The 2026 season may still feel distant, but for many teams across the junior single-seater ladder, planning is already well underway. Trident Motorsport is no exception. After a mixed but eventful 2025 campaign across Formula 3, Formula 2, and FRECA, the Italians now turn their attention toward rebuilding momentum and converting potential into results.
Founded in 2006, Trident’s presence in the paddock is rooted in the vision of Maurizio Salvadori, who helped to bring the team from GP2 origins into a permanent fixture of FIA junior racing. Nearly two decades on, Trident remains a key stepping stone for young talent. Therefore, 2026 feels particularly significant for them, as the team looks to rebound from a difficult Formula 2 season.
A Solid Foundation
Since entering the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine in 2022, Trident has steadily established itself as a frontrunner. The FRECA format—built around two races per weekend with separate qualifying sessions—has suited the team’s structured approach, allowing drivers to log significant mileage while sharpening racecraft under pressure.
That consistency paid off in higher categories in 2025. With Rafael Câmara leading the charge, Trident clinched the Formula 3 Drivers’ Championship and finished as vice team champions, just 11 points behind Campos Racing. It was a campaign that underlined Trident’s ability to nurture championship-calibre drivers, even if ultimate team honours narrowly slipped away.
New Faces, New Expectations
All three of Trident’s Formula 3 drivers for 2026 represent a blend of raw talent, pedigree and long-term investment. One of them already knows the team well, while the other two arrive with growing reputations and clear ambitions.
Freddie Slater
At just 17 years old, the British driver is already regarded as one of the most exciting prospects in European single-seaters. After beginning karting at seven and collecting European Championship victories, Slater made an early switch into sports car racing before committing fully to single-seaters. His 2024 campaign was nothing short of extraordinary: a record-breaking season in Italian Formula 4 alongside the F4 UAE title.
In 2025, Slater stepped up to Formula Regional, winning the European Championship and finishing runner-up in the Middle East. His Formula 3 debut showed immediate promise—qualifying tenth in Sakhir and finishing second in the reverse-grid sprint with AIX Racing, before another appearance at Spa with Hitech TGR. Now with Trident full-time, expectations are understandably high.
Matteo De Palo
The Italian driver is very much a Trident success story. Promoted from FRECA, De Palo enters Formula 3 off the back of a standout 2025 season in which he finished runner-up in the championship with the team. At 18, and now a member of the McLaren Driver Development Programme, his trajectory is sharply upward.
De Palo’s car racing journey began in the 2023 Formula Winter Series, where he won on debut and claimed two pole positions. A busy year across Spanish, Italian and British Formula 4 followed, with his strongest results coming in Spain. For him most notably was a victory at Spa and fifth overall in the standings. Trident’s decision to promote him reflects both continuity and confidence in his long-term potential.
Noah Strømsted
Another 18-year-old, the Danish driver brings a mix of experience and momentum into his first full Formula 3 season. Strømsted began his career in Danish Formula 4 in 2021, finishing runner-up, before two campaigns in Spanish F4. His rookie FRECA season in 2024 yielded sixth overall and multiple podiums, an impressive return in a fiercely competitive field.
He made his Formula 3 debut at the Monza finale with Campos Racing, then signed with Trident for 2025. Now part of the Mercedes Junior Team since March 2025, Strømsted has already tasted victory in Formula 3 and will be keen to establish himself as a consistent front-runner.
Rebuilding in Formula 2
If Formula 3 was a high point, Formula 2 was undeniably the opposite. Trident endured a difficult 2025 season, finishing last in the teams’ standings. A result that has clearly shaped its approach to 2026. With two new drivers and a reset mindset, the focus is firmly on progress rather than immediate miracles.
John Bennett
At 22, Bennett enters his second Formula 2 season with something to prove. His path to the category has been unconventional: runner-up in the 2021 Ginetta GT5 Challenge and champion of the 2024 GB3 Championship with JHR Developments, he skipped a full Formula 3 campaign entirely.
After a post-season Formula 3 test with Van Amersfoort Racing, Bennett jumped straight into Formula 2 for the final two rounds of 2024, replacing Enzo Fittipaldi and scoring points on debut. He stayed with Van Amersfoort Racing for the full 2025 season, becoming the first driver to move directly from GB3 to F2. He finished 22nd in the standings in his rookie season. His switch to Trident for 2026 offers a fresh start and a chance to translate his adaptability into results.
Laurens van Hoepen
The Dutch driver arrives with familiarity on his side. Van Hoepen competed in FRECA with ART Grand Prix in 2022 and 2023 before spending two seasons in Formula 3 with the French team. He finished 13th in the 2024 standings, often overshadowed by more experienced teammates but steadily building racecraft.
His career with Trident began late in 2025, when he stepped up to Formula 2 for the Baku round and continued through the final two races of the season. Now 20, van Hoepen secures a full-time seat for 2026, giving Trident a driver who may already understand the team’s working methods and expectations.
A Pivotal Year Ahead
As attention shifts toward 2026, Trident Motorsport stands at a crossroads. Its recent Formula 3 success, producing the last three F3 Drivers’Champions, proves the team’s developmental strength, while offering an exciting mix of youth, pedigree and manufacturer-backed talent.
Formula 2, meanwhile, represents the biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity. If Trident can translate its regional dominance into the upper tiers and stabilise its Formula 2 programme, 2026 could mark the beginning of a resurgence. The ingredients are there; now it’s about execution.
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