FIA F3 2026 – NAEL BEATS HIS TEAMMATE UGOCHUKWU TO POLE
The first qualifying session of the 2026 Formula 3 season delivered plenty of action in Melbourne, the battle for pole position was won by Theophile Nael.
Right from the first attempt, Ugo Ugochukwu made a strong impression, just like he did in practice. The American driver set the fastest time with an impressive lap, putting more than four tenths between himself and the next driver behind.
The session was then interrupted by a red flag caused by Matteo De Palo’s crash at the exit of Turn 10. The Italian lost control of his car and ended up in the barriers, bringing his qualifying session to an early end. A bad outcome for De Palo, who watched his teammates secure places inside the top 12.
After the session resumed, Ugo Ugochukwu hit a trackside panel at the exit of Turn 10, damaging his front wing.
Théophile Naël then produced an excellent lap to take pole position, beating his teammate Ugo Ugochukwu by just 21 thousandths of a second. With both drivers locking out the front row, Campos already looks like the team to beat at the start of the season.
Behind the two Campos drivers sits Freddie Slater. The new Audi driver, widely seen as one of the favourites for this season, looks set to be in the fight with Campos this weekend. Qualifying also produced a few surprises: Maciej Gladysz impressed by securing fourth place with ART, while Mattia Colnaghi also showed strong pace by finishing ahead of his teammates. The rookies delivered promising performances in the first qualifying session of the year.
Further down the order, the reversed grid for the sprint race offers a great opportunity for the VAR drivers. Enzo Deligny and Bruno Del Pino, who qualified P11 and P12 respectively, will start from the front row tomorrow.
With Campos showing early dominance, strong rookie performances and a promising reversed grid, the opening weekend of the 2026 season in Melbourne is shaping up to be exciting and competitive.
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