Game of Formulas: FIA and Spanish Federation Clash over a New Junior Championship
Spain is set to launch Eurocup-5 in 2027, a Formula 5-style series managed by EPIC Championships, the company behind Spanish F4 and Eurocup-3. The series is intended to become part of the Spanish racing ecosystem, with events scheduled alongside F4 Spain and some Eurocup-3 weekends. As the Real Federación Española de Automovilismo (RFEDA) puts it, the series aims to give young drivers their first taste of a professional paddock environment and serve as a bridge between karting and FIA-sanctioned Formula racing.
The championship will use specifically developed ADESS AD27 cars built by Portugal-based race car engineering company ADESS AG, headed by former F1 engineer Stéphane Chosse. Designed as an entry point into single-seater racing, the cars are comparable in size and weight to FIA Formula 4 machinery but use a less powerful 145 hp turbocharged engine.
The idea is aimed at reducing costs, providing equal opportunities, and better preparing young drivers for Formula racing. EPIC Championships CEO Marco Rodríguez said Eurocup-5 was created in response to “growing demand from young drivers aged 14 and above who wanted to begin driving single-seaters before reaching Formula 4,” as many lacked “a structured pathway” between karting and Formula racing. The championship, comprising five race weekends with two 25-minute races each and five official test days, was unveiled in July 2026, but the FIA is reportedly less enthusiastic about the initiative.
The main issue underlying the dispute is E5’s potential as a competitor to the FIA’s driver development pathway. Under E5 regulations, participants can continue karting but are prohibited from entering other Formula championships or conducting private single-seater testing, with RFEDA arguing that the restriction ensures a more level playing field based on skill rather than testing budgets.
Moreover, a strict age limit applies: drivers must have turned 14 before the season’s first round and must not turn 16 before the final round. Competing in Formula cars from the age of 14 has recently become increasingly common, but this is at odds with FIA regulations. The FIA appears particularly concerned about attempts to circumvent the “Verstappen rule” introduced after Max Verstappen’s F1 debut at 17 in 2015, which established an 18-year-old minimum age requirement for the championship and similar restrictions at lower levels. Meanwhile, national federations seek to identify young talent earlier. Formula Regional Oceania already serves a similar preparatory role, but it uses different machinery, holds FIA status, and remains a short winter endeavour rather than a fully-fledged championship like E5.
E5 seems financially attractive, too, with the participation budget expected to be capped at EUR 150,000 and the champion receiving a EUR 100,000 grant to enter FIA-certified Spanish F4. The top junior driver in the 2026 Hyundai Spanish Karting Championship will also get a EUR 42,000 scholarship to support their move to E5.
Interest in the new championship is already showing in its inaugural entry list. RFEDA president Manuel Aviñó claims that “all 30 available entries were filled in just a few days,” seeing it as evidence of demand. Eight teams are set to compete across five rounds at MotorLand Aragón, Portimão (Portugal), Jerez, Navarra, and Barcelona-Catalunya – circuits that regularly host major international championships such as Formula 1, MotoGP, and endurance racing. Spanish entrants include Drivex Team, already competing in Spanish F4 and Eurocup-3; Palou Motorsport, founded by four-time IndyCar champion Álex Palou and active in Eurocup-3; and Tecnicar by Amtog, another regular in those series. International participants comprise Portugal’s Speedy Motorsport with experience in GT and touring car racing, Monaco-based DXR Formula Team, well-established British single-seater team Hitech, and UK-based Elite Motorsport, known in junior and GT categories. Morocco’s IM4 by AGS Racing has announced plans to enter four cars, the maximum permitted per team, marking another step in its driver development programme following the 2025 launch of the IM4 Cup – Africa’s first F4-style championship.
The reported tensions between the FIA and RFEDA are also believed to have influenced the FIA’s decision to move this year’s FIA Karting World Championship for OK and Junior categories from Bahrain International Karting Circuit (BIKC) in Sakhir to Italy’s World Circuit La Conca instead of Spain.
The FIA has long faced the challenge of creating a European alternative for drivers who fall short of Formula 1. Many talented drivers reach F3 and F2 only to miss out on F1, while others struggle to remain there due to a lack of major sponsorship. A European championship could provide an alternative, but it would need to be financially viable. Sponsors and drivers would still be more likely to move towards GT and prototype racing, Formula E, Super Formula, or IndyCar rather than an unproven series. Previous attempts have largely failed for comparable reasons. Europe already hosts numerous open- and closed-wheel championships. A new regional series would either divert resources or become financially unsustainable. With motorsport’s growing popularity, the concept is attractive in principle, but available funding remains limited.
For now, the question is whether Spanish E5 will become a viable solution to the challenges facing young drivers or another short-lived attempt to reshape the junior ladder. RFEDA and EPIC emphasise that the championship is not intended to replace karting or compete with the FIA pathway, but to provide structure to a transition already taking place informally. Rodríguez stressed that “karting remains the best school for any racing driver, and our objective has never been to replace it, but to complement it.” Much will depend on E5’s ability to coexist with FIA regulations.