2026 Formula Regional Middle East Trophy

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.^[1] The change in guise coincided with a change in technical regulations, as the series switched to a new chassis and engine spec.^[2]

The championship was held over four rounds in January and February 2026.^[3] 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.

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.^[2] The eleven teams competing in the 2026 season were announced on 12 December 2025.^[4][5]

The 2026 calendar was officially announced on 31 October 2025.^[3] 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.

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.^[31] 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.^[32][33]

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.^[34]

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.^[35] 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.^[36] 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.^[37]

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.^[30] 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.^[38]

Points were awarded to the top ten classified drivers as follows.^[39]

• Official website