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Bondarev Claims Maiden FIA FREC Victory on Imola Debut Weekend
Williams junior Oleksandr Bondarev secured his first FIA Formula Regional European Championship victory at Imola, while Emanuele Olivieri extended his title lead.
By Michael de Vries - 2026-09-06T19:35:00.000Z - 3 min read
Newcomer Oleksandr Bondarev produced a standout performance to claim his and Van Amersfoort Racing’s maiden FIA Formula Regional European Championship victory by converting pole position into the Race 3 win at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola on Sunday afternoon. Making his debut in the category, the Ukrainian driver finished second in Race 2 on Saturday from the partially reversed grid, establishing himself as a formidable presence immediately. In doing so, he became the tenth different driver to win during the junior single-seater championship’s inaugural season.
By finishing runner-up to Bondarev in the final encounter, R-ace GP competitor Emanuele Olivieri extended his advantage at the summit of the overall standings. Olivieri now holds a twenty-point margin over Sebastian Wheldon of MP Motorsport as the championship heads toward the final round at Hockenheim in Germany, scheduled for September eleven through thirteen. The Italian driver secured points across all three contests after claiming victory in Race 1 from pole position. Reno Francot of CL Motorsport rounded out the Race 3 podium, having also finished inside the top three during Saturday afternoon's second race.
Despite a challenging outing that saw him finish twelfth in the final Imola race, Wheldon remains mathematically in contention for the FIA FREC title. Joining him in the fight for the crown are Prema Racing driver Kean Nakamura-Berta and Olivieri’s team-mate Rashid Al Dhaheri, who concluded the closing race in ninth and tenth positions respectively. The competitive field navigated three separate safety car restarts during the event, testing the mettle of the entire grid on a circuit where overtaking is notoriously difficult.
Seventeen-year-old Bondarev, a graduate of Formula 4 and a member of the Williams Driver Academy, reflected on a breakthrough weekend. After the race, he explained that the foundation for his success was laid earlier in the day with a strong pole position lap that allowed him to control the pace from the front. Managing the restarts proved demanding, particularly given the differences between his previous machinery and the current championship car, but his defensive driving preserved the lead until the checkered flag.
Olivieri also left the Imola venue with provisional honours as the Rookie champion for the year, pending formal confirmation of the results. The championship leader admitted that leaving the circuit with an extended points cushion exceeded his pre-weekend expectations. He credited the summer break work carried out alongside his team for unlocking the pace that propelled him to the front of the field throughout the Italian triple-header.
The 2026 FIA FREC season represents a significant evolution in the junior single-seater landscape. Taking over from the previous iteration, the championship enjoys the direct backing of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile and is organised by the Automobile Club d’Italia. The series utilizes the second-generation Tatuus T-326 chassis, equipped with Pirelli tyres and engineered to mirror aerodynamic concepts found in Formula 1 to promote closer wheel-to-wheel racing and enhanced safety standards.
A notable technical addition for the 2026 campaign is the implementation of a Race Mode push-to-pass system. Developed by the FIA and constructor Tatuus, the mechanism grants drivers access to full engine performance via a cockpit button, with a total allocation of one hundred seconds per race distributed across multiple activations. This innovation forms part of the ongoing development of the single-seater ladder situated directly beneath the Formula 1 support structure.