April 8, 2025 | Formula Winter Series
The build-up to the 2025 season saw significant changes made to the series package. Pirelli tyres were re-introduced to the series after a year on Hankook rubber, and TM Performance became the brake-disc supplier. This move brought the series closer to the specifications of the Italian, CEZ and British F4 series, and thus came a shift in the competitors for the new season.
As the opening round approached at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve, it was clear that the move had been a positive one. New teams including Hitech TGR and Van Amersfoort joined the fray for the first time, alongside established FWS teams including US Racing, Jenzer Motorsport and Campos Racing.
Portimão and Valencia: Consistency proves key as Gomez sets himself apart
The arrival of Formula Winter Series to Portimão marked the first time the series had appeared in Portugal, and the thrilling layout at the Autodromo Internacional do Algarve was an immediate favourite for the young drivers.
The first race of the season set the tone for the championship fight. Gabriel Gomez was beaten off the line by Leo Robinson, who proceeded to lead much of the race, until a late safety car intervened. The race resumed with just one lap to go, and Robinson’s tyres were no longer offering the grip he needed to hold off Gomez, who managed to usurp the Hitech driver for the first win of 2025.
Gomez would double-up in the second race of the weekend, leading home an US Racing 1-2 ahead of Edu Robinson, while Maksimilian Popov scored Van Amersfoort’s first FWS podium in third.
The third race of the weekend looked to set to be a thriller, as the grid was divided on which tyres to start the on in greasy conditions. As the race was set to begin, the start lights failed after only three lights were illuminated. The drivers began racing regardless, and wet-shod Bart Harrison jumped to the lead from the fifth row. However, the ‘race’ was soon red-flagged and restarted, and most drivers who had opted for slick tyres switched over to wets.
Fionn McLaughlin, Hitech TGR’s young Irishman from the Red Bull Junior Team, set about dominating in the tricky conditions. In his first weekend of car racing, McLaughlin had the mettle to win by almost four and a half seconds over his teammate Leo Robinson, and Gabriel Gomez.
Gomez was promoted to third after his teammate Maxim Rehm was disqualified for running brakes against the series’ homologation rules. Incredibly, with 69 points scored in the first round, Gomez now found himself 33 points clear of the chasing pack after just one round in the championship.
The momentum for Gomez didn’t stop there. At the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, he won the first race ahead of Leo Robinson and Rehm. His streak of podiums continued in the second race, finishing third behind Rehm and Robinson. For Rehm, it was a statement victory that proved he had not been shaken by the technical disqualification at Portimão.
Leo Robinson finally secured his first win of the season in the third race at Valencia, while Gomez and Maksimilian Popov finished behind. Kabir Anurag crossed the line in fourth place, matching his finishing result in the first two races of the weekend. The US Racing driver had still never finished on the podium in the Formula Winter Series, but that was about to change…
Aragon: Jubilation and drama in the desert
After a fairly even weekend between Gomez and Robinson in Barcelona, the championship margin was at 34 points in Gomez’s favour. After a tricky weekend in Valencia with no top-five finishes, Fionn McLaughlin had slipped to fourth behind Maksimilian Popov, and some 83 points behind Gomez.
The first race of the Motorland Aragon weekend saw a new winner emerge in the Formula Winter Series, as US Racing’s Kabir Anurag claimed his first victory in the category. Sporting an updated race suit from his Alpine Academy team, Anurag celebrated atop his car after finally claiming his first win in FWS. Gomez continued his 100 per cent podium record with a second-place finish, while Fionn McLaughlin took third.
The second race began a dominant Sunday for Fionn McLaughlin, as he secured the win ahead of Anurag following a late-race safety car. Gomez finished third once more. And, while the wet conditions of Sunday morning made race two a compelling spectacle, the third race proved to be something unlike any Formula Winter Series race before it.
The circuit had all but dried out as the cars arrived to the grid, and only one driver – Renauer Motorsport’s Simon Schranz – had wet tyres on his car. The rest of the field was on slicks, and as the formation lap began, the rain started to fall.
Jenzer Motorsport’s Artem Severiukhin and Bart Harrison peeled into the pits for wet tyres, as the race began.
Schranz started from 20th on the grid, but such was his advantage that he crossed the line at the end of lap two as the race leader. Alas, a half-spin at the first corner demoted him behind Bart Harrison, who had stormed up from his pitlane start. Harrison led the way, and looked like the favourite for victory as some struggled on slicks, and others pitted for wets.
However, as the race passed half-distance, the circuit began to dry out, and slick-shod runners began to rediscover their pace.
And, in these tricky conditions, It was once again Fionn McLaughlin who came to the fore, ultimately winning by six seconds after staying on slicks for the entire race. Maxim Rehm came home second, while Gabriel Gomez rounded out the podium.
Harrison finished sixth, while Simon Schranz took his first FWS points in eighth.
Barcelona: A hard path to glory for Gomez
With a 68-point advantage going into the final round, the perennially consistent Gomez was the heavy favourite to win the championship.
However, as the first race of the weekend began, Gomes failed to get off the line. Thankfully, all parties avoided the Brazilian racer, but he would not be able to take part in the race. Leo Robinson and Fionn McLaughlin – the two drivers still in mathematical championship contention – finished one-two in the race, with Robinson securing the victory.
On Sunday morning in race two, the pair of Hitech drivers again swept the race standings. However, Gomez only needed to score four points to secure the title. In the second race, he finished fifth, behind Jenzer’s Bart Harrison and Artem Severiukhin. This was enough to secure the championship a race in advance, and cement him as the third driver to win the Formula Winter Series title.
The third and final race was a complex affair. A lightning-fast start from second row starter Thomas Bearman (Hitech) granted him an early lead. However, this was soon revealed to have been a jump start, and a five-second time penalty was applied to his race result.
The young British driver’s lead ran as high as 3.5 seconds, but ultimately he was unable to build the cushion required to negate the penalty.
Running in second at the line, Bart Harrison celebrated his presumed win, but a last-minute track limits violation meant he was penalised after the chequered flag. This promoted the driver that crossed the line third – Kabir Anurag – to P1, a fact that not even he was aware of in the moments immediately following the chequered flag. The jubilation set in for Anurag as he realised his achievement, winning a thrilling race where he moved up from eighth. Bearman and Harrison completed the podium, but the latter driver was bitterly disappointed, as he found out he lost at the same time as Anurag learnt of his victory.
The 2025 Formula Winter Series season was the most thrilling in the short history of the championship. With a winning formula now in place to bring Europe’s finest single-seater teams to the grid, and many of them already an established part of the FWS paddock, the 2026 season is expected to be yet another barnstormer.
Congratulations to the champions – Gabriel Gomez and US Racing – and all drivers and teams for a brilliant season of racing.
