UAE's Rashid Al Dhaheri relishes historic Formula 3 chance: 'Next year will be something amazing'

Rashid Al Dhaheri says he can't wait to represent the UAE as part of the FIA Formula 3 Championship next season after signing with Dutch team Van Amersfoort Racing.

No Emirati has ever reached this level of motorsport before, and Al Dhaheri told The National that joining the F3 grid would be a “proud moment” and that the 2027 season could be “something amazing”.

Formula 3 is the third tier of motorsport behind Formula One and Formula Two and races alongside F1 at 10 of the Grand Prix weekends.

Van Amersfoort Racing is a respected name in the sport and is famed for nurturing young talent such as F1 superstars Charles Leclerc and four-time world champion Max Verstappen.

As a UAE national competing in F3, Al Dhaheri is breaking new ground – something the 18-year-old is ready to take in his stride.

“It’s not necessarily a pressure, but an opportunity. And for me, it’s just great emotion to be part of this championship,” he said.

“Representing the UAE is always, for me, a proud moment, and the objective is to do it in the best way possible, so we'll have quite a lot of work to do.”

Al Dhaheri finished fourth in the 2026 FIA Formula Regional European Championship, the category directly below Formula 3.

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Driving for French team R-ace GP, he won three races, took eight podiums and managed a fastest lap. He was in contention for the title until the final round. He said it was a rollercoaster of a season.

“I would say it was obviously quite a step in the journey,” said Al Dhaheri.

“I think a lot of highs, a lot of downs, but definitely a lot of things that I learnt from. I guess it’s just part of the journey. But at the end of the day, I think we can be really happy about the season. We’ve done a lot of great steps, a lot of great improvements, and I can’t wait to get going with the second part of the journey.”

At the opening round in Austria in April, he started the second race from 11th and charged up the field, passing the pole-sitter on the penultimate lap.

He became the first Emirati to win a race in the championship when the driver who crossed the line first was penalised for a false start.

“There was a whole build-up during the pre-season and being able to win already from the first round, that was something incredible and a great satisfaction and demonstration that the work that we did was right and we just needed to keep going,” he said.

Two podiums at Spa in May made him the first Emirati to lead an FIA championship. He won again at Monza in June despite starting from P8. He won pole and converted it at the Hungaroring in July to go 21 points clear after Round 5.

Having demonstrated his strength in recovery drives, he admitted overtaking his way up the grid was perhaps more enjoyable than winning from the front.

“It was really fun because the last one, in Hungaroring, I started from pole and, relative to the other races, it was kind of boring,” he said.

The second half of the season was harder. First-lap contact in the opening races at Marseille's Paul Ricard Circuit in July and at Imola in September left him without points in both races, and he relinquished his lead in the standings. His teammate Emanuele Olivieri went on to win the title, with Al Dhaheri finishing fourth.

But those weekends have served to help Al Dhaheri better understand what is required to manage a title challenge.

“I think a championship is always tricky to manage because when you're there, you always want to go for the best result possible and then when you finish off the season and you know all the results, then you can think about the ifs and buts,” he said.

He stands by the decisions he made in France and Italy, insisting “the intention was the right one”.

He added: “Of course you learn from the experiences. You learn that if you’re fighting for a championship, there’s certain risks that you can take and some that you can’t. But I think it's all part of the journey.”

A Mercedes junior driver since 2025, Al Dhaheri explained that the German marque played an important role in his move to Van Amersfoort.

He said: “Of course, when you’re going to a new championship, it’s quite a big decision to be part of a strong team. I think from Mercedes’ side, they really helped out with making the right decision. From my side, I trusted in Mercedes' judgment and I think so far, it’s going quite well. I’m happy about the environment.”

Al Dhaheri revealed the deal was agreed while the 2026 season was still under way and that it was a proud moment. “Once it was done, it was like, 'OK, next year will be something amazing'. It was still during the season, so we still had a lot of work to do,” he explained. “I think the true satisfaction will come next year when I'll be able to drive on the tracks and to compete and to raise that flag.”

A Formula 3 weekend has only one practice session before qualifying, which sets the grid for the main Sunday race. Al Dhaheri said he will be focused on adapting before the new season kicks off in Bahrain in March 2027.

“It will be key to figure out the tracks, learn as much as possible remotely. A lot of sim work, a lot of analysis. But at the same time, it’s super key to actually execute on track, because you have one lap,” he said.

Al Dhaheri is especially excited to be returning to the Middle East to race in Bahrain and Jeddah, while the last race in Istanbul also caught his eye, calling it “a really cool track”.

In terms of ambitions for next year, Al Dhaheri said he always targets a win, “but I think the main thing is to grow and to develop as a driver.”

He tempered expectations when asked if he can pull off something special. “I think it’s possible, but it’s really early. There’s still a lot of practices to go. We just finished the official test, so we have a picture, but not the full picture. But I think it’s possible.”

Asked if he was just being diplomatic? The 18-year-old smiled and said: “I don’t want to jinx it.”