2026 Atlantic Championship

The 2026 Atlantic Championship Series season is the thirteenth season of the revived Atlantic Championship. The series is organized by Formula Race Promotions and sanctioned by SCCA Pro Racing.

The season will be held over seven weekends from January to October 2026. K-Hill Motorsports driver Harbir Dass won the 016 Class championship title with three races to spare.

Drivers and teams Drivers compete in two classes, after the USF Juniors class that was established in 2025 received no entries: The 016 Class is only open to Swift 016a cars, while the Open Class serves all other eligible entries. All teams and drivers are American-registered. TeamNo.DriverCarRounds016 Class entriesDrivenTires.com8 Ryan Saari2006 Swift 0162, 5 Vaughn Glace4K-Hill Motorsports06 Harbir Dass2006 Swift 0163–691–274 Dudley Fleck2006 Swift 016 Mazda2–3Zober Industries Inc.66 Richard Zober2006 Swift 016 Mazda4MotoNomaddicts68 John McAleer2006 Swift 0161–3Open Class entriesArrive Drive Motorsports3 Drew Holtgraewe2018 JDR F10005–6 Dustin Hodges2018 JDR F1000607 Austin Holtgraewe2025 JDR F1000533 Ayrton Houk2018 JDR F1000139 Tim Pierce2012 JDR F10001 Pierce Krone5K-Hill Motorsports4 Jean-Luc Liverato2007 Dallara IPS106 Bruce Hamilton2001 Swift 014 MZR1, 532 Kirk Kindsfater2002 Swift 014.a4Forty 48 Competition46 James French2001 Swift 014/CSR1, 371 Jeffrey Antonelli2006 Star Pro Mazda3Vardis Motorsports00 Nicho Vardis2013 JDR F10002–4Team Tonis 09 J.R. Smart2002 Swift 014.a3Susman Godfrey LLP18 Rocco Magni2021 Ligier JS F31TF Companies21 Whitney Strickland2025 Ligier JS F35Home Tech Consultants41 Robert Albani2001 Swift 014 MZR1, 5Sources:

Race calendar The race schedule was announced on September 30, 2024. Pittsburgh International Race Complex dropped off the schedule after the track was closed down, and New Jersey Motorsports Park was also not featured, with the series instead debuting at the Carolina Motorsports Park and returning to Barber Motorsports Park for the first time since 2022. RoundCircuitDateSupport billMap of circuit locations1Road Atlanta, BraseltonMarch 14SVRA Sprint SeriesTrans-Am SeriesPorsche GT3 Cup Trophy USAMarch 152Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, LexingtonApril 25FRP race weekendFormula Ford Challenge SeriesFormula Vee Challenge Cup SeriesVintage Sports 2000 North AmericaApril 263Road America, Elkhart LakeJune 27Trans-Am SeriesPorsche GT3 Cup Trophy USAJune 284Watkins Glen International, Watkins GlenJuly 18Trans-Am SeriesPorsche GT3 Cup Trophy USAFormula Continental Challenge SeriesJuly 195Summit Point Motorsports Park, Summit PointAugust 8FRP race weekendAugust 96Carolina Motorsports Park, KershawAugust 29FRP race weekendAugust 307Barber Motorsports Park, BirminghamOctober 16–18SVRA Sprint SeriesFormula Regional Americas Championship

Race results RoundCircuit016 ClassOpen ClassPole positionFastest lapWinning driverWinning teamPole positionFastest lapWinning driverWinning team1Road Atlanta Harbir Dass Harbir Dass John McAleerMotoNomaddictsJames French James French James FrenchForty 48 Competition Harbir Dass Harbir DassK-Hill Motorsports James French James FrenchForty 48 Competition Harbir Dass Harbir DassK-Hill Motorsports James French James FrenchForty 48 Competition2Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Harbir Dass Harbir Dass Harbir DassK-Hill MotorsportsNicho Vardis Nicho Vardis Nicho VardisVardis Motorsports Harbir Dass Harbir DassK-Hill Motorsports Nicho Vardis Nicho VardisVardis Motorsports John McAleer John McAleerMotoNomaddicts Nicho Vardis Nicho VardisVardis Motorsports3Road America Harbir Dass Dudley Fleck Harbir DassK-Hill MotorsportsNicho Vardis Nicho Vardis J.R. SmartTeam Tonis Dudley Fleck Dudley FleckK-Hill Motorsports J.R. Smart J.R. SmartTeam Tonis Dudley Fleck Dudley FleckK-Hill Motorsportsno starters4Watkins Glen International Harbir Dass Harbir Dass Harbir DassK-Hill MotorsportsNicho Vardis Nicho Vardis Nicho VardisVardis Motorsportsdeclared non-race after delay due to a crashdeclared non-race after delay due to a crash Vaughn Glace Vaughn GlaceDrivenTires.com Nicho Vardis Nicho VardisVardis Motorsports5Summit Point Motorsports Park Harbir Dassrace cancelled due to inclement weatherBruce Hamiltonrace cancelled due to inclement weather Harbir Dass Harbir DassK-Hill Motorsports Bruce Hamilton Bruce HamiltonK-Hill Motorsports Harbir Dass Harbir DassK-Hill Motorsports Bruce Hamilton Bruce HamiltonK-Hill Motorsports6Carolina Motorsports ParkHarbir DassHarbir DassHarbir DassK-Hill MotorsportsDustin HodgesDustin HodgesDrew HoltgraeweArrive Drive MotorsportsHarbir DassHarbir DassK-Hill MotorsportsDustin HodgesDustin HodgesArrive Drive MotorsportsHarbir DassHarbir DassK-Hill MotorsportsDustin HodgesDustin HodgesArrive Drive Motorsports7Barber Motorsports Park

Season report The opening round of the 2026 Atlantic Championship was held at Road Atlanta. K-Hill Motorsports driver Harbir Dass claimed pole position in the 016 Class, but mechanical issues meant he was unable to finish the first heat race, with MotoNomaddicts driver John McAleer, the only other entrant in class, taking the win. Dass bounced back in heat race two, before then also winning the feature race to close up in the standings. The Open Class saw James French sweep the weekend in his Forty 48 Competition entry. He took pole position in qualifying before beating Arrive Drive Motorsports’ Ayrton Houk and K-Hill Motorsports’ Bruce Hamilton to victory in heat race one. He doubled up in race two, with Hamilton second this time, before going three for three in the feature race to end the weekend with a 23-point advantage over Hamilton, who came second once again.

Round two of the season at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course saw two more entries join the 016 class in Ryan Saari, competing for DrivenTires.com, and K-Hill Motorsports driver Dudley Fleck. Dass took his second pole position of the year before dominating the first heat race ahead of Fleck and Saari. He repeated the feat in the second heat race, with Fleck second again and McAleer this time taking third. He looked set to remain unbeaten in the feature race, but retired with a car issue after leading the first ten laps. McAleer took over at the front to take victory and remain 39 points ahead of Dass in the standings as Saari took second as the only other finisher in class. The Open Class meanwhile saw just a single entrant for round two: Vardis Motorsports' Nicho Vardis therefore swept the weekend, taking maximum points to draw equal with pre-event class leader French.

Road America hosted round three, and Dass took 016 class pole position once again ahead of his competitors Fleck and McAleer. He converted his advantage into victory in the first heat race as McAleer had to retire with a technical issue. Dass's luck turned in the second heat race, as this time he hit technical trouble and finished third, with the win going to Fleck. The latter then doubled up in the feature race and took another victory as McAleer grew his points lead with another second place. Competition in the Open class began with pole position for Vardis, before he was bested by French, Team Tonis driver J.R. Smart and Forty 48's Jeffrey Antonelli in the race. French was then disqualified, handing victory to Smart, who then also won the second heat race as the sole finisher. None of the four Open class entrants started the feature race, so Vardis took over the class lead.

Round four at Watkins Glen International saw disruptions and delays caused by weather throughout, leading to the series' races being combined with the F2000 Championship Series races. Dass was among only a few drivers completing laps in the wet qualifying session to start the first race from pole position, and he converted that into a lights-to-flag victory. DrivenTires' series debutant Vaughn Glace was the only other 016 competitor to start the first race. A heavy crash for two F2000 competitors and the subsequent delays saw the second race declared a non-event, before Glace doubled up on his race 1 podium and took victory in the feature race. Dass retired after just two laps, but still took the championship lead over the absent McAleer. Vardis was the only Open Class driver starting any of the two races, so he took two more victories to extend his points lead to 107.

The next weekend, held at Summit Point Motorsports Park, saw similar disruptions caused by wet weather: After Dass and Hamilton took pole positions in qualifying for the 016 class and the open class, respectively, a lightning storm hit the area, causing the first race of the weekend to be cancelled. The second heat race, held in dry conditions on Sunday, saw Dass take victory in dominant fashion as he lapped the whole field and set a new track record. Saari came second as Hamilton led Home Tech Consultants' Robert Albani and Arrive Drive Motorsports’ Pierce Krone in the Open Class. With Saari not starting the feature race, Dass was without competition in the 016 Class, so he grew his points lead to 94 points. Hamilton swept the weekend in the Open Class to move within 49 points of Vardis, with Krone and TF Companies' Whitney Strickland completing the class podium.

The Atlantic Championship debuted at Carolina Motorsports Park for the penultimate weekend of its season, but only three drivers entered the two classes. Dass was the only entrant in the 016 class, and therefore took pole position and won all three races. With both McAleer and Fleck absent since round three, Dass was able to take the class championship title with one race weekend to spare. Holtgraewe was joined by Arrive Drive Motorsports' Dustin Hodges in the Open Class, and the latter was fastest in qualifying. Holtgraewe had the superior pace in the first heat race, however, and was able to pass Hodges to win. Hodges bounced back with a win in the second heat race, before also claiming victory in the feature race. Two second races still meant Holtgraewe rose to third in the standings, with the title battle still open heading into the final round.

Standings

Scoring system The weekend format and with it the points system were overhauled for the 2026 season. Each weekend now comprises three races, the first two of which are designated as Heat Races and award points per class according to the following scale. Position 1st  2nd  3rd  4th  5th  6th  7th  8th  9th  10th  11th  12th  13th  14th  15th  16th  17th  18th+ Points252321191715131110987654321 The third race of the weekend, called the Feature Race, awards more points: Position 1st  2nd  3rd  4th  5th  6th  7th  8th  9th  10th  11th  12th  13th  14th  15th  16th  17th  18th  19th  20th  21st  22nd  23rd  24th  25th+ Points50423734312927252321191715131110987654321 Three points are awarded for pole position in each class, as well as two more points for the fastest lap per race per class. Each driver's three worst results will be dropped.

Drivers' standings PosDriverATLMOHROAWGLSUMCARBARPtsR1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3016 Class standings1 Harbir DassRet1111Ret1331CRetC111114512 John McAleer122431Ret222483 Dudley Fleck22DNS2†111504 Ryan Saari342WDWDWDC2DNS1055 Vaughn Glace2C175— Richard ZoberDNSCDNS0Open Class standings1 Nicho Vardis1113DNSDNS1C12172 Bruce Hamilton322C111683 Drew HoltgraeweC641221394 James French111DSQRetDNS1105 Dustin Hodges2111076 Pierce KroneC32637 Whitney StricklandC53548 J.R. Smart11DNS529 Austin HoltgraeweC455010 Ayrton Houk23DNS4411 Jeffrey Antonelli2RetDNS2412 Robert AlbaniDNSWDWDC2Ret24— Jean-Luc LiveratoDNSDNSDNS0— Rocco MagniDNSWDWD0— Tim PierceDNSWDWD0— Kirk KindsfaterDNSCDNS0PosDriverR1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3R1R2R3PtsATLMOHROAWGLSUMCARBARBold – Pole

Italics – Fastest Lap

* – Penalty

See also

2026 F2000 Championship Series 2026 F1600 Championship Series

References

External links