After sustaining a back injury earlier in the season, Brad Benavides has confirmed he won’t be returning for the final rounds of the 2026 F3 season, with Ricardo Escotto taking his place at AIX racing.
A severe injury for Benavides
After a first-lap crash back in Monaco, Benavides suffered a broken vertebra, which saw him taken to hospital. He was subsequently absent from the following rounds while he worked on his recovery, and although he hoped to return by the end of the season, that hasn’t been possible.
Racing with the team for two seasons, AIX released a statement regarding the American driver’s recovery. Kenny Kirwan, FIA Formula 3 Team Manager at AIX Racing said:
“On behalf of everyone at AIX Racing, I would like to sincerely thank Brad for his valuable contribution to the team over the past two seasons. He has been a committed and professional member of our family, and we greatly appreciate the effort, dedication and positive attitude he has brought to the team throughout our time together.
“We wish Brad every success in his future racing career and, equally importantly, in all of his personal endeavours. He leaves AIX Racing with our sincere thanks and very best wishes for the future.”
Escotto steps up
Ricardo Escotto will step up and replace Benavides in Monza and Madrid after filling in for the American driver in Barcelona, Silverstone and Spa. He managed a best finish of 22nd in both the Barcelona and the Spa Sprint Races.
Kirwan said that they were looking forward to having Escotto in a permanent role for the final two rounds.
“We’re delighted to welcome Ricardo back to the team for the remaining rounds of the FIA Formula 3 Championship. Ricardo has made significant progress throughout the season, and we’ve seen first-hand how much work and commitment he has put in to continue developing as a driver.
“A lot of that progression has come through the hard work he has been doing behind the scenes, away from the spotlight, with the engineers and the wider team. His attitude, professionalism and determination have been excellent, and he has continued to push himself and the team forward. We’re looking forward to seeing him back in the car and building on that progress together through the final rounds of the championship.”
Madrid will be a change for the drivers with two feature races instead of the usual sprint-feature schedule. It will give Escotto a chance to pick up points and impress teams enough to earn a seat on the 2027 grid.
READ MORE: Louis Sharp leaves PREMA as Alex Powell steps in for the last rounds of Formula 3
Discussion about this post