As many as six series kick off their 2026 seasons this weekend, with Super Formula Lights the only returning championship on the schedule. Feeder Series gives you the key information you need to know.

By Feeder Series

With not a single race for F1 or any of its immediate support series, April has been a strange month in the racing world. There’s been no shortage of action in the junior single-seater series, mostly from championships holding their first races of the year. In fact, only two of the series we cover in depth – USF Juniors and Super Formula Lights – had an event this month that wasn’t a season opener.

Therefore, over the past few weeks, we’ve been working overtime to put out season guides for you for all the championships getting started. That focus is finally shifting just as more series return, with the six on the schedule this weekend plus Nordic 4 representing our busiest weekend so far in 2026. New for this year, we are covering the Ultimate Cup Series’ Formula Cup with previews and reviews as well as a season guide to reflect the championship’s larger and stronger grid. 

Nordic 4 will also kick off its 2026 season at Padborg Park. Thirteen drivers will take to the track, a number of them in a brand-new car, the Aquila Formula Nova, alongside the existing Mygale M14-F4 and Formula Ford vehicles. Among the drivers on the grid will be 2025 Formula Nordic runner-up Richard Olson, Swedish karting star Matteis Stigsen, and five female drivers.

Additional reporting by Mitchell Ash

1. Super Formula Lights: Round 2, Autopolis
2. FRegional Europe: Round 1, Red Bull Ring
3. GB3: Round 1, Silverstone
4. GB4: Round 1, Silverstone
5. Brazilian F4: Round 1, Interlagos
6. Ultimate Cup Series Formula Cup: Round 1, Le Castellet

Super Formula Lights: Round 2, Autopolis

Circuit: Autopolis International Racing Course, 4.674 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC+9) 

Thursday 23 April

• 10:15–12:15: Free practice 1
• 15:00–17:00: Free practice 2

Friday 24 April

• 09:45–11:15: Free practice 3
• 13:50–15:20: Free practice 4

Saturday 25 April

• 11:25–11:35: Qualifying 1
• 11:45–11:55: Qualifying 2
• 16:00–16:40: Race 1 (21 laps)

Sunday 26 April

• 08:40–09:10: Race 2 (14 laps)
• 12:15–12:45: Race 3 (14 laps)

How to follow: All races will be live-streamed on the series’ official YouTube channel. Live timing will be available at sfl.racelive.jp.

Weather forecast: Thursday‘s practice sessions took place in wet conditions. No rain is expected Friday and Saturday, but a rain shower could hit the track ahead of the second race on Sunday.

What to know: Super Formula Lights heads into its second round of the season at Autopolis this weekend.

Yusuke Mitsui and his team Delightworks Racing left the opening round at Fuji as surprise championship leaders with two wins, while debutant Evan Giltaire took his maiden win for B-Max Racing.

To the surprise of everyone, TOM‘S struggled on the Toyota-owned circuit, where they have historically achieved their best results of the season. Kiyoshi Umegaki grabbed three podium finishes, but fellow Toyota juniors Oscar Wurz and Tokiya Suzuki only scored five and four points each.

Suzuki‘s points tally will not improve this weekend, as he has withdrawn from the Autopolis round for personal reasons, TOM‘S confirmed to Feeder Series. He was initially on the entry list. The reigning Japanese F4 champion will be replaced by fellow Toyota junior and current Formula Regional Japan championship leader Yuzuki Miura (#38).

Likewise absent will be current masters‘ class championship leader Nobuhiro Imada of JMS Racing Team.

Report by Finjo Muschlien

Read the previous round’s report here.

FRegional Europe: Round 1, Red Bull Ring

Circuit: Red Bull Ring, 4.326 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC+2)

Friday 24 April

• 10:25–11:15: Free practice
• 17:20–17:35: Qualifying 1 group A
• 17:40–17:55: Qualifying 1 group B

Saturday 25 April

• 10:25–10:55: Race 1
• 16:40–17:10: Race 2

Sunday 26 April

• 08:45–09:00: Qualifying 2 group B
• 09.05–09:20: Qualifying 2 group A
• 16:40–17:10: Race 3

How to follow: Each qualifying and race will be shown live on the FR Europe official YouTube channel. Live timings will be available for this weekend on the ADAC Motorsport website.

Weather forecast: Warm and sunny all weekend.

What to know: This weekend marks the start of FR Europe’s new age. The series has left behind its Alpine sponsorship and moved forward with a new car and engine, a regulations overhaul, and a three-race weekend format debuting this weekend in Spielberg.

Two teams join the grid in the form of MP Motorsport and Rodin Motorsport. MP competed in the series since its merger with Formula Renault Eurocup, though they were absent last year. Rodin, meanwhile, enter as an unknown quantity in the series but with pedigree in other single-seater championships, most notably the FR-level GB3.

Regulation changes often shake up the pecking order, but one driver to watch will be reigning Italian F4 champion and Williams junior Kean Nakamura-Berta, who will hope to follow in the footsteps of previous champions Freddie Slater and Andrea Kimi Antonelli in winning back-to-back titles. Read about the rest of the grid in our season guide.

Report by Archie Harper

GB3: Round 1, Silverstone

Circuit: Silverstone Circuit, 5.891 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC+1) 

Thursday 23 April

• 09:35–10:05: Official test 1
• 11:50–12:20: Official test 2
• 14:50–15:20: Official test 3

Friday 24 April

• 10:45–11:15: Official test 4
• 15:15–15:45: Official test 5

Saturday 25 April

• 10:40–10:55: Qualifying 1
• 11:00–11:15: Qualifying 2
• 15:10–15:35: Race 1

Sunday 26 April

• 11:15–11:40: Race 2
• 17:25–17:50: Race 3

How to follow: All races are available to watch live on the MSV TV YouTube channel, with the stream also being shown on the GB3 Facebook page and website. Live timing for all of the weekend’s sessions can be found through TSL Timing and the GB3 website. 

Weather forecast: Sunny all weekend.

What to know: The 2026 GB3 season begins at Silverstone this weekend, with a grid of 23 drivers taking to the track for the first of eight rounds this season. 

Nine teams are on the grid, including new outfit Nitrous Competitions ADM Racing and the returning Arden Motorsport, alongside a host of drivers making their championship debuts.

The fight at the front is set to be tight, with all three of Rodin Motorsport’s drivers – Maxim Rehm, Martin Molnár and Abbi Pulling – topping the times during pre-season testing. Last year’s third-place finisher, Hitech’s Deagen Fairclough, as well as debutants Xcel Motorsport’s Rowan Campbell-Pilling and Hillspeed’s Dante Vinci have also shown good pace pre-season, finishing in the top 10 in most sessions. Drivers with experience at the F3 level – namely VRD Racing’s Nikita Bedrin and Hitech’s Jin Nakamura – must also not be ruled out. 

To learn more about the 2026 grid, read our season guide.

Report by Isabelle Chandler

GB4: Round 1, Silverstone

Circuit: Silverstone Circuit, 5.891 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC+1). 

Thursday 23 April

• 10:10–10:40: Official test 1
• 12:25–12:55: Official test 2 
• 15:25–15:55: Official test 3

Friday 24 April

• 09:35–10:05: Official test 4
• 11:55–12:25: Official test 5

Saturday 25 April

• 11:50–12:05: Qualifying
• 16:50–17:10: Race 1

Sunday 26 April

• 09:00–09:20: Race 2
• 16:15–16:35: Race 3

How to follow: All races are available to watch live on the MSV TV YouTube channel, with the stream also being shown on the GB4 Facebook page and website. Live timing for all of the weekend’s sessions can be found through TSL Timing and the GB4 website. 

Weather forecast: Sunny all weekend.

What to know: The GB4 championship is back for its sixth season, bringing a line-up of 29 drivers to the grid this weekend at Silverstone, the first of seven rounds. 

Idola Motorsport joins the championship for the first time, fielding one driver, while the newly merged Nitrous Competitions ADM Racing, who competed formerly as ADM Racing, bring two drivers. 

Pre-season testing revealed Elite Motorsport’s Fred Green, Nitrous Competitions ADM Racing’s Luke Hilton, Fortec Motorsport’s Thomas Ingram Hill and KMR Sport’s Alex O’Grady as early pace-setters, with all four drivers topping testing sessions. The results were especially impressive for Green, who is entering his first single-seater season. KMR Sport’s Lily-May Watkins has also made significant progress over the winter, and she will be one to watch for the €50,000 F1 Academy scholarship for being the championship’s leading female driver. Learn more about the grid with our season guide.

Report by Isabelle Chandler

Brazilian F4: Round 1, Interlagos

Circuit: Autódromo José Carlos Pace, 4.309 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC−3)

Thursday 23 April

• 08:00–08:40: Extra practice 1
• 10:00–10:40: Extra practice 2
• 13:50–14:30: Extra practice 3

Friday 24 April

• 07:30–08:10: Official practice 1
• 10:05–10:45: Official practice 2
• 13:30–14:10: Official practice 3
• 16:15–16:35: Qualifying

Saturday 25 April

• 10:13-10:43: Race 1
• 17:33-17:53: Race 2

Sunday 26 April

• 08:08-08:38: Race 3

How to follow: Races will be streamed live on the series’ YouTube channel and on High Speed TV, both with Portuguese commentary. 

Weather forecast: Dry and warm throughout, with cloudier conditions Saturday and Sunday and temperatures exceeding 30ºC.

What to know: Brazilian F4 will begin its fifth season this weekend the way it ended its fourth – by racing at Interlagos. The regulations and weekend format mirror what was seen in previous seasons.

Pedro Lins enters the season as the highest-placed driver from the previous year, once again competing with Bassani Racing. The 18-year-old sealed his sixth-place championship result with his second victory of the season in 2025’s final round.

Two-time and defending teams’ champions TMG Racing return with a six-car line-up for their fifth season after having also secured the top spot in the drivers’ championship with Heitor Dall’Agnol. Their highest-placed returning driver, Pietro Mesquita, scored four podiums across the four Interlagos rounds last year. 

This season, the opening round will be one of three held at Interlagos, with the other two closing the season in November and December. Read more about what’s to come in 2026 with our season guide.

Report by Owen White

Ultimate Cup Series Formula Cup: Round 1, Le Castellet

Circuit: Circuit Paul Ricard, 5.822 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC+2)

Thursday 23 April

• 09:00–09:40: Paid practice 1
• 11:10–11:50: Paid practice 2
• 14:30-15:00: Private practice 1
• 16:30-17:00: Private practice 2

Friday 24 April

• 10:00–10:15: Qualifying 1
• 10:20-10:35: Qualifying 2
• 14:30–14:50: Race 1
• 18:50–19:10: Race 2 

Saturday 25 April

• 11:55–12:15: Race 3

How to follow: Live timing is available through It’s Live. All races will be live-streamed on UCS’ YouTube channel.

Weather forecast: The weekend is expected to remain sunny and breezy, with temperatures averaging 22°C.

What to know: This weekend marks the start of the 2026 UCS Formula Cup season. Racing on the older Tatuus F3-T-318 chassis, this series strives to provide FRegional experience to drivers at a lower cost.

UCS Formula Cup has two distinct classes, which are the rookie class and gentleman driver class. While there are no rookies from last season on this year’s grid, Frédéric Boillot, the gentleman driver class runner-up in 2025, is the most experienced driver of the field having won the 2024 class championship.

The opening round takes place once again in Le Castellet, while the season finale will take place at Portimão in November. To learn more about the championship, read our season guide, to be released later today.

Report by Julien Thoinet

All times and forecasts listed above are subject to change. For the most up-to-date information, follow each series’ websites or social media pages.

Header photo credit: Dutch Photo Agency