The 2026 Formula 3 season ended with races at the Madring circuit. The champion was American Ugo Ugochukwu, who overtook Freddie Slater during the final round. Polish driver Maciej Gładysz finished the season in 12th place in the overall standings.
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Formula 3 delivered a lot of excitement in 2026. The fight for the championship lasted until the last race, with Ugo Ugochukwu emerging victorious. Maciej Gładysz won one of the races and had real chances to finish in the top ranks mid-season, but for various reasons had a weaker end to the season and fell out of the top ten. Below, see what the driver himself said in a submitted statement. At the end, you will find my extensive commentary on the two best drivers of the season and on Gładysz.
Maciej Gładysz finished his debut season in FIA Formula 3 in Madrid
The 18-year-old from Tarnów completed his debut season in the gateway to Formula 1 in 12th place in the overall standings.
After difficult qualifying on the street circuit in Madrid, the ART Grand Prix and ORLEN Motorsport Academy protégé had to start the last three races from the second half of the field.
He finished the first and third races in 19th and 22nd place respectively. He retired from the second race on the first lap after being hit from behind by a rival.
The only Polish driver in the field ended his debut season in the FIA F3 series in a solid 12th place overall, with, among other achievements, a victory at Silverstone and points scored in five of the nine rounds.
Unfortunately, a unlucky end to the season caused the Tarnów driver to drop from sixth to twelfth place in the standings during the last three rounds.
“It was a season of two faces for me,” says Maciej Gładysz. “In the first half of the year, we showed very good pace and from the very beginning regularly fought for places in the points-paying top ten. After the victory at Silverstone, we had a real chance for a top five finish in the overall standings. Unfortunately, the end of the year was very unlucky for me, as several times, including this weekend in Madrid, I did not finish races not due to my own fault, but that is sometimes motorsport. Twelfth place in the standings is a very solid result for a rookie, which we can be satisfied with. Most importantly, I learned a lot and will try to use this experience next year. We showed that we have the pace to fight at the front, so together with my closest team, we are working on staying in this paddock, and I hope to be able to say more about this soon. For now, I would like to sincerely thank my entire team, my family, sponsors, and the amazing Polish fans who cheered me on every lap.”
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Maciej Gładysz’s partners in the 2026 season are SOLBET, Bruk-Bet, ZEN.COM, Maxton Design, ORLEN, the Polish Motor Association, and Małopolska.
Source: Information submitted Title photo by Dutch Photo Agency.
Competition for the F3 championship in 2026 and plans of the best drivers
The F3 championship for Ugo Ugochukwu is a very important matter for this driver. The American left (or was released from) McLaren’s junior program after the 2025 season, where he spent several years. I could not find the reason for this decision, but poor results in 2025 in F3 (only 16th place in the standings) combined with the physical conditions of this driver (more on that later) could have been the decisive reason. In 2026, Ugo Ugochukwu competed without F1 team support but significantly improved his performance and became F3 champion. There is much speculation that he will join Red Bull’s junior program and will also race in Formula 2 in 2027. I do not rule out that his plans might be different, as, for example, he would be an ideal candidate for Cadillac, especially after it turned out that Colton Herta is not F1 material.
This year, Ugochukwu debuted in a private F1 test with the Alpine team. This was an important event because he is extremely tall. Unofficially, it is said he is even 202 cm tall, officially listed between 192-195 cm. According to rumors that appeared this year, he grew even more between measuring the seat at the Alpine factory and the F1 car test on the track. A height around two meters theoretically excludes an F1 career for him, where the tallest current drivers are 186 cm. The tallest driver in history was Hans-Joachim Stuck – 194 cm. The team Ugochukwu would drive for would have to build a special car with a larger monocoque to fit him, which would certainly negatively affect performance. From a marketing point of view, his driving in F1 would be a perfect hit: a Black American, son of a Nigerian model and an Italian fashion designer. I am very curious how his career will develop. His results in junior series have been decent so far, but the real test will come in 2027 in Formula 2.
Freddie Slater finished second in the final standings, and looking at the raw results, this was his worst year in his career. I know how that sounds, but the British driver regularly wins in junior series, and in 2026 he finished second in Formula 3 and earlier second in the Formula Regional Oceania. I described his profile extensively in mid-2025. Considering his results, number of starts, and tests he participates in, he is an exceptional driver. This year he did not win in F3 mainly due to bad luck in the last two rounds. At the beginning of this year, Slater joined Audi’s junior program. According to reliable rumors, he signed a contract guaranteeing a drive in their F1 team in 2028. Slater could choose from offers from F1 teams and picked the best for himself. In 2027, he will move to Formula 2 (he already has a contract with the Invicta team), should have regular tests with older F1 cars, and will also participate in training sessions. In 2028, he should be a full-time Audi driver, unless something unexpected happens along the way. Slater is progressing through the junior series in a style similar to what Kimi Antonelli recently did.
A successful season for Maciej Gładysz, but with a sense of unfulfillment
In 2026, Maciej Gładysz became the first Pole in the history of the current F3 series to win a main race. When I wrote about this success on the blog after the Silverstone weekend, Gładysz was in the TOP10 of the overall standings, showing improved results and chances for a good finish. Unfortunately, he scored no points in the last seven races of the season. He had a lot of bad luck, various (unavoidable) failures, and weaker qualifying performances. Therefore, his F3 debut should be considered successful but with a significant sense of unfulfillment. He was really close to finishing, for example, in 5th or 6th place in the standings.
I do not know what Gładysz’s plans are for the 2027 season. He is one of the few Polish drivers with solid financial support, so there is no need to worry about continuing his career. The question is whether he will choose another season in Formula 3 or want to move to Formula 2? If he stays in F3, the goal for 2027 must be regular fighting at the front, as he would have considerable experience and an advantage over most of the field. In Formula 2, new cars will be introduced next year, which is always an opportunity for rookies because older drivers will not have such an experience advantage. Both options look good on paper.
Many different Polish drivers compete in junior series on the road to Formula 1. The most important information about them can be found in the article category: Polish racing drivers on the blog.
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