The Macau Grand Prix’s main event delivered a dramatic finish, as France’s Théophile Naël surged from third to first in the closing laps to win the FIA FR World Cup, capping off a wild 15-lap race that saw multiple lead changes, several safety cars, and heartbreak for pre-race favourite Freddie Slater.
The Briton, who dominated Saturday’s qualification race, started from pole for SJM Theodore Prema Racing and led the early stages with confidence — but the Guia Circuit had other plans.
Boya grabs the early lead as chaos erupts behind
At lights out, Spain’s Mari Boya launched perfectly from second, sweeping past Slater before Lisboa. Naël also challenged Slater for position, forcing the Briton to defend hard as the field streamed through the opening corners.
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But the race immediately turned chaotic. Four cars collided on the narrow climb through San Francisco Hill, triggering the first safety car with 14 laps still to go. At the restart, Slater struck back — using the slipstream down the straight to retake the lead from Boya with a decisive move into Lisboa.
Behind the front pair, Enzo Deligny and Naël battled for third, running nose-to-tail and brushing the walls more than once as they fought for track position.
Slater pulls away until the race turns on its head
Once back in clean air, Slater looked untouchable. He pulled out a one-second advantage, then stretched it to two, then three, leaving Boya out of slipstream range. With ten laps remaining, the Briton appeared to be cruising toward Macao glory.
But everything changed when Oscar Wurz crashed at Lisboa, bringing out another safety car and erasing Slater’s lead. The reset transformed the race and opened the door for the drama to come.
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When racing resumed with five laps left, Boya immediately attacked. The crowd roared as the Spaniard slipstreamed past Slater into Lisboa, retaking first place. Moments later, the defining moment of the race struck, as Slater clipped the wall at Fisherman’s Bend, breaking his suspension and ending his race on the spot. The driver who led almost every lap was suddenly out.
Naël seizes the moment in breathtaking finale
With Slater gone, Boya led from Deligny and Naël — but the restart with just two laps remaining completely reshuffled the order. As Boya and Deligny focused on each other in Lisboa, Naël made a brilliant double overtake, slipping past both to grab the lead at the most crucial moment.
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Seconds later, another crash brought out the safety car — this time Rashid Al Dhaheri at Mandarin Bend — freezing the order and guaranteeing Naël the biggest victory of his young career.
A dramatic podium and a tough day for Macao
The race ended, fittingly, under the safety car — a familiar sight this weekend — with Théophile Naël taking an unforgettable win. Mari Boya finished second after leading large portions of the race, and Enzo Deligny completed the podium with a superb defensive drive.
Local hero Charles Leong endured a difficult afternoon, finishing 22nd after being caught up in incidents earlier in the race.
A classic Macau Grand Prix finish
In a weekend filled with unpredictable moments, the FIA FR World Cup once again delivered a finale worthy of the Macau Grand Prix’s reputation — high stakes, high drama, and a winner who kept his nerve when it mattered most.
Naël’s triumph adds a new name to the Guia Circuit’s history books and ends the 72nd Macau Grand Prix with a finale that fans will remember for years.
