Nikola Tsolov ascended the junior ranks towards Formula 1 after a very competitive career so far in single-seaters.
The Bulgarian driver dominated the Spanish F4 Championship in 2022, winning 13 of the 21 races in a very strong year.
Tsolov outperformed Australian driver Hugh Barter over the season, who competed in a dual campaign of Spanish F4 and the French championship.
Formula 4 is a great proving ground for young drivers coming from karting. It allows them to sharpen their skills in cars and learn how to manage downforce, slicks, and wings.
After taking the Spanish F4 title, he took the unorthodox route into Formula 3, moving straight to the series from F4 rather than racing in a regional F3 series such as GB3 or FRECA.
The Bulgarian has spent the past couple of years in F3, adjusting to the added pressure of racing on a Formula 1 weekend and learning new circuits.
Tsolov has taken a significant step in his career, and his manager, Fernando Alonso, applauded him on his Instagram account after the announcement.
Fernando Alonso was delighted to see Nikola Tsolov become a Red Bull junior
Tsolov has slowly adjusted to the FIA F3 championship as he drove a new car in a 30-car field where the racing is often chaotic.
The Bulgarian struggled in 2023, scoring points just twice at the end of the year after floundering in the midfield at ART.
This season was much better as he scored points from the outset, taking fourth place at the season opener in Bahrain, staying with the French team.
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He then went on to win three races, the first of which came in the Sprint Race at Monaco, before a breakthrough in Hungary, where he won the Feature Race.
Now, Red Bull have looked fondly at Tsolov with the Bulgarian joining the Red Bull Junior Team for the 2025 season. Red Bull moved to sign Tsolov – as well as Niklas Schaufler – after he split with the rival Alpine Academy earlier this week.
Becoming part of the Red Bull programme should help Tsolov’s development, although the branding comes with significant pressure.
Alonso is pleased to see Tsolov’s hard work getting recognised by Red Bull and reposted the announcement on his Instagram story with some clapping emojis.
Nikola Tsolov could be a candidate to win the FIA F3 championship in 2025
Tsolov is returning to FIA F3 for a third season next year and will need to compete at the front if he has the ambition of knocking on the door of F1.
He has driven on all of the tracks on the calendar as the Formula 3 schedule maintains the same 10-round schedule in 2025.
The Red Bull junior is switching to Campos for next season. They were very competitive this campaign and finished fourth in the Teams’ Championship. Tsolov was very competitive in post-season testing which should help him heading into next year.
The Red Bull colours will come with pressure, and the Austrian team have a lot of talent in their academy, with Isack Hadjar and Arvid Lindblad getting closer to F1.