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32 cars on track in the stunning Abu Dhabi setting as a new era of Formula Regional racing begins with the new Tatuus single-seater



The sun, breathtaking sunsets and iconic night lights of Yas Marina provided the perfect stage for the long-awaited competitive debut of the new Tatuus T-326. Following the rollout of the first prototype on August 1st, 2025, last weekend marked the first official race outing for the new-generation Formula Regional car, with 32 single-seaters (three for each of the 11 teams) battling on the Abu Dhabi circuit.


The race weekend was only the highlight of an intense week of preparation and testing, during which teams completed the very first competitive kilometres with their cars. Throughout the process, they were supported trackside by the Korus group structure, with more than 20 Tatuus and ATM engineers and technicians on site to provide full operational and technical support, including car management and spare parts logistics.



Testing: the first kilometres for the new Formula Regional generation


Tuesday, January 13th marked the true on-track debut of the Tatuus T-326, as all 32 cars began accumulating mileage and allowing teams and drivers to familiarise themselves with the many technical innovations introduced with the new Formula Regional generation.


Lap times immediately highlighted a clear step forward compared to the previous T-318 benchmark, with Taito Kato (ART Grand Prix) setting the fastest time at 1:48.053. Overall, the field showed extremely close gaps, underlining the high level of competitiveness.


Four test sessions were held on Tuesday, followed by four more on Wednesday, January 14th. Thursday was then dedicated to data analysis and preparation ahead of the first official race weekend for the new car.



Free practice and qualifying


Friday’s free practice sessions officially opened the race weekend, with Christian Ho (MP Motorsport) and Alex Powell (Pinnacle) topping the timesheets in the first and second sessions respectively. Powell then confirmed his strong pace during Saturday morning practice, ahead of Kabir Anurag (ART) and Maksimilian Popov (Trident).


Saturday afternoon saw tension rise with the double qualifying session, which awarded pole positions to Alexander Abkhazava (MP Motorsport) and local hero Rashid Al Dhaheri (Yas Heat – R-ace GP). Al Dhaheri also secured the fastest overall qualifying time (1:48.148), earning pole position for Race 3 and a front-row start for Race 1 alongside Abkhazava.



The races


Under the warm glow of Saturday’s sunset, the grid formed for the first race of the new Formula Regional era, which got underway at 17:55.

Thirty-one minutes later, it was Alexander Abkhazava who crossed the finish line first under the floodlights of Yas Marina, converting pole position into victory while holding off Rashid Al Dhaheri, who finished just 0.443 seconds behind. Completing the podium was the top rookie, Maksimilian Popov (Trident). The trophies were presented by Tatuus President Gianfranco De Bellis.


Sunday’s daytime races proved far more eventful, with multiple incidents leading to Safety Car periods and red flags.


Race 2, featuring a reversed grid, was won by another MP Motorsport driver, Christian Ho. He was joined on the podium by Miguel Costa (RPM) and Alex Ninovic (Rodin Motorsport).


Race 3 saw Rashid Al Dhaheri complete an almost perfect weekend. After Saturday’s strong performances, the Abu Dhabi-born driver maintained his pace, defended confidently and stayed focused through multiple interruptions to claim victory and take the provisional championship lead — a result that will remain a defining moment for both the young driver and the Formula Regional Middle East Trophy.



Looking ahead


Following a highly successful opening round, attention now turns immediately to preparation for the next event.


The Tatuus T-326 will return to action this weekend (January 23–25), once again at the Yas Marina Circuit, for Round 2 of the four-round Formula Regional Middle East Trophy 2026.


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News
Weekend Preview: Engines Roar Back to Life as the Season Picks Up the Pace
Weekend Preview: Engines Roar Back to Life as the Season Picks Up the Pace
Donington Park, Croft and Imola set the stage for a full weekend of racing for Tatuus, with five championships ready to return to the track across Italy and the United Kingdom.

September gets underway with a particularly busy weekend for Tatuus categories. From Formula Regional to F4, several circuits will take centre stage from 4 to 6 September, with championships entering the decisive part of the season and plenty still to play for in the standings.
GB3 and GB4 will be racing at Donington Park, while British F4 returns to Croft. In Italy, Italian F4 and the FIA Formula Regional European Championship will share the weekend at Imola, bringing a total of five championships and more than 150 Tatuus cars to the track.

FREC

The FIA Formula Regional European Championship returns to Imola from 4 to 6 September for the seventh and penultimate round of the 2026 season. Following the summer break, the championship heads into its final two rounds with the title race still wide open.

Kean Nakamura-Berta (PREMA Racing) heads to Imola as championship leader after taking a win and a third-place finish at the most recent round at Paul Ricard. The Williams Driver Academy driver has claimed three victories so far this season, the same number as Rashid Al Dhaheri (R-ace GP) and Sebastian Wheldon (MP Motorsport) , who sit just 13 points behind him.

Completing the leading group is Emanuele Olivieri (PREMA Racing) , currently fourth in the standings, only 20 points behind the first, and set to race at his home circuit in Imola. The Italian has shown strong consistency in the second half of the season and could mathematically secure the Rookie Trophy at Imola, thanks to his 104-point advantage over his closest rival.

The second-generation Tatuus T-326 cars will once again take centre stage on track, with Imola marking the penultimate round before the season finale in Hockenheim .

The weekend schedule:
Friday, 5 September Qualifying 1: 15:15
Saturday, 6 September Race 1: 10:10 Race 2: 16:30
Sunday, 7 September Qualifying 2: 08:45 Race 3: 16:30
All three races will be available via live streaming on the official FIA Formula Regional European Championship YouTube channel.


GB3

The GB3 Championship heads back to the Donington Park Grand Prix Circuit this weekend for the sixth round of the season, with the championship battle continuing to develop. Driving the Tatuus MSV GB3-025 , Nikita Bedrin arrives at the weekend as championship leader, while several drivers behind him will be looking to close the gap across the three races.

One of the drivers to watch is Rowan Campbell-Pilling (Xcel Motorsport) , coming off his best weekend of the season at Silverstone with two podium finishes and set to race at his home circuit. Maxim Rehm (Rodin Motorsport) is also one to follow, currently fourth in the standings with five podiums from the opening 15 races. Leon Wilson (Arden Motorsport) has also shown strong progress over the last two rounds, securing his best points haul of the season at Silverstone. Donington will provide another opportunity to build on that progress.

The weekend schedule:
Saturday, 5 September Qualifying 1: 10:45 Qualifying 2: 11:05 Race 1: 15:10
Sunday, 6 September Race 2: 10:10 Race 3: 16:20
All races will be available via live streaming on the official MSV YouTube channel, while live timing for all sessions will be available on the championship website .


GB4

The GB4 Championship heads to Donington Park this weekend for the penultimate round of the season. Alex O’Grady (KMR Sport) arrives at the round with the opportunity to secure the championship with one event to spare, while the rest of the field will continue to fight for the remaining positions aboard the Tatuus MSV GB4-025.

Connor Willis (Hillspeed) arrives at Donington after securing his maiden GB4 victory in the reverse-grid race at Silverstone. The American driver will be looking to rediscover the form he showed during the first part of the season, on a circuit where he had already demonstrated strong pace during pre-season testing.

Conor Grant (Douglas Motorsport) is also one to watch. After a series of positive results, he will be looking for his first victory in the category at a circuit where he achieved his best result in the previous event, finishing sixth in Race 2 after gaining 12 positions.

The weekend schedule:
Saturday, 5 September Qualifying: 14:05 Race 1: 18:00
Sunday, 6 September Race 2: 11:25 Race 3: 17:35
All races will be available via live streaming on the official website and MSV youtube channel, while live timing for all sessions will be available on the championship website .


ITALIAN F4

Following the summer break, the Italian F4 Championship returns to Imola for the fifth of seven rounds of the season. This weekend will bring 48 drivers and 13 teams to the track, with the overall standings and several trophies still to be decided.

Luka Sammalisto (US Racing) leads the championship with 288 points and seven victories, followed by David Cosma-Cristofor (Prema Racing) , 55 points behind. Kenzo Craigie (R-ace GP) arrives in Imola after claiming his maiden Italian F4 victory at Mugello and currently sits second in the Rookie Trophy. In the Women’s Trophy, Emma Felbermayr (PHM Racing) leads the standings ahead of Payton Westcott (R-ace GP) .

The weekend will feature three qualifying races and a Final. The results of the first three races will determine the 36 drivers who progress to the final race, with Tatuus cars taking part in every racing session.

The weekend schedule:
Friday, 4 September Qualifying 1: 17:10 Qualifying 2: 17:35
Saturday, 5 September Race 1: 11:10 Race 2: 17:30
Sunday, 6 September Race 3: 09:45 Final: 17:30
All races will be broadcast on the official Italian F4 Championship and ACI Sport TV channels.



BRITISH F4

British F4 returns to Croft this weekend for the eighth round of the season, with nine races still to be contested and just four points separating Dries Van Langendonck (Rodin Motorsport) and Lewis Wherrell (JHR Developments) at the top of the standings. The round will also mark the championship’s return to the North Yorkshire circuit for the first time since 2023.

The season has been highly competitive so far, with 12 different race winners and 19 drivers having already stood on the podium. Van Langendonck returns to racing after missing the previous round, while Wherrell arrives at Croft after securing two podium finishes at Donington and reducing the gap to the championship leader. Behind them, Theo Palmer (Hitech) sits third and remains within the title fight, while Ethan Jeff-Hall (Argenti Motorsport) , George Proudford-Nalder (Virtuosi Racing) and Scott Kin Lindblom (Hitech) all arrive on the back of strong results in the previous round.

The weekend schedule:
Saturday, 5 September Qualifying: 12:00 Race 1: 17:05
Sunday, 6 September Race 2: 12:50 Race 3: 16:20
All races will be available via live streaming on the official British F4 YouTube channel.

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News
Destination Macau: the T-326 and T-421 set to star in the 2026 FIA World Cups
Destination Macau: the T-326 and T-421 set to star in the 2026 FIA World Cups
The FIA has officially confirmed the adoption of Tatuus single-seaters for the 2026 Formula Regional and Formula 4 World Cups.
Tatuus cars, already competing in national and regional championships around the world, will once again take center stage on the prestigious streets of Macau for the FIA Formula Regional World Cup and FIA Formula 4 World Cup. From 19 to 22 November, 13 teams in Formula Regional and 12 teams in Formula 4 will battle on the iconic Guia Circuit. For the T-326 , this will mark its debut in Macau, following the T-318's appearances in the Formula Regional World Cup in 2024 and 2025. For the T-421 , it will be a welcome return after making its Macau debut in the Formula 4 World Cup in 2023.

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Stories
“Motorsport works like magic, capable of inspiring that uniquely Italian determination to keep believing in something even when the numbers don’t add up.”
“Motorsport works like magic, capable of inspiring that uniquely Italian determination to keep believing in something even when the numbers don’t add up.”
The words of CEO Giovanni Delfino in an interview with la Repubblica.

The CEO of Tatuus, ATM – Autotecnica Motori, and the Korus Group was featured in an interview published today in la Repubblica and written by Irene Saderini. During the conversation, he reflected on some of the most important and defining moments of his career, while also sharing his views on several aspects of the global motorsport industry.
The full interview is available on repubblica.it .

A Personal Journey A central theme of the interview is the CEO’s personal story, which began with his decision to pursue engineering studies and continued through a career marked by bold choices and decisive moments: “I don’t believe in luck; I believe in being able to seize it. When an opportunity comes your way, you have to recognize it. That said, it would be unfair to claim I wasn’t fortunate. I joined the company when I had virtually nothing. The founder allowed me to repay my debt over time, and I only finished paying the last installments two or three years ago.”
Delfino also spoke about his early years at Alfa Corse, where he developed his passion for experimentation and performance engineering: “At heart, I am a track engineer. I worked in the testing departments, where our job was to find that extra half horsepower from a finished product. My first experiences came in Alfa Romeo Touring Cars, with drivers such as Giovanardi, Tarquini and Larini competing against BMW and Mercedes. Sometimes those extra two horsepower were what won you the race.”

Formula 4 and Driver Development Among the key topics discussed was the production of Formula racing cars and engines, today one of the cornerstones of the Korus Group: “Everything starts with studying the regulations, which always leave room for interpretation—and success comes from finding the right one.” Speaking about Formula 4 engines, Delfino explained: “It all starts with a four-cylinder Fiat 500 Abarth unit. It must cost less than €16,500 due to the price cap and last 10,000 kilometres. My objective is to ensure that every engine performs the same.” The reward is seeing young talents progress step by step through the motorsport ladder and ultimately reach the highest levels of the sport: “It was particularly rewarding to see Andrea Kimi Antonelli begin his career in one of our cars.”

The Motorsport Industry The interview also included a broader reflection on the remarkable momentum motorsport is experiencing worldwide: “Motorsport sometimes works like a kind of magic, capable of overcoming marketing logic and keeping alive that uniquely Italian determination to believe in something even when the numbers don’t add up.”
Particularly representative of the Korus Group’s vision was Delfino’s perspective on internal combustion and electric powertrains: “For me, the smell of a winning engine is the smell of gasoline, hard work and sacrifice. A twelve-cylinder engine on track is like a violin—actually, an entire orchestra of violins. Racing is my world, and I find it difficult to see any of that emotion in batteries alone. Hybrid technology, however, is a different story. We are part of the FIA working group on the new regulations, and I find the hybrid approach very compelling.”
[...]
News
Tatuus Celebrates the 500th T-421, the World’s Most Widely Used Formula 4 Car
Tatuus Celebrates the 500th T-421, the World’s Most Widely Used Formula 4 Car
The Lainate-based manufacturer has celebrated the production and delivery of the 500th chassis of the single-seater on which Kimi Antonelli and Arvid Lindblad developed their careers.

Born in 2021, the Tatuus T-421 reached its 500th unit produced and delivered in May 2026, once again confirming its status as one of the most manufactured and successful racing single-seaters worldwide. The milestone was celebrated by the Lainate-based brand together with all its employees and the sister companies of the Korus group, which contribute daily to the T-421 project: ATM–Autotecnica Motori, Breda Racing, and Next Solution Technologies.
Today, the T-421 is the most widely used Formula 4 car in the world, competing across 16 championships spanning Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Oceania. Behind its wheel, some of the most exciting talents in contemporary motorsport have developed, including Kimi Antonelli and Arvid Lindblad , who built the first steps of their single-seater careers in the second-generation Tatuus F4 before progressing all the way to the pinnacle of Formula 1.
“The 500th T-421 is not only a major milestone for Tatuus, but also an important achievement for the entire international motorsport ecosystem,” said Giovanni Delfino, CEO of Tatuus and the Korus Group. “With the introduction of Formula 4 in 2014, the FIA created a new pathway between karting and single-seaters, enabling drivers to arrive better prepared for higher categories. This model has established itself through years of significant growth in motorsport, during which many championships were launched and expanded, now reaching grids of nearly 50 cars per round with the second generation we celebrate today. These are figures that were difficult to imagine at the beginning of this journey, but which now define the everyday reality of many of the companies within the Korus Group.”
“Throughout Tatuus’ history, many of our models have achieved widespread adoption across global championships and have demonstrated unparalleled driver development capabilities,” added Gianfranco De Bellis, President of Tatuus and the Korus group. “The T-421 is writing an important chapter in the history of our brand and, together with the first-generation car, is now approaching 800 units produced. These volumes allow us to aim toward the milestone of 1,000 F4 single-seaters, a figure previously approached by the various Formula Renault models that marked a turning point in our history and in the development path of many drivers.”
As the second generation of Formula 4 single-seaters, the T-421 succeeded the T-014, which from 2014—the year Formula 4 was introduced—through 2021 was produced in just under 300 units. It represented the ideal platform for drivers transitioning from karting to single-seaters, and helped develop talents such as Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, Max Verstappen, Isack Hadjar, Liam Lawson, Lance Stroll, Oliver Bearman, Gabriel Bortoleto, and Franco Colapinto.
The T-421 is just one of many examples of the cooperation that makes the Korus group one of the leading global ecosystems in motorsport engineering. The companies within the Group involved in the celebration have contributed to the project from day one, within a consolidated model of synergies that each year gives rise to new cars, powertrains, and solutions for motorsport.
Specifically, ATM–Autotecnica Motori developed and supplies the Abarth-derived inline four-cylinder engine that powers the car, while Breda Racing is responsible for a large portion of the components—such as the halo and suspension arms—as well as instrumentation required for managing the cars both on track and at HQ. Next Solution Technologies provides a significant part of the car’s electronic and electromechanical systems, in addition to supplying steering wheels and rain lights.
However, the milestone of 500 cars does not represent a finishing point for Tatuus. Production of the current model will continue through 2028 , when FIA regulations foresee the introduction of the third-generation car , on which the brands of the Korus Group are already actively working.

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