By now, Rodin Motorsport is a name familiar to racing fans around the world. Since their takeover of Carlin in late 2023, the UK-based team owned by David Dicker have expanded to run in nine different series, most recently joining the Formula Regional European Championship. Feeder Series sat down with team manager Ben Lathrope to discuss how their first year in the series has gone so far.

By Archie Harper

When New Zealander David Dicker took majority ownership of Carlin in 2023 before the team’s rebrand to Rodin Motorsport the following year, he clearly had big ambitions. 

More than maintaining the infrastructure of Carlin – which already competed in F2, F3, F1 Academy and more – Dicker wanted to grow. He submitted an application for Rodin to join Formula 1 in 2026. 

When that didn’t pan out, the team didn’t give up. They instead expanded their junior single-seater presence, filling in gaps in their pipeline from F4 through to F2. That led them to enter FR Europe for 2026 as the series began its new era.

“It’s obviously a championship we’ve been interested in for a while,” team manager Ben Lathrope told Feeder Series. “But for us, it seemed like the best time to do it was with the new car [and] the new engine as opposed to joining late and then not starting on a particularly good front, essentially, with everyone being so experienced. With the new cars, it sort of levels it off a bit.”

On paper, entering the series appears to be a no-brainer. While the squad have a rich history in GB3, they have effectively been missing out on the wider FRegional landscape in Europe. 

“For our Formula 3 team, we’re always looking at championships like this,” Lathrope said. “So to have our own drivers in it we can look directly at is obviously quite good to try and feed up into F3 and F2.”

For their debut year in FR Europe, Rodin signed Alex Ninovic, their 2025 champion in the FR-spec GB3 Championship, alongside GB3 rival Reza Seewooruthun and 2025 Italian F4 runner-up Gabriel Gomez. This approach to streamlining driver progression has already paid dividends, with the team scoring three podiums, one from Ninovic and two from Seewooruthun.

“They definitely brought good experience for us to help develop the car. The speed seems to be there at the moment,” Lathrope said about his line-up.

“Some of the results haven’t quite gone our way from a few different situations,” he added. “But to come into the championship and be competitive, to be finishing in the points, it’s good. It’s a hard championship.”

The squad currently sit fourth in the teams’ standings with two rounds to go. The three podiums have been a boost, but with no wins to their name yet and a 111-point gulf to third-placed Prema Racing, they still have ground to make up.

While an organisation of Rodin’s calibre rarely struggles, Lathrope was candid about their expectations for their first season in the series.

“[It was] hard to know because it is such a hard championship. We obviously brought Alex and Reza, coming from GB3, to help that, but I’d say we were hoping to be in and around the top 10 each weekend in qualifying,” he said. “I think I still wanted a bit more. Had some decisions and results gone slightly more our way, we’d be more up the front, but it’s okay.”

For a team already contesting multiple highly competitive and demanding series, joining a series like FR Europe was not a simple decision.

Logistical concerns presented themselves early when they were considering an entry, including the need to shuffle their existing personnel and make new hires.

“We’ve employed a few people – not just for FREC but to fill some other positions so that we can still bring some good experience into this team. But as a company, we’re definitely expanding,” Lathrope explained.

The growing reach of the organisation means more drivers may follow the path of Ninovic and Callum Voisin in remaining with the team through the ladder.

Voisin, now leading the Porsche Carrera Cup GB standings, claimed the GB3 championship on his second attempt in 2023 before remaining with Rodin for the step up to F3. There, across two seasons, the British driver took a pole position, race victory and two further podiums before pivoting to sports cars.

With Rodin now running in both GB3 and FR Europe, drivers have additional options to remain with the team through several series, as Lathrope hopes they can.

“I think it definitely opens up an opportunity for drivers to stay with us from F4 to F2,” Lathrope said. 

“Being comfortable in a team for some drivers is quite important, so I’m sure it’s quite a good thing to be able to offer.”

Their drivers appear more comfortable with every session. Rodin have scored with at least two cars in each of the last four races, and after Gabriel Gomez doubled his points haul with two fourth places at Le Castellet, they have all three of their drivers inside the top 15, with Ninovic seventh, Gomez 11th and Seewooruthun 15th. For a squad still in their first season, that certainly gives reason to be hopeful.

Header photo credit: FIA Formula Regional European Championship