F3 feature: Ugochukwu takes maiden win at Melbourne
- Trisha Lynnette Nathan
- 3 minutes ago
- 5 min read
Written by: Trisha Lynnette
It's lights out and away we go for the 2026 Formula 3 season! The season opener at Melbourne showed a lot of track action from overtakes to constant collisions, giving us a glance at what is to come in 2026. The feature race saw Ugo Ugochukwu of Campos Racing take his maiden win in the chaotic Melbourne feature race.
PREMA Racing confirmed ahead of the start that both James Wharton and Louis Sharp would not participate in the Formula 3 feature race. The pair had been involved in a heavy collision during Saturday’s sprint race, leaving both cars with extensive damage.
The incident also caused significant harm to the circuit barriers. Race control therefore halted the sprint race with a red flag after eight laps, and the race was not resumed. Repairs to the track meant the following Formula One Free Practice 3 session began 20 minutes later than scheduled.
Following a review of the incident, the stewards ruled Sharp fully responsible for the collision. A 10-second penalty was applied to his result, which dropped him to 16th place in the final classification. He also received two penalty points on his licence, becoming the first driver of the season to receive penalty points.
Medical advice then prompted PREMA Racing to withdraw both Sharp and Wharton from the remainder of the weekend. Despite the setback, the team confirmed both drivers were in good condition and expected to return for the next round.
With the two PREMA drivers absent, the Formula 3 feature race grid at the 2026 Australian Grand Prix reduced to 28 cars. Campos Racing secured the front row, with pole-sitter Naël lining up alongside team-mate Ugochukwu.
The formation lap began with early drama when DAMS Lucas Oil’s Nicola Lacorte struggled to launch from his grid slot. Although he managed to recover and join the field, the hesitation briefly disrupted the pack behind him.
The rest of the formation lap passed without further problems, and all 28 drivers returned to their grid positions for the start. With only eight laps of racing completed earlier in the weekend, uncertainty remained around how the 23-lap race would unfold.
When the lights went out, Freddie Slater of Trident made a superb start from third position and immediately challenged the Campos pair. Naël maintained the lead through the opening corner, but Ugochukwu slipped back to fourth as ART Grand Prix’s Maciej Gładysz moved into contention.
PREMA Racing’s difficult weekend worsened. Their remaining driver José Garfias suffered a puncture on the first lap and was forced to pit immediately. Van Amersfoort Racing’s Bruno del Pino and ART Grand Prix’s Kanato Le also visited the pit lane during the opening tour.
At the front, Ugochukwu quickly recovered and passed Slater to retake second place. Slater soon dropped outside the DRS window while Gładysz and Lacorte closed in on the battle for the final podium spot.
On Lap 4, Ugochukwu launched his attack and overtook Naël for the lead. Using DRS, the American quickly opened a small advantage over the chasing pack.
Further behind, Rodin Motorsport’s Brando Badoer impressed after starting ninth. He moved past Lacorte to secure fifth position. Meanwhile, Kanato Le’s race ended soon after an incident that forced his retirement.
AIX Racing’s Brad Benavides began working his way through the order. Having qualified 20th and started 18th after penalties were applied ahead, he climbed to 15th during the early stages.
Meanwhile, Trident’s Noah Strømsted overtook Badoer to take ninth. Ahead of him, MP Motorsport’s Mattia Colnaghi and DAMS Lucas Oil’s Taito Kato were battling for seventh position. Kato eventually gained the advantage, before Strømsted passed Colnaghi as well to move into eighth.
Further up the road, contact between Lacorte and Badoer caused the Rodin driver to spin. Although he dropped to 12th, he was able to continue.
A more serious accident soon followed. DAMS Lucas Oil’s Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi lost control exiting Turn 12 and struck the barriers. The crash triggered a Safety Car deployment on Lap 10, bunching the field together.
The Safety Car returned to the pit lane on Lap 11, allowing the race to restart at the beginning of Lap 12. Ugochukwu controlled the restart well and maintained the lead.
Naël and Slater stayed close behind, while Gładysz struggled to match the leading trio. The ART driver soon faced pressure from Lacorte.
At the start of Lap 14, race control placed Naël and Lacorte under investigation for potential false starts. Around the same time, MP Motorsport’s Alessandro Giusti ran wide and lost several positions.
Garfias also ran wide during this phase of the race and remained near the back of the field.
Lacorte then moved ahead of Slater on Lap 16 to take third place. Shortly afterwards, the stewards confirmed that Naël would receive a five-second penalty for a false start.
Slater then came under pressure from Gładysz for the final podium place. A lock-up for Gładysz ended the challenge and dropped him to sixth.
Giusti was later shown the black-and-white flag for repeated track limits offences. Meanwhile, another clash involving Lacorte and Strømsted caused further disruption. Lacorte lost part of his front wing and dropped down the order, while the stewards issued him a five-second penalty for track limits.
Further down the order, Benavides defended tenth place from Nakamura while attempting to capitalise on Lacorte’s penalty.
At the front, Slater managed to pass Naël for second place, leaving the French driver vulnerable to Strømsted behind. Just as the battle was developing, another incident interrupted the race.
Hitech’s Woo-hyun "Michael" Shin collided with Trident’s Matteo De Palo, leaving Shin’s car stranded in the barriers. Race control deployed the Safety Car once again.
The neutralisation lasted until Lap 22. During the Safety Car period, Strømsted received a 10-second penalty for causing the earlier collision with Lacorte.
Naël and Strømsted both carried penalties and the race finished under Safety Car conditions, the final results were significantly reshuffled.
Ugochukwu crossed the line to secure his first Formula 3 feature race victory and the opening win of the season. Slater finished second, while Kato inherited the final podium position after the penalties ahead were applied.
Del Pino recorded the fastest lap of the race with a 1:37.336 on Lap 5 and finished fourth overall.
That brings us to the end of the eventful season opener at Melbourne. We go racing in April, but don’t worry, there’s still plenty of racing action in Motorsports! Catch all the coverage right here at DIVEBOMB Motorsports.
