No fewer than 22 drivers with GB3 race experience will be in action at Melbourne’s Albert Park circuit this weekend, as the new Formula 1 season gets underway, plus support categories Formula 2 and Formula 3.
Here’s who to keep an eye on this weekend and beyond.
Formula 1
Lando Norris (multiple 2016 BRDC British F3 race winner)
The newly crowned Formula 1 champion defends his crown with McLaren and pre-season testing suggests Norris should be in the mix again this year. Norris contested a partial BRDC British F3 campaign with Carlin in 2016, and won four times. After claiming the McLaren Autosport BRDC Award in the same year, his rise remained meteoric as he claimed the 2017 FIA European F3 title in 2017 and was F2 runner-up the following year. After amassing dozens of F1 podiums, his first win came in 2024, and now has 11 victories to his name, including seven last year as he wrapped up the title.
George Russell (2014 BRDC F4 champion)
For many, Russell enters the new F1 season as the pre-season favourite. His Mercedes AMG Petronas team looks to have mastered the complex new regulations, and Russell has been a figure at the top of the timesheets throughout pre-season. Russell’s first ever car race wins came in 2014 as he secured the BRDC F4 Championship with Lanan Racing, and won the McLaren Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year prize shortly afterwards. Titles in GP3 (2017) and F2 (2018) followed, before stepping up to F1 with Williams. Following the move to Mercedes in 2022, he’s won five races and earned a total of 24 podiums.
Ollie Bearman (2021 GB3 race winner)
Bearman is one of the youngest drivers on the F1 grid, but had an accomplished full debut year with Haas in 2025, and established himself as the lead driver for the American squad. Ahead of the new campaign, pre-season testing has pointed towards Haas being a key player at the front of the midfield pack, so Bearman will be looking to improve on a best finish of fourth last year. Bearman completed a partial GB3 campaign with Fortec in 2021, winning a race at Snetterton and taking three other podiums. Signed up as a Ferrari junior shortly afterwards, he claimed more wins in F3 and F2 with Prema, before making his F1 race debut in 2024, as a last minute replacement for an unwell Carlos Sainz at Ferrari for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Formula 2
Colton Herta
IndyCar convert Herta competed in six BRDC British F3 races in 2016 with Carlin. A race winner at Brands Hatch, he stepped up to Indy Lights a year later, and made his IndyCar debut at the end of the year. A regular IndyCar winner since then, he switches to F2 with Hitech in the quest for Superlicence Points, to make him F1 eligible.
Alex Dunne
The 2023 GB3 runner-up is back for a second F2 campaign with Rodin, having impressed massively last year. He could well have taken the title last year, but lots big points scores, mainly through no fault of his own. Having impressed the F1 paddock with a stunning FP1 appearance in Austria last year, Dunne has switched to the Alpine Academy for 2026.
Kush Maini
The 2020 BRDC British F3 runner-up is as experienced as they come in F2, with this being his fourth campaign at this level. He will race for ART Grand Prix, while remaining with the Alpine Academy, and targeting more wins to add to the two already secured in F1’s prime feeder category.
John Bennett
Having finished as GB3 runner-up in 2024, Bennett became the first driver to jump straight to F2, and scored points last year. Switching to Italian squad Trident, Bennett was inside the top-five in pre-season testing, and also played a key part in the development of the 2026 GB3 upgrade package.
Nico Varrone
Having won a BRDC British F3 race in 2019 with Hillspeed, and a top-10 contender with Chris Dittmann Racing the following year, the Argentinean driver prioritised sports cars afterwards, and is a Le Mans class winner. A shock move to F2 with Van Amersfoort Racing marks his single-seater return.
Roman Bilinksi
The Polish-British ace joined BRDC British F3 mid-way through the 2021 season and won three races on his way to seventh in the final standings with Arden. Having progressed through Formula Regional, he was an F3 race winner in 2025 and joins DAMS Lucas Oil for his F2 graduation this year.
Cian Shields
Having won a GB3 race in 2022, Scotsman Shields was Euroformula Open runner-up in 2023, before making his F3 debut and F2 debut in 2025. A full F2 campaign was his main programme last year, and he also enjoyed an FP1 run with Aston Martin at Yas Marina. He remains with AIX Racing for a second year.
Martinius Stenshorne joins Dunne at Rodin Motorsport – the Norwegian driver contested one GB3 event at Silverstone in 2024.
Formula 3
Louis Sharp
The Kiwi driver followed up his British F4 title with the GB3 crown a year after, with a superb performance in 2024. He stepped up to F3 last year and scored points, and switches to Prema for his second season, with high expectations.
Freddie Slater
Young Brit Slater was one of the standout drivers in last year’s GB3 Championship, claiming three wins from nine races, including a last to first epic at Spa-Francorchamps on a drying track. He’s been on the pace with Trident and is expected to challenge for the title.
Ugo Ugochukwu
After scoring podiums in a partial GB3 campaign in 2024, the American driver enjoyed a competitive F3 campaign last year and was on the podium twice. He should be a regular front-runner in 2026 based on pre-season testing times.
Kanato Le
Like Slater, a GB3 race winner in a partial campaign last year, the Japanese driver makes the F3 step up with ART Grand Prix. Flashes of pace pre-season suggests he’ll be in the mix during the coming season ahead.
Hiyu Yamakoshi
The third of Hillspeed’s part-timers from 2025 to make the step up, the Japanese driver has shown strong pace in every single-seater category he’s raced in. Racing with Van Amersfoort Racing, he’ll be looking to gain experience, especially with the team’s appointment of ex-F1 Team Principal Otmar Szafnauer.
Patrick Heuzenroeder
The Aussie was last year’s GB3 runner-up, and after a superb campaign will move on to Eurocup-3 this year. However he sampled F3 machinery for the first time in pre-season testing at Barcelona as an injury replacement, and was right on the pace. He has been called up to race in Melbourne in front of his home crowd as Ernesto Rivera continues his recovery.
Gerrard Xie
Having claimed wins in GB3, Chinese driver Xie stepped up to F3 last year with Hitech and built valuable experience throughout the campaign. He moves to DAMS Lucas Oil for his second season, and will look to put that knowledge to good use.
Jose Garfias
The Mexican driver’s first experience of European racing came in GB3 in 2021, and he gained further experience across the continent in the years after. His raced in F3 on two occasions last year, and will have a full season with Prema in 2026.
Michael Shin
The GB3 podium finisher has built up his experience since a sole year in GB3 in 2023 with Hitech, which was also when he raced in F3 for the first time across six races. This year marks his first full-time drive in the F1 paddock.
James Wharton and Yevan David are also drivers with GB3 experience on this year’s F3 grid. Wharton competed at both Silverstone events in 2024, while David raced at the same circuit last year.
Image credits: Steve Hindle & Mercedes