While Ugochukwu celebrated his Melbourne victory and Campos Racing led both championships, one of their three full-time drivers watched the races from the sidelines. Ernesto Rivera, the 17 year old Mexican rookie backed by the Red Bull Junior Team, couldn’t turn a single competitive lap in round one. And the reason is a story of determination that deserves to be told.
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The crash that changed everything
It happened on January 31st in New Zealand, during the final round of the Formula Regional Oceania Championship. Rivera suffered a serious back injury in a crash right in the final phase of his pre-season preparation. He had already secured a pole position and a podium in Oceania before the incident, but was forced to abandon the final two races of that campaign.
The injury kept him out of pre-season testing in Barcelona where Campos prepared the car setup with Ugochukwu and Naël without their third driver and ultimately out of the Melbourne opener, where Patrick Heuzenroeder took his seat.
Three hours of physio every day
This week, in statements published on the official F3 website, Rivera spoke honestly about the hardest weeks of his young career. He returned to Mexico to be treated by his personal doctor and followed an intensive rehabilitation programme three hours of physiotherapy daily, gym work, swimming, stationary bike everything his body allowed, without forcing the recovery.
“I feel much better now. It’s been a tough couple of weeks not being able to race, but every day I’ve been getting a little bit better,” the driver said. “I was sitting on the couch watching Netflix, watching everyone race.” The honesty of someone who knows exactly what he is missing.
Away from the circuit, Rivera used his time intelligently analysing his teammates’ data, studying Melbourne qualifying, understanding common mistakes in the first practice sessions and watching how Naël executed his final lap under maximum pressure. Invisible work that could make the difference when he finally gets in the car.
The Bahrain cancellation: the unexpected gift
The Middle East war that damaged so much of the F1 and junior calendars gave Rivera an unexpected gift. The second round in Bahrain which would have been his first opportunity to debut had he recovered in time was cancelled. That means the next round is Monaco, June 4-7. Almost three extra months of recovery time.
According to sources close to the driver and reports published by Sopitas and MotorTime this week, Rivera is targeting Monaco as his debut date. The simulator, the gym and mental preparation will be his routine until then.
What is at stake in Monaco
Debuting in Monaco is far from ideal for an F3 rookie who has yet to race the car in real competitive conditions. The Principality is the most demanding circuit on the calendar narrow, zero margin for error, no way to recover if qualifying goes wrong. But Rivera has no other option, and the driver who won at Monza and Spa in Eurocup-3 has proven that difficult circuits don’t frighten him.
With Ugochukwu leading the championship and Campos Racing first in Teams, the squad has the best car in the field right now. If Rivera arrives at Monaco at 100%, he could surprise more than a few people on debut.
Rivera’s season hasn’t started yet. And yet it is already one of the most compelling stories in F3 2026.
Sources: FIA Formula 3 official, Pit Debrief, Campos Racing official, MotorTime, Sopitas, FIA Formula 3 X official
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