The 2024 Formula Regional European Championship season has been over for more than two months now, and after post-season testing, the first drivers have started filling the seats for the upcoming season. Feeder Series tells you what we know about what the grid will look like in 2025.

By Francesca Brusa

With a large portion of the top-scoring drivers from last year graduating to F3, a number of new faces will enter the FR Europe paddock for 2025, many as graduates from the biggest F4 series in Europe. 

Though a growing number of youngsters are opting for other categories such as Eurocup-3 and GB3, the FR Europe championship remains the most popular destination at the regional level. 

Prema Racing

In 2024, for the third year consecutively, Prema Racing brought home both teams’ and drivers’ titles, with an unprecedented 1-2 in the latter. FR Europe champion Rafael Câmara and teammates James Wharton and Ugo Ugochukwu will all climb up the feeder series ladder to F3, but only the American racer will stick with the Italian outfit as Câmara and Wharton switch to Trident and ART Grand Prix respectively.

These promotions will allow the Grisignano di Zocco–based squad to start fresh with an all-rookie line-up in 2025. Taking the first seat will be Italian F4 champion Freddie Slater. The British driver was confirmed via official channels before last year’s campaign could even come to an end. In 2024, the 16-year-old collected two titles, not only in the Italian F4 Championship but also in F4 UAE, claiming a total of 17 wins and five further podiums across the two series. Slater also competed in Euro 4 this past year, finishing as runner-up in the standings, and made cameo appearances in the Donington Park round of the GB3 Championship and the FIA FR World Cup as part of the 71st Macau Grand Prix weekend.

Joining Prema Racing in 2025 will be Jack Beeton. The 2023 F4 SEA champion was the second driver to be confirmed on the FR Europe grid in mid-November in the midst of the post-season testing period. The Gold Coast native snatched the runner-up title in Italian F4 in 2024, claiming one win and nine further podiums for US Racing.

Sticking with Prema for a third year will be Rashid Al Dhaheri, who has been closely linked to the Italian outfit ever since his career in cars started. He has taken part in championships such as Italian F4, Euro 4, F4 SEA, F4 UAE and the Macau Grand Prix with the team over the last two years, collecting a total of three wins and five further podiums. Most recently, he also participated in Formula Trophy UAE, in which he claimed two wins and two further podiums and finished second in the standings despite missing the last round of the season to prepare for his FR step.

Rounding out the line-up in the series’ allotted fourth car for female drivers will be Doriane Pin. By bringing to a close her rookie season in F1 Academy as the series’ runner-up, the Ivry-sur-Seine–born racer has earned herself a spot as Prema Racing’s fourth driver. The 21-year-old will embark on her sophomore campaign in FR Europe after a first season with Iron Dames that saw her clinch a best finishing position of 13th in race two at Le Castellet.

R-ace GP

For the third time in a row, R-ace GP claimed the runner-up spot in FR Europe in 2024, with a 263-point deficit to first-placed Prema Racing and a one-point advantage over Van Amersfoort Racing. The French outfit will part ways with their highest-scoring driver, Tuukka Taponen, who came third in the championship and will step up to F3 in 2025. Zachary David will also leave the team.

Enzo Deligny has confirmed to Feeder Series that he will stick with the Fontenay-le-Comte–based squad for his sophomore campaign in FR Europe. Last year, the French driver finished nine races in the points, four in the top five, to claim 12th place in the drivers’ championship and fifth among the rookies. Deligny has also confirmed, however, that he will lose the support of Red Bull he has enjoyed for the last two years.

The first confirmed driver that R-ace GP will field this year in FR Europe is Akshay Bohra. The New York City–born driver produced a championship-winning season in 2024, clinching the title in Euro 4 thanks in large part to a dominant performance in Mugello. The 17-year-old also took part in the Italian F4 Championship, in which he finished fourth in the standings with one win and seven further podiums to his name. Bohra will also partner with the French team for the Formula Regional Middle East Championship, the 2025 season of which starts next weekend. 

Rounding out the line-up will be Jin Nakamura. The Japanese driver competed in Japanese F4 in 2022 and 2023, claiming a total of four wins and seven further podiums as well as the runner-up spot in his sophomore campaign. Last year, the 18-year-old participated in the Super Formula Lights Championship – in which he came fourth with seven podiums and a win to his name – and in the Macau Grand Prix with TOM’S.

Despite having participated in post-season testing with the French outfit, Muhammad Ibrahim will not be part of the team for the 2025 season.

Van Amersfoort Racing

Van Amersfoort Racing was the second team to announce its complete line-up for 2025. Despite not having any drivers take a win, the Dutch outfit claimed third place in the standings this past season, replicating the finishing position achieved in 2023 but doing so with a one-point deficit rather than a 284-point gap. A large portion of their 311 points came from Brando Badoer, who will leave the orange-and-black cars behind to graduate to F3 with Prema Racing for the upcoming season, and teammate Ivan Domingues is likewise expected to move up to F3 but stay with Van Amersfoort. 

Pedro Clerot will continue his journey with Van Amersfoort Racing in FR Europe in 2025. The 2022 Brazilian F4 champion scored points on 10 occasions in last year’s campaign, including two podiums and three further top-five finishes. These results helped Clerot claim eighth position overall and put him third among the rookies.

Sticking with the Zeewolde-based squad will be Hiyu Yamakoshi, making the step up to FR. After completing a full campaign in French F4 in 2023, bagging five podiums and five further top-five results along the way, the Japanese driver took part with the team in the 2024 Italian F4 and Euro 4 championships, finishing third and fourth respectively with four wins and seven further podiums to his name across the two series.

Joining the two VAR veterans will be Dion Gowda. Last year, the Indian driver led his two main campaigns in Europe, where he participated in the Italian F4 and Euro 4 championships with Prema Racing. The 17-year-old claimed two podiums in the former, both in Imola, and 12 further points finishes across both series.

ART Grand Prix

Fourth-placed ART Grand Prix enjoyed a positive campaign in FR Europe in 2024, bringing home three wins and six further podiums after taking only three podiums in 2023. This year, the French team will part ways with Williams-backed Alessandro Giusti, who will step up to F3 with MP, and is expected to do so with Yaroslav Veselaho as well.

Having come seventh in the points in 2024, Evan Giltaire confirmed to Feeder Series that he plans to stick with ART for the upcoming season. The 2023 French F4 champion achieved eight points finishes in his first full campaign in FRegional, including one victory on his debut weekend at Hockenheim, a second-place finish at Spielberg and four top-five results. Giltaire also took part in the Macau Grand Prix later in the year. 

It has already been confirmed that Taito Kato will join forces with the French outfit for the 2025 FR Europe season. In his first year in single-seaters, the Japanese driver was crowned French F4 champion with five wins and seven further podiums to his name. Kato will also work together with ART for FR Middle East, starting in January.

Rounding out the line-up will be Kanato Le, as was announced last month. The 17-year-old will make the switch to the French team in 2025 for his sophomore year in FR racing. This past season, the Tokyo-born racer gifted his former team G4 Racing their sole podium finish and scored points on two other occasions, at Barcelona and Monza.

Saintéloc Racing

In 2024, Saintéloc Racing redeemed themselves after a tough first year in FR Europe in 2023. The Saint-Étienne-based squad claimed its first victory in the series at Spielberg, as well as its first pole position in the season finale at Monza, thanks to the efforts of Théophile Naël. The French driver, who also helped Saintéloc Racing to their first title in Spanish F4 in 2023, will be climbing up the junior single-seater ladder to F3 with Van Amersfoort Racing. 

Taking the wheel for the French outfit in 2025 will be Tim Gerhards, who tested with the team post-season. Gerhards made his single-seater debut last year in the Formula Winter Series before completing his first full campaign in Spanish F4. The 17-year-old scored points on three occasions, with a best result of sixth, and came 20th in the drivers’ championship. 

Likely to join the Amsterdam native at Saintéloc Racing is Yaroslav Veselaho. The Ukrainian driver completed his first year of regional-level racing in 2024, having taken part in FR Middle East with Xcel Motorsport and FR Europe with ART Grand Prix, though he did not claim points in either championship. Veselaho has confirmed that he will switch to the Saint-Étienne-based squad this winter for another campaign in the Middle East.

Sticking with the French team in 2025 could be Enzo Peugeot, who has been testing with Saintéloc in the winter. The French-Japanese driver enjoyed a positive first season last year in the series, claiming nine points finishes to come sixth in the rookie standings and 15th overall.

RPM

In the 2024 season, RPM brought home its first title since entering FR Europe. Noah Strømsted was crowned rookie champion after a fierce battle with Giltaire and that saw him claim the crown on the very last race of the year. The Danish racer will be moving up to F3 in 2025 with Trident. 

Even though there hasn’t been any such confirmation yet, Giovanni Maschio could come back for a third campaign in FR Europe and his second with the Italian-Irish outfit. This past season, the 18-year-old claimed one 10th-place finish, putting him 24th in the standings.

Making the step up to the Piacenza-based team may also be Enzo Yeh. In 2024, the Taiwanese driver participated in F4 UAE, in which he achieved one podium and five further points finishes, as well as Italian F4, in which a seventh place in the season opener at Misano earned him 23rd position in the drivers’ championship. This winter, Yeh will make his debut in regional-level racing by competing in FR Oceania.

The driver who could round out RPM’s driver line-up for 2025 is James Egozi. The Red Bull junior came sixth in the 2024 Spanish F4 standings with three podiums and eleven further points finishes to his name. 

Trident

Trident finished seventh in the standings for the second season running last year with two podiums. Roman Bilinski and Nicola Lacorte, who last year drove with the Italian outfit, will each go their separate ways, stepping into F3 with Rodin Motorsport and DAMS respectively.

Ruiqi Liu, however, will stick with the Milan-based squad for his sophomore campaign in FR Europe. Making his FR debut last year in the Middle East, the Chinese racer scored points on two occasions in his European campaign: in race one at the Hungaroring, where he finished ninth, and in race two at Mugello, where he took the chequered flag in 10th. The 18-year-old also participated in the 2024 Macau Grand Prix with PHM Racing.

Matteo de Palo will join the Shanghai native at Trident in 2025. After a promising rookie campaign in FR Europe with Saintéloc Racing, during which he bagged two top fives as well as four further points finishes, the Italian driver will switch to the Italian team for his sophomore season in the series. 

Completing the formation will be Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi. The Thai racer will try to make up for a rookie season in FR Europe that saw him score zero points with KIC Motorsport, with a best finishing position of 12th on three occasions. 

Spanish F4 points scorer Francisco Macedo also tested with Trident this winter but did not make it to the team’s line-up. He is expected to race in Eurocup-3 instead with Campos.

CL Motorsport

Joining the grid in 2025 will be CL Motorsport, which takes over the assets of MP Motorsport’s FR Europe team. None of the Dutch team’s three primary drivers for 2024 – Nikita Bedrin, Valerio Rinciella and Nikhil Bohra – are expected to join the new Chinese-run entry in 2025, with Rinicella already confirmed to be sticking with MP in Eurocup-3. 

The Desenzano del Garda–based squad will line up Zachary David as their first driver for their maiden campaign in the series. The Filipino racer already gained experience in FR last year, competing in both Europe and the Middle East with R-ace GP. While he scored only one podium in Europe in 2024 en route to 13th, David claimed four podiums in the Middle East and took a combined 19 total points finishes across the two series.

At least one more driver is expected to join the team alongside David.

To Feeder Series’ knowledge, G4 Racing and KIC Motorsport are yet to decide who will fill their seats for the 2025 FR Europe season. Both teams have spent little to no time testing this past winter and will sign and announce their drivers as the beginning of the campaign gets closer.

The Prema-run Iron Dames team that fielded Pin and Marta García in 2024 is not set to return for 2025 as García prepares to switch to sports cars.

Editor’s note, 8 January 2025, 16:18 CET: This article was updated to include confirmation received by Feeder Series that Enzo Deligny had departed the Red Bull Junior Team.

Additional reporting by Perceval Wolff-Taffus

Header photo credit: Dutch Photo Agency