The inaugural GB4 Winter Series will take place this weekend at Snetterton alongside Eurocup-3 and Formula 4 CEZ rounds at the Hungaroring and Euroformula Open at Barcelona, while F1 Academy heads to Austin with the possibility of crowning a champion. Feeder Series previews the action.

By Feeder Series

It’s a weekend of unusual formats for two of the championships that feature regularly in our coverage, and both could end with a new champion named. F1 Academy will hold practice and qualifying on Thursday instead of Friday in front of thousands of schoolchildren in Austin and central Texas who have been invited to watch the action for free. If Alisha Palmowski leaves the three races on Friday, Saturday and Sunday without having her lead shrink, she will become the series’ fourth champion.

GB4, meanwhile, holds the single-weekend GB4 Winter Series at Snetterton with four races. The grid features drivers building upon what they have learnt in the main season, those coming from other single-seater championships to sample GB4 machinery, and those stepping up to single-seaters who are seeking practice before potentially entering a full season in 2027.

Beyond those, mainland Europe will feature Euroformula Open’s season finale at Barcelona, while Eurocup-3 and F4 CEZ join forces at the Hungaroring, where a champion will be crowned in the latter. Keep reading to find out what’s happening in each championship, and be sure to heed the time change on Sunday if you’re watching from European time zones.

Indian F4 is halfway through a midweek round at the Madras International Circuit for round three. The grid has expanded to 16 with the addition of Lily-May Watkins, Janine Wermuth and Kareen Kaur, who all have experience at the F4 level. Aaron Mehta took double pole position earlier today, but he was unable to convert pole to his third podium in race one. Instead, Luviwe Sambudla snatched the championship lead with his fourth win of the season, leaving Aris Kyriakou with ground to make up in the remaining races on Friday.

F1 Academy: Round 5, Austin

Circuit: Circuit of the Americas, 5.513 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC−5)

Thursday 22 October

• 12:25–13:05: Free practice
• 16:30–17:00: Qualifying

Friday 23 October

• 17:50–18:25: Race 1

Saturday 24 October

• 18:00–18:35: Race 2

Sunday 25 October

• 12:00–12:35: Race 3

How to follow: Sessions will be streamed live on F1 TV and on the series’ X account and YouTube channel. Live timing will be available via the F1 Academy website.

Weather forecast: Mostly sunny and dry across all three days.

What to know: F1 Academy heads to Austin this weekend for the first time since 2023.

The Circuit of the Americas hosted the finale for the inaugural season of F1 Academy, and much like that round, this year’s Austin event will include three races.

Last time out in Zandvoort, Payton Westcott secured her first win in the series in the reverse-grid race, while Alisha Palmowski took her fourth win of the season in the feature race. Palmowski could secure the title this weekend as she leads the standings with 136 points and holds a 48-point lead over second-placed Emma Felbermayr. Nina Gademan rounds out the top three with 71 points. If Palmowski’s gap is 40 or greater at the end of the round, she will be champion.

Campos leads the teams’ standings with 212 points, followed by Rodin with 139 points. MP completes the top three with 127 points.

The wild card entry for this round is Alexia Danielsson (#45), who will be backed by TeamViewer. The 17-year-old Swede raced in four rounds of F4 CEZ this year, with her best finish being sixth in race two at the Most round. Danielsson also participated in the series’ rookie test two years in a row. She finished sixth in both sessions in 2025, and this year, she finished tenth in the morning session and topped the timesheets in the afternoon session.

Report by Kaylene Lau

From the studio: With a chance to take the championship title this weekend at Austin, Alisha Palmowski has dominated in F1 Academy this year. The British driver backed by Red Bull joined our podcast last month to discuss her growth as a driver, winning on home soil and her goals for the future. Click here to listen.

You can also read the previous round’s report here.

Euroformula Open: Round 8, Barcelona

Circuit: Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, 4.657 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC+2)

Thursday 22 October

• 09:00–09:50: Private test 1
• 13:10–14:00: Private test 2
• 16:30–17:20: Private test 3

Friday 23 October

• 09:00–09:40: Free practice 1
• 13:19–13:59: Free practice 2

Saturday 24 October

• 10:05–10:25: Qualifying
• 14:10–14:40: Race 1 (17 laps)

Sunday 25 October (UTC+1)

• 10:30–11:00: Race 2 (17 laps)
• 16:50–17:20: Race 3 (17 laps)

How to follow: Qualifying and each race will be available to watch live on the Euroformula Open official YouTube channel. Live timings will be available at Cronococa.

Weather forecast: Mild and partly cloudy all weekend with a chance of rain on Friday afternoon and Saturday.

What to know: This weekend, Euroformula Open will race for the final time in 2026, concluding the season at Barcelona.

Enzo Yeh can rest easy knowing the championship is in the bag heading into this weekend, but the contest remains alive over the runner-up spot.

Diego de la Torre is in prime position after securing his third and fourth wins of the season last time at Monza. The Mexican sits on 295 points and will hope to confirm his status as Yeh’s primary title challenger after a valiant effort this year.

His countryman Jesse Carrasquedo Jr will be seeking to put a damper on De la Torre’s run of form, with his late-season push placing him 39 points back on 256 points in the battle for silver.

Stakes are also high for Javier Herrera and Wiktor Dobrzański, who are separated by just two points in the rookies’ championship – adding some final drama to 2026.

Some changes will occur from Monza, one being that now-confirmed F3 driver Niccolò Maccagnani is stepping out of his BVM and being replaced by Ricardo Baptista (#4), who raced with the squad earlier this year at Misano.

BVM will also add two further cars after racing with only three at Monza, bringing their tally to five and only two away from Motopark’s fleet. One driver will jump ship from Motopark in the form of Niels Koolen (#8). Also joining the team will be Ary Bansal (#46), who currently sits third in Italian F4 with one round to go. The Indian driver will be a guest driver this weekend and as such will be unable to score points or block points from other drivers. He is making his second of three required entries in FRegional-level events before contesting the Macau Grand Prix next month.

Motopark has another guest driver with GB3’s Fu Yuhao (#9) taking over from the departing Koolen. Fu sits 14th in GB3 with a round remaining, having secured his maiden podium in the latest round at Brands Hatch.

Report by Archie Harper

Read the previous round’s report here.

Eurocup-3: Round 7, Hungaroring

Circuit: Hungaroring, 4.381 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC+2)

Thursday 22 October

• 13:20–14:10: Collective test 1
• 16:05–16:55: Collective test 2

Friday 23 October

• 10:30–11:10: Official test 1
• 14:10–14:50: Official test 2

Saturday 24 October

• 10:15–10:35: Qualifying 1
• 14:05–15:00: Race 1

Sunday 25 October (UTC+1)

• 08:50–09:10: Qualifying 2
• 12:35–13:20: Race 2

How to follow: All sessions will have live timing at Al Kamel Systems. All races will be streamed on the Eurocup-3 YouTube channel.

Weather forecast: Mostly cloudy all weekend, with rain possible on Saturday.

What to know: The home of F1’s Hungarian Grand Prix will host Eurocup-3 for the first time this weekend. Though James Egozi has already wrapped up the drivers’ championship, the battle still remains open for runner-up with four races to go.

MP Motorsport’s René Lammers – who won race two at Jerez from pole position – currently occupies the place with 161 points, 16 ahead of sprint race winner Keanu Al Azhari. Lammers’ teammate Ean Eyckmans sits six points behind the Emirati driver, and Heitor Dall’Agnol rounds out the top five with 120 points.

With a 110-point lead in the standings, Palou Motorsport could take the teams’ title this weekend if their gap to remaining rival MP Motorsport, who currently have 322 points, remains above 88 come the end of Sunday. The next closest battle is for third, in which Campos Racing on 204 points sit only 23 ahead of Hitech.

At Drivex, Oscar Wurz (#3) returns to Eurocup-3 after previously finishing 18th in the standings with the team last year. The 19-year-old Austrian driver competed in Super Formula Lights this year with TOM’S and finished eighth in the standings with a best of third at Suzuka. He replaces “Sam Urus”, who was testing last week in USF Pro 2000 with TJ Speed Motorsports.

TC Racing’s Juan Cota has been replaced by Rahim Alibhai (#11) this weekend. The 16-year-old American driver has been competing in both Spanish F4 and FR Europe this year with Monlau Motorsport and G4 Racing respectively.

British driver Josh McLean (#26) will also be making his Eurocup-3 debut at Double R Racing this weekend in place of James Hedley. The 21-year-old competed in GB4 with Pace Performance this year and took four wins on his way to seventh in the standings.

Alex Powell has been replaced at Campos by Alpine junior Kabir Anurag (#41). The 19-year-old Singaporean driver competed in FR Europe this year with ART Grand Prix and finished 21st in the standings with a best result of fifth.

Lastly, Andorran driver Frank Porté Ruiz (#44) will substitute for Francisco Macedo at GRS Team this weekend in a last-minute return to single-seaters. The 20-year-old last competed in feeder series in 2024 when he finished sixth in French F4 with a win at Lédenon and three further podiums. He has since competed in multiple sports car championships, such as the Porsche Supercup, Carrera Cup Benelux and Toyota GR Cup Spain.

Report by Seb Tirado

Read the previous round’s report here.

F4 CEZ: Round 6, Hungaroring

Circuit: Hungaroring, 4.381 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC+2)

Thursday 22 October

• 08:00–08:50: Collective test 1
• 09:49–10:39: Collective test 2
• 12:24–13:14: Collective test 3
• 14:18–15:08: Collective test 4

Friday 23 October

• 08:00–08:30: Free practice (heat 1)
• 08:37–09:07: Free practice (heat 2)
• 14:56–15:16: Qualifying (heat 1)
• 15:23–15:43: Qualifying (heat 2)

Saturday 24 October

• 08:00–08:45: Race 1 (groups A & B)
• 15:07–15:52: Race 2 (groups B & C)

Sunday 25 October (UTC +1)

• 08:00–08:45: Race 3 (groups A & C)
• 13:38–14:23: Race 4 (final)

How to follow: All sessions will have live timing available at Chronomoto. Races will be live-streamed on YouTube on the official F4 CEZ Championship channel.

Weather forecast: Mostly cloudy all weekend, with rain possible on Saturday.

What to know: Race four cancelled at the Salzburgring. Six red flags at Most. Maffi Racing’s withdrawal from the championship at Brno. The drama in F4 CEZ this year has been unexpected and unprecedented, but after five thrilling weekends, it must all end. At the Hungaroring, one of three title contenders will be crowned F4 CEZ’s 2026 champion and leave having earned a test in Eurocup-3 machinery.

Elia Weiss has one hand on the trophy with 299 points. The 17-year-old German demonstrated stellar form in the two latest rounds, winning five of the six races he contested in Most and Brno. Behind him trails standout qualifier Teodor Borenstein, who has started from pole in half of his races this season but produced only four wins, putting him 42 points behind Weiss. Lastly, Max Karhan, who has competed in F4 CEZ since 2023, is 17 points behind Borenstein after winning two races this year.

There are several changes to the entry list compared with the last round in Brno. Most notably, the whole Maffi Racing team is absent after a controversial withdrawal following protests filed by the now former F4 CEZ outfit. With that, the team’s four drivers will not compete in Budapest, including David Walther, currently fourth in the championship standings.

Hitech, known for competing in junior single-seaters at all levels from F2 to F4, will make their F4 CEZ debut in the season finale, and Archie Owen (#30) will be the team’s sole driver. The 15-year-old Welsh driver made his first F4 appearance in the first two rounds of Saudi Arabian F4, in which he currently sits second overall after winning two races.

Felipe Reijs, who competed for Cram Motorsport in two Czech rounds, is replaced in the fourth Cram Motorsport entry by Vicky Farfus (#3). The 15-year-old Brazilian is the daughter of famous GT driver and 2003 Euro Formula 3000 champion Augusto Farfus. After competing in the Ginetta Junior Championship, she made her F4 racing debut at the beginning of the month, competing with Prema Racing in the E4 season finale at Monza.

Mathilda Paatz is missing F4 CEZ’s season finale as it clashes with the Austin round of F1 Academy. In her place at Mathilda Racing will be Clara Stiebleichinger (#5). The 21-year-old alpine skier turned racing driver from Austria finished her 2026 French F4 campaign in 20th overall. She is also the series’ women’s trophy champion.

Two drivers are returning to the series. Ginevra Panzeri (#10) is back with PA Racing by AS Motorsport after competing in the first two rounds, while Albert Písařík (#11) is back with Janík Motorsport after taking part in rounds at the Red Bull Ring, Slovakia Ring and Autodrom Most.

Additionally, Real Racing are back in F4 CEZ with one car after having fielded Knud Nielsen and Samuil Ivanov in the Austrian rounds that began that season. Their driver will be 15-year-old Paul Andriotis (#31). This year, the Swiss racer competed in the KZ2 class of karting, finishing 39th in the category in the FIA Karting European Championship.

Having raced it last time out, Nielsen is not returning to STEP Motorsport’s third car normally occupied by Alexia Danielsson, who is the F1 Academy wildcard this weekend. The Danish team’s #61 car therefore remains driverless on the entry list.

Report by Maciej Jackiewicz

Read the previous round’s report here.

GB4 Winter Series: Snetterton

Circuit: Snetterton 300, 4.778 km

Schedule: All times local (UTC+1)

Thursday 22 October

• 09:50–10:35: Test Session 1
• 11:35–12:00: Test Session 2
• 14:20–15:10: Test Session 3
• 16:05–16:50: Test Session 4

Friday 23 October

• 09:35–10:05: Test Session 1
• 11:20–11:50: Test Session 2

• 14:00–14:30: Test Session 3
• 15:45–16:15: Test Session 4

Saturday 24 October

• 10:10–10:30: Qualifying
• 12:20–12:40: Race 1
• 15:20–15:40: Race 2

Sunday 25 October

• 09:40–10:00: Qualifying
• 11:50–12:10: Race 3
• 14:50–15:10: Race 4

How to follow: Live timing for all of the sessions will be available on TSL Timing and the GB4 Winter Series website. All of the races will be available to watch live on the MSV TV YouTube channel.

Weather forecast: Showers expected on Friday and Saturday, with sunnier conditions on Sunday.

What to know: The inaugural GB4 Winter Series takes place at Snetterton Circuit this weekend with an altered format and a mixed-up grid.

The weekend has expanded with the addition of an extra qualifying session and race, meaning each of Saturday and Sunday has a qualifying session followed by two races.

Each team is allowed to run four cars, one more than in the main season. Because each day has a separate permit, drivers can also race with a different team on Saturday and Sunday.

The winter series has attracted drivers with a range of backgrounds. On the more experienced end, George Proudford-Nalder finished fourth in British F4 this year with Douglas Motorsport, and he will be partnered by Conor Grant, who achieved two podium finishes this year in GB4. There are also single-seater debutants such as KMR Sport’s Lewis Goff, who won the Ginetta Junior title this year in dominant fashion. Get to know the full grid with our event guide, to be published tomorrow.

Report by Isabelle Chandler

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: Alek de los Reyes