Academy Report: Sandro, Sasha and our karting trio in action across Europe
F3 at the Hungaroring, Italian F4 at Mugello, and Champions of the Future karting in Kristianstad
Published
27 JUL 2026
Est. reading time
4 min
It was a busy weekend across Europe for the Atlassian Williams F1 Team Driver Academy, with five drivers in action across three different championships. Here's how they got on.
Alessandro Giusti
Formula 3 | Round 7 - Budapest
A frustrating Budapest for Sandro, though not one without encouragement tucked inside it. Practice was difficult but qualifying told a more encouraging story: P13, just 0.336 seconds off pole in a field of this quality, suggesting the car had genuine pace when it was working.
That made the races all the more painful. The car had a problem with the front that the team couldn't resolve. A P13 finish in the Sprint, whilst the Feature, where Sandro was pushed out of position in the opening stages to slip back to P17, unable to fight back through. He said on Instagram the car felt fast all weekend but the front issue was something they simply couldn't fix.
F3 returns at Monza in September, and Sandro will be looking to start that final stretch with a clean slate and a car that matches what his lap times suggest is possible.
Oleksandr Bondarev
Italian F4 | Round 4 - Mugello
After a difficult Practice 1 as he found his feet at Mugello, Sasha turned the weekend on its head by going fastest in Practice 2 – a statement of intent.
Race 2 delivered a P4 from P5 on the grid, and Race 3 produced his best result of the weekend: a podium. Race 4 brought a further P4, his third top-five in three races, and a run of results that reflects growing confidence and composure in race situations.
Mugello marks another step in the right direction in what has been a noticeably more consistent 2026 Italian F4 campaign. He sits P8 in the standings with 135 points, and he’ll return to Italian F4 action at Imola in September, the site of his first win in the series last year.
New arrivals:
Albon
Alex Albon 100th Race Tee
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Sainz
Carlos Sainz Water Bottle
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2026 Lifestyle Traditional Cord Cap
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2026 Lifestyle Traditional Trucker Cap
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2026 Lifestyle Seasonal Trucker Cap
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2026 Essentials Cap 9FORTY
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Dean Hoogendoorn
Champions of the Future | Round 4 – Kristianstad, OK Class
A weekend defined by a qualifying classification that didn't reflect Dean's true pace, alongside penalties which saw a remarkable recovery fall away. After P4 in free practice suggested real front-running potential at the Asum Ring, a difficult qualifying heats sequence left him classified P27
He immediately set about bridging the gap back to the front. Super heat 1 saw Dean gain five places to P9, and he continued fighting through to the final, where he crossed the line in P2 on the road – an extraordinary comeback drive. Time penalties, however, dropped him to P14 in the final classification.
He sits P7 in the championship on 168 points. Attention now turns to this weekend's FIA Karting European Championships, also at Kristianstad, where Dean will be looking to carry that race-pace into cleaner, penalty-free results.
Will Green
Champions of the Future | Round 4 – Kristianstad, Junior Class
Will was the class of the field in free practice, topping the timing sheets in the Junior category. The qualifying heats were trickier, a P9 classification reflecting the relentless competition of the Junior grid at Kristianstad, but he bounced back in the super heat and carried that form into the final, where a P5 finish added valuable points to his championship tally.
He now sits P2 in the championship on 236 points, just 18 points behind the leader with one round remaining, and that margin means the title is absolutely still in play.
Speaking of titles, Will is on the brink of being crowned FIA Karting European Championships this weekend, with the final round being held in Kristianstad.
Lucas Palaico
Champions of the Future | Round 4 – Kristianstad, Junior Class
A weekend that illustrated both the challenge and the resilience Lucas is developing. Free practice placed him deep in the field at P57, but like Dean in the OK class, he refused to let the session define his weekend. A P3 in super heat 2, gaining four places, was a strong response, and he continued to work his way forward to reach the final from P10 on the grid.
A time penalty on the road dropped him from P10 to P15 in the final classification, adding to the frustrations of a tough round. He sits P13 in the Junior standings on 93 points. Like Dean and Will, Lucas now heads directly into this weekend's FIA Karting European Championships at Kristianstad.
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