F1 fast track: Tsolov delivers on Helmut Marko request with Melbourne win

The Formula 2 and Formula 3 championships are up and running in 2026. This year, there will be an additional, PlanetF1.com podium, to play for.

In this new PF1 series, we will award three points to the driver who impresses us most over an F2/F3 weekend. Two points shall go to our runner-up, and a single point for P3. By the end of the year, we shall have our winner. In the event of a tie, the driver who scores the most points on-track, will clinch our best and fairest award. Right, let’s get to it!

Formula 2: Nikola Tsolov shines in Melbourne

Want more PlanetF1.com coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust.

Taking home the first three-point haul of F2 2026 is Red Bull-backed Nikola Tsolov.

The Bulgarian racer was told by Helmut Marko that expectations would remain the same at Red Bull after his departure. He challenged Tsolov to keep winning as he stepped up full-time to F2. He did that in the Melbourne Feature Race.

Tsolov bounced back from a challenging qualifying and Sprint – which saw him caught up in one collision before tangling with Colton Herta – to claim an assured Feature Race win in the Campos machine.

“I’m feeling super happy, very satisfied because I believe in qualifying, I should have been on pole, but the pace was really strong and unfortunately we caught some traffic which prevented us from doing so,” Tsolov said his win.

“Then yesterday it was just a really tough race, wrong place, wrong time, the whole time. So to come away from a bad day into a really good day is what I was aiming for. I stayed resilient and this is the biggest win for me, more than just the result.”

Ritomo Miyata not in Colton Herta’s shadow

Two points go to Hitech’s Ritomo Miyata, who starred for Hitech. There was more to his pair of P5s than met the eye.

Almost all the attention has been focused on his teammate Colton Herta, but Miyata went from 13th to 5th at the line, twice, to steal the headlines.

Laurens van Hoepen ends Trident podium wait

In what is set to be his first season full-time in F2, van Hoepen already has his maiden podium. It was also Trident’s first since 2024.

Claiming two points for seventh in the Sprint, van Hoepen followed that up by going from 11th to P3 at the Feature Race chequered flag.

The Dutchman takes our final point.

Melbourne F2 points

1. Nikola Tsolov, Campos – 3
2. Ritomo Miyata, Hitech – 2
3. Laurens van Hoepen, Trident – 1

More on the road to Formula 1

Freddie Slater explains why joining Audi F1 academy was the ‘right choice’

Bondarev makes history with UAE4 title as Williams faith rewarded

Formula 3: Ugo Ugochukwu takes first F3 victory

2025 did not go quite how Ugochukwu had hoped as a McLaren junior. But, there were signs of improvement later in the year, and now without F1 team backing, the American wasted no time in opening his F3 victory account.

F3 can be relentless. One position lost can soon become two, or three, sometimes even more. But, Ugochukwu consolidated after losing a place to Freddie Slater at the Feature Race start.

He took P2 back from Slater on the second lap, quickly caught and passed Théophile Naël, and raced on to the win.

He reflected: “It was a good race overall.

“It was a bit tight into T1, so I lost out, fell back to P3, but I felt the pace at the beginning was really good. I went for the moves and got into the lead just to try to manage my race from there in clean air. And everything was working pretty well.

“Tyre management was really crucial. Just trying to manage the tyre as best as possible. But sometimes with the graining, you can lose a lot of lap time, and then it comes back to you. I was always on it with everything.

“Towards the end, my engineer was keeping me updated on the times. Fred started to get a little bit quick at the end. I knew I had to manage the tyres well and also keep my pace good, just in case I came under attack towards the end.

“All in all, it’s been a perfect start to the season, really. From Friday, I was feeling really good at this track, and we managed to have a really clean weekend and execute everything pretty well.”

Our three points go to Ugochukwu.

Bruno del Pino turns heads

The F3 Sprint came to a premature end when Prema teammates James Wharton and Louis Sharp collided, a nasty collision from which both drivers thankfully walked away unhurt. With the race not resuming, Bruno del Pino was crowned the winner, ahead of Van Amersfoort teammate Enzo Delingy.

That was del Pino’s maiden F3 victory, and he impressed once more in the Feature Race, which did go the distance. From 11th on the grid, del Pino worked his way up to fourth at the chequered flag.

Two points go to del Pino.

Freddie Slater signals intent

An early title favourite, Audi-backed Freddie Slater made Ugochukwu work for that win. It was a potential glimpse into the title battle to come.

Passing Ugochukwu at the start and taking a serious look at Naël for the lead, Slater responded well to Ugochukwu’s re-pass, and later pressure from Trident teammate Noah Strømsted. He got back on the front foot, passed Naël, and raced on to second.

Slater takes the final Melbourne F3 point.

Melbourne F3 points

1. Ugo Ugochukwu, Campos – 3
2. Bruno del Pino, Van Amersfoort – 2
3. Freddie Slater, Trident – 1

Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.

You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!

Read next – Australian GP conclusions: Formula Net Zero, Russell’s main threat, Aston Martin-Honda mistake