Freddie Slater at Audi, Matteo De Palo at McLaren, two excellent additions to these academies?

After a record-breaking season with 313 points, Freddie Slater clinched the FRECA 2025 championship title last weekend at Monza. With two wins in as many races, the Briton built a significant lead over his closest rival, Matteo De Palo, trailing by just four points heading into the final race at his home track. He is a teammate at Trident in Formula 3 In 2026, the two young men could well be representing Audi and McLaren starting next year, further increasing the hopes they generate.

Audi lays the groundwork for its ambitions

Indeed, according to information from our Italian colleagues...Italia RacingFreddie Slater could very well be heading to Audi, with a view to joining a newly established academy. While the Briton's talent could allow him to reach great heights in the coming years, the choice of Audi would nevertheless appear particularly relevant. Aiming for the Formula 1 In the medium term, the champion, who is just 17 years old, could in this way succeed in his endeavor if success were to smile upon him again.

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With the three previous F3 winners – Gabriel Bortoleto, Leonardo Fornaroli, and Rafael Câmara – Freddie Slater is undeniably among the favorites next year, having already secured a podium finish in a sprint race in his very first outing in Bahrain this year. While Gabriel Bortoleto already seems to have a guaranteed place within the Audi fold for the future, the German manufacturer's plan could potentially involve fielding such a driver pairing from 2028 onwards, depending on the young Slater's ability to maintain this form.

McLaren secures its future

Although Matteo De Palo finished this FRECA season a substantial 36 points behind Freddie Slater, he will be on the Formula 3 grid in 2026 in a car identical to his rival's. With four wins in the regional category this year, the Italian is expected to race for McLaren in his debut season.

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Just like Ugo Ugochukwu – Campos driver on next year's grid – or Martinius Stenshorne – present in Formula 2 With Rodin Motorsport in 2026, Matteo De Palo joins a particularly demanding environment. Although a Formula 1 seat might seem less certain with the papaya-branded team, the young Italian could at least benefit from the kind of training that Gabriel Bortoleto received before his arrival in the premier category. He would thus join Pato O'Ward, Brando Badoer, and the driver of... karting Dries van Langendonck, and F1 Academy driver Ella Lloyd in addition to the profiles mentioned previously in F2 and F3.

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Compared again throughout next season, the future Trident drivers will primarily have to contend with a particularly strong Formula 3 grid. At both Campos and MP Motorsport, there will be no shortage of title contenders, and performance could still be decisive when it comes to recruitment for F2 within the Junior Teams. Drivers such as Théophile Naël and Enzo Deligny remain available.