KATO WINS AT MONZA AS SLATER EXTENDS F3 TITLE LEAD
Taito Kato claimed his maiden FIA Formula 3 victory in the Monza Sprint Race after a brilliant drive from ninth on the grid. The ART Grand Prix driver kept his head through several Safety Car periods and late battles to take the chequered flag ahead of championship leader Freddie Slater and Hiyu Yamakoshi. Slater produced one of the drives of the race, recovering from 12th to second and extending his championship advantage over Ugo Ugochukwu to 17 points.
The result was particularly important for Slater because Ugochukwu could only finish 14th. The American had already been facing a difficult weekend after qualifying down in 10th, following a wide moment at Turn 1 which prevented him from improving his time. A five-place grid penalty then dropped him further down the order for both races.
The race began with a strong start from the Rodin Motorsport front row, with Brando Badoer and Pedro Clerot working together to keep Tuukka Taponen behind them. Alessandro Giusti also made progress immediately, moving ahead of Fernando Barrichello to take fourth position.
On Lap 2, Badoer locked up at Turn 1 before running wide at the Ascari chicane. Clerot took advantage and moved into the lead. Taponen then passed Badoer for second, setting up a fight at the front involving several cars.
The first major incident came soon after. Barrichello attempted to attack Badoer before Turn 1, but contact between the two Rodin cars damaged Badoer’s front wing and left Barrichello stranded with rear suspension damage. The incident brought out the Safety Car, while Giusti took advantage of the chaos to move into the lead ahead of Clerot and Ernesto Rivera.
Racing resumed on Lap 7, with Slater already up to seventh after a careful opening phase. Ugochukwu, meanwhile, remained deep in the field. Slater continued to make progress while Giusti defended the lead, but the order at the front was about to change again.
Clerot made an excellent restart and passed Giusti for the lead at Turn 3 on Lap 9. His advantage lasted only briefly, however. On the following lap, his car stopped with a technical problem, ending what had been a strong drive from the Rodin driver and handing the lead back to Giusti.
Another Safety Car followed after contact between Gerrard Xie and Woohyun Shin at Turn 1. Both drivers were able to get out of their cars safely, while Slater moved up another position to fifth.
The restart on Lap 14 produced another major change. Kato attacked Rivera for third while the Campos driver ran wide, allowing Slater to move into fourth. Kato then continued his charge and passed Giusti, taking the lead of the Sprint Race with just a few laps remaining.
Taponen’s race also came to an end shortly afterwards after a left-rear puncture forced the MP Motorsport driver to retire. This removed another contender from the fight for victory and left Kato in control with Slater closing rapidly behind.
Slater’s comeback then reached another level. The TRIDENT driver made an aggressive move on Giusti at Turn 1, briefly putting his car onto the grass, before moving into third. He then passed Yamakoshi to reach second and immediately began chasing Kato for the victory.
Yamakoshi fought back and briefly reclaimed second at Turn 1, but Slater responded and regained the position on the penultimate lap. The British driver then entered the final tour only a few seconds behind Kato, giving himself a chance to complete an extraordinary comeback from 12th to first.
Kato remained composed under pressure, however, and defended his position to secure his first FIA Formula 3 victory. The Japanese driver had started ninth and worked his way through the field before holding off Slater during the final two laps. Yamakoshi completed an all-Japanese top three, while Yevan David finished fourth after another impressive recovery from the back of the grid.
David’s result was particularly notable because he started 17th and gained 13 positions during the race. The AIX Racing driver had already shown strong pace earlier in the weekend and continued his recovery in the closing stages, overtaking Giusti to secure fourth place.
Alessandro Giusti finished fifth after leading for much of the race, with Mattia Colnaghi sixth and Ernesto Rivera seventh. Enzo Deligny took eighth, while Nicola Lacorte finished ninth and Bruno del Pino completed the points-paying positions.
For Kato, the victory was a major breakthrough. The ART driver said after the race that the team had struggled with performance in the previous races, making the Monza result particularly satisfying. Starting ninth also highlighted the importance of overtaking opportunities at the high-speed Italian circuit.
For Slater, the second-place finish was arguably even more important than the victory itself in the context of the championship. He collected nine points and increased his lead over Ugochukwu to 17 points, moving to 139 while his American rival remained on 122.
The situation is even more significant because Slater will start the Feature Race from pole position. He took the top spot in Friday qualifying with a 1:38.114, beating teammate Matteo De Palo by just 0.029 seconds. Ugochukwu, meanwhile, will start much further back after his qualifying difficulties and subsequent grid penalty.
With the championship battle now heavily in Slater’s favour, the Feature Race presents a major opportunity for the TRIDENT driver. A strong result from pole could give him a decisive advantage heading into the final round of the season in Madrid.
Monza is the penultimate round of the 2026 FIA Formula 3 season, with Madrid scheduled to host the championship finale from September 11 to 13. The Spanish round will also feature an extra race, meaning the title fight is not over yet despite Slater’s advantage.
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