Now in its third year of existence, Eurocup-3 will hold its first official winter series as part of the Spanish Winter Championship package. Feeder Series tells you all you need to know about the inaugural season of this new Formula Regional–spec winter series. 

By Seb Tirado

As Feeder Series exclusively revealed last September, the championship will feature all of this year’s Eurocup-3 teams as well as a new entry in Allay Racing, who make their competitive debut in the championship.

This is not, however, Eurocup-3’s first foray into holding a winter series. At the beginning of last March year, the championship quietly held a non-championship round alongside Gedlich Racing’s Winter Series championships at Aragón.

The calendar

Eurocup-3 will share its first two rounds with Spanish F4’s winter series, the Eurocup-4 Spanish Winter Championship, at Jerez and Portimão. Its final round will be on the same weekend as the first round of Spanish F4’s main season.

The first two rounds will feature a test day with two two-hour sessions. The final round’s test day will have two 40-minute sessions.

• Round 1: Circuito de Jerez (7–9 February)
• Round 2: Autódromo Internacional do Algarve (21–23 February)
• Round 3: MotorLand Aragón (28–30 March)

The format

The championship will also feature two different formats, with the final round having a differing schedule.

For the first two rounds, Saturday will start with a single 20-minute qualifying session to set the grid for race one, which lasts 30 minutes plus one lap. Later in the day will be the sprint race, which lasts 20 minutes plus one lap and reverses the top eight from qualifying. If the first qualifying session is unable to go ahead, the grid will be formed at the stewards’ discretion.

Sunday will have another 20-minute qualifying session to set the grid for the third race of the weekend. This race will officially be called race two and also last 30 minutes plus one lap. If the second qualifying session is unable to go ahead, the fastest laps in race one will be used to form the grid.

For the final round, Saturday will have one qualifying session, a non-reverse-grid sprint and then race one. Sunday will have another qualifying session, race two and the conventional sprint.

Points for races one and two will be given out according to the standard FIA points format, with 25 points for the winner down to one point for the 10th-place finisher. Both sprint formats will use the same points formats, with 18 for first and one for the ninth-place finisher.

One point will be awarded to the driver with the fastest lap in each race, with two points going to the main race polesitters.

Where to watch 

Every race will be streamed on the Spanish Winter Championship YouTube channel. Live timing for all sessions will be available on RaceResults and Al Kamel Systems.

Teams and drivers 

MP Motorsport

MP Motorsport took last year’s Eurocup-3 teams’ title, and new AIX Racing F3 signing Javier Sagrera provisionally won the drivers’ title. The Dutch outfit will field four drivers in the winter championship: Alexander Abkhazava (#12), Andrés Cárdenas (#33), 2024 Spanish F4 champion Mattia Colnaghi (#71) and the returning Emerson Fittipaldi Jr (#77).

For his second season of Eurocup-3, Abkhazava moves over from Saintéloc Racing. The 18-year-old Kazakh-licenced driver finished ninth in the standings last year, taking one podium in the controversial first race at Spa and a win in race three at Portimão. He also competed in Macau Grand Prix with Saintéloc, finishing 23rd in the qualifying race and ninth in the main race. He previously competed in FR Middle East with Pinnacle Motorsport, finishing 15th in the standings with a best result of fourth in the first round.

Cárdenas finished runner-up in the Formula Winter Series last year, taking two wins and four further podiums, before competing in Spanish F4 with Griffin Core by Campos. Despite being one of the top returnees, he finished only 14th in the standings in his second year with best results of sixth at Jarama and Valencia. The 16-year-old also represented his native Peru in the FIA Motorsport Games’ F4 Cup, qualifying fourth for the qualifying race and finishing both that and the main race in second to achieve the silver medal.

Colnaghi, the reigning Spanish F4 champion, took his title with six wins and six further podiums, including a streak of nine points finishes between race one at Portimão and race three at Aragón. The 16-year-old Italian-Argentine driver began his 2024 with MP by competing in the first two rounds of FWS with the team, achieving best finishes of seventh at Jerez twice, and finished his year at the Macau Grand Prix. He retired from both the qualifying race and the main race.

Fittipaldi, the son of two-time F1 world champion Emerson Fittipaldi, competed in a full season of FR Middle East with MP last year before embarking on his first full Eurocup-3 campaign. In the former, the 17-year-old Brazilian finished 20th in the standings with a best result of eighth in the final round, while he finished fifth in the latter with one provisional win at Barcelona and three further podiums.

KCL by MP Motorsport

MP Motorsport will also bring over their satellite team to Eurocup-3. KCL by MP will field two drivers in Maciej Gładysz (#7) and 2024 Brazilian F4 champion Matheus Comparatto (#18).

Last year, Gładysz finished third in both FWS with MP and Spanish F4 with KCL by MP. The 16-year-old achieved three podiums in FWS and three wins and five further podiums in his main campaign. The Polish driver was also the first driver announced for the series, having been confirmed back in December.

Comparatto, the reigning Brazilian F4 champion, took five wins and nine further podiums on his way to the title with Bassani Racing. He also represented Brazil in the FIA Motorsport Games. Competing in a Drivex-run car, the 18-year-old qualified for and finished the qualifying race in 13th before placing 14th in the main race.

Campos Racing

Campos finished second in the Eurocup-3 teams’ standings last year, while lead driver Christian Ho, headed to DAMS’ F3 team this year, is provisionally second in the 2024 drivers’ standings as well. As the Spanish outfit’s Red Bull Junior Team ties deepen, they will field four of the marque’s juniors across their two teams, with the main team featuring Campos F3 driver Nikola Tsolov (#8) for the first round and Jules Caranta (#83) for all three.

Tsolov, a former Alpine junior who signed with the Red Bull Junior Team at the end of 2024, competed in Eurocup-3 with GRS Team last year alongside his second F3 campaign with ART Grand Prix. The 18-year-old Bulgarian finished 11th in both series, taking a podium in the former and three wins in the latter. He was notably suspended from F3’s Spa round for not having received permission from the FIA or from F3 promoter Formula Motorsport Limited to compete in Eurocup-3’s season opener at the same circuit earlier in the year.

Caranta has been confirmed to be one of three Red Bull juniors driving in Eurocup-3’s main season with Campos. The 16-year-old French driver began his 2024 by competing in F4 UAE with R-ace GP – albeit entering round three with Saintéloc – and finished 15th in the standings with best results of seventh on four occasions. His main campaign in French F4 saw him finish third in the standings with four wins and seven further podiums.

Enzo Tarnvanichkul (#TBA) will take Tsolov’s place in the team from the second round onwards and Ernesto Rivera (#TBA) will join the team in the final round at Aragón. 

Tarnvanichkul will compete in the main Eurocup-3 season as part of the all–Red Bull junior lineup. The 15-year-old Thai driver competed with the team in 2024, starting with the final two rounds of FWS. He finished 32nd in the standings with a best result of 11th before going on to compete in Spanish F4, in which he scored one podium at Valencia to finish 12th in the standings.

Rivera competed in the first two rounds of FR Middle East with Pinnacle Motorsport, and he is currently fifth in the standings with best results of fifth on three occasions. The Mexican driver finished 15th in FWS with Campos last year, achieving a podium in the final round at Barcelona. The 16-year-old then finished fifth in Spanish F4 with Griffin Core by Campos, with a podium at Jarama and a win at Portimão. He also competed in British F4’s Zandvoort round with Hitech GP with a best finish of fifth in race one.

Griffin Core by Campos

Similarly to MP, Campos will also bring over their satellite team Griffin Core by Campos and will field four drivers in Francisco Macedo (#2), Campos F3 driver Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak (#24), Jesse Carrasquedo (#27) and Formula Regional debutant Kacper Sztuka (#37). 

Macedo began his 2024 in FWS with Drivex, finishing 35th in the standings with a best result of 13th at Barcelona. He then competed in Spanish F4 with Drivex’s satellite team DXR, finishing 21st in the standings with a best result of seventh at Valencia. The 16-year-old also competed in the Imola round of Italian F4 with Cram Motorsport, with a best finish of 18th in race one, and represented Portugal at the Motorsport Games. He was black-flagged in both qualifying and the qualifying race for violating track limits five and seven times respectively but recovered to 10th in the main race from his starting position of 18th.

Inthraphuvasak previously competed in Eurocup-3 with the team in 2023, finishing sixth in the standings with four podiums. Last year, the 19-year-old Thai driver competed in FR Middle East with PHM Racing before competing with the rebranded AIX Racing – then still affiliated with PHM – in F3. He finished ninth in the former with three podiums and 24th in the latter with one podium as part of a memorable 1-2 finish for AIX.

Carrasquedo returns to the Campos fold after competing with the main squad last year from Eurocup-3’s Le Castellet round onwards. He finished eighth in the standings with a podium in his second race and a win at Aragón. Earlier that year, the 17-year-old competed in FR Middle East with R-ace GP and finished 25th in the standings with a best result of 11th in the second Yas Marina round. Before moving to Eurocup-3, he also competed in the first four rounds of FR Europe with G4 Racing, achieving a best result of 19th at Hockenheim. Carrasquedo has also competed in the first two rounds of FR Middle East with Pinnacle Motorsport and sits eighth in the standings with a podium in the first round.

Sztuka will make his competitive debut in FR machinery in the winter championship despite having competed in F3 last year. The 19-year-old Polish driver notably skipped the FR level after his three years of F4 competition, which culminated in FWS and Italian F4 titles in 2023, to move up to F3 last year with MP. He finished 27th in the standings with one points finish of fifth at Imola in a disappointing campaign that saw him leave the Red Bull Junior Team mid-season.

Saintéloc Racing

In their first year of running multiple cars in the championship, Saintéloc finished an impressive third in the teams’ standings with a podium at Spa and a win at Portimão with Abkhazava. The French outfit will run only one driver in the first round of the winter championship, namely Lorenzo Castillo (#10).

Castillo competed in the first two rounds of FR Middle East with the team, in which he sits 24th in the championship. The Mexican driver raced in FWS last year with Tecnicar and finished 46th in the standings with a best result of 26th at Valencia. He then went on to compete in the majority of the Spanish F4 season with the team before switching to Saintéloc ahead of the final round. He finished 35th in the standings with a best result of 16th at Jerez.

Garrett Berry (#TBA) will join the team later in the winter championship, although for which round that will be has not been confirmed. The 21-year-old American driver moves over from Palou Motorsport, with whom he finished 21st in the Eurocup-3 standings last year with a best result of ninth at Portimão.

Palou Motorsport

Reigning IndyCar champion Álex Palou’s eponymous team finished fourth in the Eurocup-3 standings in 2024 with a podium at Spa with Kirill Smal. For the winter championship, Palou Motorsport will run second-year drivers Luciano Morano (#5) and Isaac Barashi (#26) and F4 graduates Ádám Hideg (#3), Alceu Feldmann Neto (#23) and James Egozi (#48). 

Morano competed with the team last year in his first year of FR competition. The 19-year-old finished 25th in the standings with best results of 12th at Portimão and Le Castellet. The Frenchman is also expected to compete in the Le Mans Cup’s LMP3 category with Forestier Racing by VPS.

Barashi of Great Britain competed with GRS Team last year and finished 20th in the standings with a best finish of eighth at Spielberg. The 19-year-old also competed in FR Middle East’s last three rounds and two rounds of FR Europe with MP Motorsport.

Hideg, 17, started 2024 by competing in FWS with Jenzer Motorsport, finishing 20th in the standings with a best finish of sixth at Aragón. The Hungarian was set to continue with Jenzer in Italian F4 but instead raced in Spanish F4 with Cram Motorsport. He finished 17th in the standings with a best result of sixth at Jarama.

Feldmann Neto mainly competed in GT racing last year in the Porsche Cup Brasil Endurance Challenge, in which he won both the sport and rookie classes. He also competed in four rounds of Brazilian F4 with Bassani Racing and Cavaleiro Sports, achieving a best result of sixth.

Egozi, driving for Campos last year, competed in the Jerez and Aragón rounds of FWS ahead of his main campaign in Spanish F4. The 17-year-old American took one win in the final FWS Aragón race and finished sixth in the Spanish F4 standings with three podiums, two of which came at Le Castellet.

GRS Team

Valencian team GRS finished fifth in the standings last year with a podium at Aragón with Tsolov.

GRS‘ only driver in the Spanish Winter Championship package will be in Eurocup-3, in which they will run one driver in Cristian Cantú (#88). The Mexican driver competed in Spanish F4 with TC Racing last year and finished 30th in the standings, with a best result of 13th at Le Castellet. 

Drivex

In 2024, Drivex finished last in the Eurocup-3 teams’ standings, with their best result being Daniel Nogales’ ninth place at Spielberg. 

For the winter championship, the team will run Motorsport Games gold medallist Juan Cota (#4), 2024 F4 CEZ champion Oscar Wurz (#11), Spanish F4 graduate Lenny Ried (#17), Drivex returnee Victoria Blokhina (#21) and full-season debutant Preston Lambert (#25). 

Cota took one of Spain’s six Motorsport Games gold medals in the F4 Cup in dominant fashion and competed in FWS and Spanish F4 with Drivex. In FWS, the 17-year-old finished sixth in the standings with a win at Jerez and a podium at Valencia. In Spanish F4, he finished fourth in the standings with four wins and four further podiums, including a sweep of wins at Valencia ahead of the Motorsport Games at the same circuit.

Wurz scored two wins and 12 further podiums to take the F4 CEZ title last year with Jenzer Motorsport. The 17-year-old Austrian had previously competed in the inaugural Saudi Arabian F4 Championship, finishing fifth in the standings with three podiums in the points-awarding rounds, and also competed in Italian F4’s Mugello round with Jenzer and Spanish F4’s Valencia and Barcelona rounds with Drivex and Saintéloc respectively. Wurz also took part in the Motorsport Games, qualifying 15th for the qualifying race and finishing 11th in that ahead of the main race, from which he retired after colliding with Japan’s Tosei Moriyama. 

Ried moves up to Eurocup-3 after competing in FWS and Spanish F4 last year with Monlau Motorsport. The 17-year-old German finished 38th in the former’s standings with a best result of 17th at Aragón and 27th in the latter with a best result of 12th at Le Castellet. 

Blokhina, 18, returns for a second season with Drivex after finishing 27th in the Eurocup-3 standings last year. The Russian-born driver’s best result in the main series was 12th in race one at Catalunya, though she finished 11th in race two of the Eurocup-3’s non-championship round.

Lambert competed in Eurocup-3’s final round as a guest driver for Drivex, finishing a best of 15th in race two. Earlier that year, the 17-year-old American ran partial campaigns in FWS and Spanish F4 with Rodin Motorsport, the latter of which was disrupted by a hand injury. He finished 36th and 32nd in the standings respectively.

Allay Racing

Swedish team Allay Racing are the newest addition to Eurocup-3’s grid. Feeder Series understands that the team have privately tested championship machinery over the past few years and that drivers Linus Hellberg (#43) and Emil Hellberg (#46) serve as directors of the team.

The Swedish brothers – aged 36 and 48 respectively and entrepreneurs outside of racing – both competed in Eurocup-3’s final three rounds last year as guest drivers with DXR by Drivex. Their best results were 14th and 15th respectively, both at Aragón. Emil Hellberg also competed in the Italian Prototype Championship last year, achieving two wins and one other podium, after having won the title in 2023.

Header photo credit: Dutch Photo Agency