on the front row but lost second place to Hanna during the opening phase. Nevertheless, the Italian remained patient through the Safety Car period and reclaimed the position on his second attempt after the restart.
He then closed rapidly on the leader and applied consistent pressure throughout the middle of the race. His strongest opportunity arrived at the first chicane on lap 11, where he briefly took first place before Nakamura-Berta responded.
Although Olivieri could not retain the lead, he stayed close to the PREMA Racing car and secured second place in front of his home crowd. He also claimed the Rookie victory and recorded his second overall podium of the season.
“It feels great to achieve this result at my home race. We knew starting from the front row would give us a good opportunity, but at Monza anything can happen, especially with such a competitive field.
“After the Safety Car restart, I was able to put some pressure on Kean and we showed strong pace throughout the race. We had been competitive since Free Practice, so I knew we had the potential to fight at the front. I used a lot of my push-to-pass to challenge for the lead and we had a good battle. In the end, I had to focus on defending and bringing home solid points.
“Overall, it has been a very positive race and I’m happy to secure another podium in front of my home crowd.”
Olivieri’s push-to-pass use allowed him to challenge Nakamura-Berta, but it also limited his options during the closing stages. After losing the lead, he shifted his focus towards protecting second place and collecting valuable championship points.
Hanna remained close behind, but Olivieri controlled the gap and completed a strong result for R-ace GP. His performance also confirmed the pace that the team had shown from Free Practice onwards.
Hanna identifies room for improvement after third place
Hanna made one of the strongest starts among the leading drivers and immediately passed Olivieri for second place. He stayed behind team-mate Nakamura-Berta during the opening laps and entered the Safety Car period in a promising position.
However, Hanna struggled to maximise the restart and eventually lost second to Olivieri. He then faced pressure from Alexander Abkhazava, Sebastian Wheldon and other drivers involved in the fight behind the leading pair.
The Colombian managed his remaining push-to-pass allocation while protecting the final podium position. Although he recognised areas that PREMA Racing could improve, he still welcomed the result after a difficult previous round at Spa-Francorchamps.
“I made a strong start and, as a team, we’ve been very competitive. However, after the Safety Car, my restart could have been better and that’s definitely an area we need to work on.
“Once Emanuele got past me, I tried to manage my push-to-pass allocation for the remainder of the race, but with pressure coming from behind, I wasn’t really able to save as much as I would have liked.
“Overall, I think we can still make further progress, both in terms of push-to-pass management and car balance. That said, we’ve made a significant step forward compared to Spa, where we didn’t have the results we deserved. Finishing on the podium is a positive outcome and gives us a good foundation to build on for the rest of the weekend.”
Hanna ultimately retained third place and secured PREMA Racing’s second podium position of the race. His result also underlined the team’s progress after it failed to convert its potential into comparable results at Spa.
Nevertheless, Hanna highlighted both restart execution and push-to-pass management as areas for further development. Those improvements could prove important as the season progresses and the championship battle intensifies.
PREMA strengthens its position at Monza
Nakamura-Berta’s victory and Hanna’s third place gave PREMA Racing a strong start to the Monza weekend. The team combined qualifying pace with effective race management and placed both drivers on the podium despite pressure from Olivieri.
Meanwhile, R-ace GP demonstrated its own competitiveness as Olivieri fought directly for victory and secured the Rookie win. His late attack prevented Nakamura-Berta from cruising to the finish and produced the decisive battle of the race.
Ultimately, Nakamura-Berta’s experience and immediate response to Olivieri’s move decided the contest. He converted pole position into his second victory of the season, took the championship lead and strengthened his status as one of the leading contenders in the 2026 FREC campaign.
