The 2026 Formula Regional Middle East Trophy was a multi-event Formula Regional open-wheel single seater motor racing championship. The championship featured a mix of professional and amateur drivers, competing in Formula Regional cars. Known since 2023 as the Formula Regional Middle East Championship, the series was rebranded under the Trophy guise after the FIA introduced a new concept for single-seater championships held over shorter, constrained timeframes. The change in guise coincided with a change in technical regulations, as the series switched to a new chassis and engine spec.

The championship was held over four rounds in January and February 2026. Kean Nakamura-Berta won the Drivers' Championship title at the final race of the season and in doing so also won the Rookie Cup and helped his team, the Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited, to defend their Teams' Championship title.

Teams and drivers The championship retired the Tatuus F3 T-318 chassis it had used since its inception and replaced it with the new Tatuus T-326, powered by a 1.6 litre, 3-cylinder Toyota engine running on Pirelli tires. The eleven teams competing in the 2026 season were announced on 12 December 2025. TeamNo.DriverStatusRounds Rodin Motorsport2 Alex NinovicAll4 Reza SeewooruthunAll18 Maxim RehmAll Trident3 Maximilian PopovAll47 Andrija KostićAll87 Kai DaryananiAll RPM5 Miguel CostaAll8 Jan PrzyrowskiAll99 Giovanni MaschioAll CL Motorsport6 Enea FreyAll28 Zhenrui Chi All57 Michael Belov 169 Reno Francot3–4 ART Grand Prix7 Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak419 Kabir Anurag All27 Matteo Giaccardi All89 Taito Kato1–3 Van Amersfoort Racing11 Francisco MacedoAll55 Dion GowdaAll68 Yuhao FuAll R-ace GP12 Yuki SanoAll71 Rashid Al DhaheriAll73 Gerrard Xie1–2 Emanuele Olivieri3–4 G4 Racing14 Artem SeveriukhinAll24 Jules RousselAll67 Andrea DupéAll MP Motorsport15 Alexander AbkhazavaAll 16 Christian Ho1–2 Jesse Carrasquedo Jr.3–417 Alceu Feldmann NetoAll Pinnacle Motorsport29 August RaberAll41 Alex PowellAll Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited51 Kean Nakamura-Berta All88 Salim Hanna All98 Sebastian Wheldon AllIconStatus Rookie

Race calendar The 2026 calendar was officially announced on 31 October 2025. The adoption of the Formula Regional Trophy format saw the number of race weekends reduced to four, with the series making two visits in Yas Marina Circuit, compared to three in the previous year. RoundCircuitDateSupport billMap of circuit locations1R1 Yas Marina Circuit, Yas Island(Grand Prix Circuit)17 JanuaryGulf Radical CupUAE4 SeriesR218 JanuaryR32R1 Yas Marina Circuit, Yas Island(Corkscrew Circuit)24 JanuaryUAE4 SeriesR225 JanuaryR33R1 Dubai Autodrome, Dubai Motor City(Grand Prix Circuit)30 JanuaryAsian Le Mans Series (4H of Dubai)UAE4 SeriesR21 FebruaryR34R1 Lusail International Circuit, Lusail(Grand Prix Circuit)12 FebruaryUAE4 SeriesR213 FebruaryR3

Race results RoundCircuitPole positionFastest lapWinning driverWinning teamRookie winner1R1 Yas Marina Circuit(Grand Prix Circuit) Alexander Abkhazava Kean Nakamura-Berta Alexander Abkhazava MP Motorsport Maximilian PopovR2 Christian Ho Christian Ho MP Motorsport Miguel CostaR3 Rashid Al Dhaheri Rashid Al Dhaheri Rashid Al Dhaheri R-ace GP Alex Powell2R1 Yas Marina Circuit(Corkscrew Circuit) Kean Nakamura-Berta Rashid Al Dhaheri Rashid Al Dhaheri R-ace GP Kean Nakamura-BertaR2 Alex Powell Alex Ninovic Rodin Motorsport Jan PrzyrowskiR3 Sebastian Wheldon Rashid Al Dhaheri Rashid Al Dhaheri R-ace GP Kean Nakamura-Berta3R1 Dubai Autodrome(Grand Prix Circuit) Taito Kato Kean Nakamura-Berta Taito Kato ART Grand Prix Kean Nakamura-BertaR2 Maximilian Popov Salim Hanna Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited Salim HannaR3 Alex Powell Kean Nakamura-Berta Alexander Abkhazava MP Motorsport Kean Nakamura-Berta4R1 Lusail International Circuit(Grand Prix Circuit) Kean Nakamura-Berta Sebastian Wheldon Kean Nakamura-Berta Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited Kean Nakamura-BertaR2Race cancelled due to issues with spec engine parts requiring replacementR3 Kean Nakamura-Berta Emanuele Olivieri Kean Nakamura-Berta Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited Kean Nakamura-Berta

Season report The 2026 Formula Regional Middle East Trophy began with two race weekends at Yas Marina Circuit. MP Motorsport's Alexander Abkhazava and R-ace GP's Rashid Al Dhaheri shared pole positions in qualifying at the first weekend. The first race of the season began with Abkhazava keeping Al Dhaheri and Trident's Maximilian Popov behind at the start before winning a processional race with little changes in the order. The second race began with multiple cars stalling, among them Rodin's Reza Seewooruthun, who was then heavily hit by CL Motorsport's Michael Belov, causing a red flag. Trident's Andrija Kostić led the restart before being handed a drive-through penalty, which handed the lead to RPM's Miguel Costa before MP's Christian Ho overtook him to claim victory. Rodin's Alex Ninovic took third, before stalling off the front row in race three. That allowed Al Dhaheri to pull away, leading Pinnacle's Alex Powell and Ho through a second red flag-interrupted race to take his maiden Formula Regional victory and the lead in the standings.

Round two used Yas Marina's corkscrew layout, and pole positions in qualifying were claimed by the Mumbai Falcons pair of Kean Nakamura-Berta and Sebastian Wheldon. Al Dhaheri moved past Nakamura-Berta at the start of the opening race as Powell slotted into third. The race was red-flagged with five laps to go after contact between MP’s Alceu Feldmann Neto and VAR’s Yuhao Fu saw the Brazilian's car flipped upside down, but the order at the top remained static. Ninovic started race two on reverse-grid pole position, with most drivers starting on wet tyres after pre-race rain. He lost the lead to RPM's Jan Przyrowski at the start, but was able to regain it on lap five. He then gapped Przyrowski and Popov before the race finished under safety car. Race three saw Al Dhaheri once again move past the polesitter at the start, with Wheldon also losing out to Nakamura-Berta one corner later. Al Dhaheri remained faultless throughout two safety car periods to claim victory and grow his championship lead to 35 points over Nakamura-Berta.

The Dubai Autodrome hosted round three, where ART Grand Prix driver Taito Kato and Powell shared pole positions in qualifying. Defensive driving at the start of the opening race saw Kato hold off Abkhazava, while Nakamura-Berta fended off Al Dhaheri. The top four positions remained static, handing Kato his maiden Formula Regional win. Powell started the second race form reversed-grid pole position ahead of Mumbai Falcons driver Salim Hanna, but a bad start saw him drop to fourth exiting the opening corner. Hanna claimed the lead ahead of Ninovic and Przyrowski and led throughout two safety car interruptions to take victory. Powell crashed and retired, with subsequent repairs forcing him to miss race three. With R-ace GP's Yuki Sano also missing the race, Abkhazava had a clear road ahead despite originally qualifying third. He had to fend off Nakamura-Berta multiple times before being able to take the win. R-ace GP's Emanuele Olivieri came third, with Al Dhaheri not scoring and his lead over Nakamura-Berta reduced to 24 points.

The final round was held at Lusail International Circuit, and it began with disruptions. Engine drive belt defects for multiple drivers in free practice prompted organizers to order spare parts from Europe. That saw the schedule reduced to just two races, with the reversed-grid race cancelled. When qualifying came around, championship chaser Nakamura-Berta was the man to beat as he claimed both pole positions. Poor starts to the first race for Powell and Al Dhaheri saw Wheldon and Przyrowski move past them into the podium positions. After initial attacks by Wheldon, positions stabilized and Nakamura-Berta took victory. With Al Dhaheri finishing sixth, the gap in the championship was reduced to just seven points. Race two saw Nakamura-Berta able to stay in first as Wheldon and Powell fought over second place. A safety car followed after multiple incidents. Nakamura-Berta had a faultless restart and a trouble-free rest of the race, which, coupled with a seventh-place finish for Al Dhaheri, saw him claim the championship title.

Championship standings

Scoring system Points were awarded to the top ten classified drivers as follows. Position 1st  2nd  3rd  4th  5th  6th  7th  8th  9th  10th Points251815121086421

Drivers' Championship PosDriverYMC1YMC2DUBLUSPtsR1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R31 Kean Nakamura-Berta4Ret52523Ret21C11512 Rashid Al Dhaheri251115145166C71393 Alexander Abkhazava161710Ret427126CRet954 Alex Powell6232328612RetDNS4C3765 Sebastian Wheldon312114743Ret1792C2716 Jan Przyrowski1426131121410343C5717 Maximilian Popov38683Ret54239C11708 Alex Ninovic731812113922615C18669 Kabir Anurag22144665169205C46210 Salim Hanna15420242112111610C65411 Taito Kato5RetDNS1411811154912 Christian Ho8131722114413 Yuki Sano2413104876RetDNS8C93714 Emanuele Olivieri7Ret37C83115 Miguel Costa102Ret1671022151417C102716 Zhenrui Chi1797211323862725C192017 Artem Severiukhin13169527928221812CRet1418 Francisco Macedo16722912221325†821C141219 Jules Roussel2618191810161714716C15720 Maxim Rehm927Ret27161718827RetCDNS621 Andrija Kostić12Ret8DSQ202021201319C21422 Reza Seewooruthun11RetDNS29†921RetRet1524C23223 Andrea Dupé20112315261514101113C20124 Dion Gowda2312112217Ret15DNS1023C17125 Gerrard Xie211012131919126 Jesse Carrasquedo Jr.Ret191211CDSQ027 Enea Frey2720Ret2329†2823122222CRet028 Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak28C12029 Reno Francot201329†14C22030 Matteo Giaccardi29242126142527Ret2527C13031 Yuhao Fu30221528182624162431C26032 Giovanni Maschio2515Ret192324Ret242130C24033 Kai Daryanani191724†25251819181718C16034 Alceu Feldmann Neto322516RetRet292523Ret29CRet035 Michael Belov18RetDNS036 August Raber2819Ret20242726211920C250PosDriverR1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3PtsYMC1YMC2DUBLUSBold – Pole

Italics – Fastest Lap

† – Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as they completed more than 75% of the race distance. Rookie Cup PosDriverYMC1YMC2DUBLUSPtsR1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R31 Kean Nakamura-Berta2Ret31411Ret11C11952 Maximilian Popov13462Ret23147C91193 Jan Przyrowski81477184233C51154 Alex Powell312121646RetDNS4C31055 Kabir Anurag115245385125C41016 Sebastian Wheldon17108532Ret1262C2927 Salim Hanna9211131275148C6858 Miguel Costa51Ret9661310913C8609 Artem Severiukhin76631551815109CRet5010 Emanuele Olivieri3Ret26C74711 Andrea Dupé104138149761110C123412 Jules Roussel127101071099512C112913 Maxim Rehm415Ret1591110417RetCDNS2714 Andrija Kostić6Ret5DSQ11121213814C132215 Enea Frey139Ret1217†16147716CRet1416 Matteo Giaccardi1513121481317Ret1617C10517 August Raber148Ret11131516141115C15418 Reno Francot11818†11C14419 Yuhao Fu1611916101415111518C163PosDriverR1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3PtsYMC1YMC2DUBLUS

Teams' Championship Ahead of each event, teams nominated two drivers who accumulated Teams' Championship points. PosTeamNo.YMC1YMC2DUBLUSPtsR1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R31 Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited514Ret52523Ret21C122298312114743Ret1792C22 R-ace GP1224131048719971251115145166C7737Ret37C83 MP Motorsport15161710Ret427126CRet13916813172211Ret191211CDSQ4 ART Grand Prix728C121111922144665169205C4895RetDNS1411811155 RPM5102Ret1671022151417C109881426131121410343C56 Pinnacle Motorsport292819Ret20242726211920C2576416232328612RetDNS4C37 Trident338683Ret54239C11744712Ret8DSQ20202120138718C168 Rodin Motorsport2731812113922615C1868411RetDNS29†921RetRet1524C239 G4 Racing1413169527928221812CRet21241810161714716C156720112310 CL Motorsport62329†2820281797211323862725C195718RetDNS69201329†14C2211 Van Amersfoort Racing1116722912221325†821C1413552312112217Ret15DNS1023C17PosTeamNo.R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3PtsYMC1YMC2DUBLUS

Notes

References

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