17-year-old Ukrainian wins debut race in a Formula series round in Italy
Kyiv • UNN
Ukrainian Oleksandr Bondarev claimed his first FREC victory after starting from pole. He finished 0.443 seconds ahead of championship leader Emanuele Olivieri.
Racing driver Oleksandr Bondarev became the first Ukrainian to win gold in the Formula Regional European Championship (FREC). This was reported by UNN, citing FIA Official.
Details
Oleksandr Bondarev, representing Van Amersfoort Racing, started the decisive race from pole position. The Ukrainian completed all 15 laps and held off attacks from Italy’s Emanuele Olivieri, who leads the championship standings. At the finish, the gap between them was just 0.443 seconds. Dutchman Renaud Francot finished third. For the Ukrainian driver, this was his first triumph at this level.
Race results in Imola:
- Oleksandr Bondarev - Ukraine;
- Emanuele Olivieri - Italy;
- Renaud Francot - the Netherlands.
The round in Imola, Italy, was the 17-year-old Ukrainian’s first in FREC, which is considered the next step after Formula 4. His debut proved triumphant: in the first two races of the weekend, Bondarev finished 10th and 2nd, respectively, and claimed the top prize in the third. Thanks to this performance, the Ukrainian immediately moved up to 14th place in the overall championship standings, with 37 points to his name.
Oleksandr Bondarev became the first Ukrainian racing driver in history to reach the top step of the podium in the Formula racing competition system.