# Ugo Ugochukwu

Ugo Ugochukwu Orlandi (born April 23, 2007) is an American racing driver, who competes in the FIA Formula 3 Championship for Prema.
Born and raised in New York City, Ugochukwu is the son of Nigerian fashion model Oluchi Onweagba and her Italian husband. He previously finished third in the F4 British Championship racing for Carlin and was runner-up in the 2023 Italian F4 Championship for Prema. He also competed in the Formula Regional European Championship. In 2024, Ugochukwu became the first American victor of the Macau Grand Prix in 43 years.
He is a member of the McLaren Driver Development Programme.

## Early and personal life

Ugo Ugochukwu Orlandi was born in New York City on April 23, 2007. His father, Luca Orlandi, is an Italian fashion designer and his mother, Oluchi Onweagba, is a Nigerian fashion model.

## Career
### Karting

Ugochukwu began his karting career in America, winning the Micro ROK Cup USA in 2014 and the Florida Winter Tour in 2015 before moving to Italy to compete in European championships. He went on to win the X30 Mini category of the IAME International Open in 2017 and the Junior ROK category of the Challenge of the Americas in 2018. In 2020 he took victory in the FIA OK-Junior European Karting Championship.

### Formula 4
#### 2022

In 2021 Ugochukwu took part in an F4 testing program with Motopark, including tracks like Estoril and Oschersleben. In 2022 he progressed onto the junior formula ladder, driving for Carlin in British F4 alongside Williams junior Oliver Gray and New Zealander Louis Sharp. On the day of his first weekend, when Ugochukwu turned 15 which allowed him to be eligible to race in Formula 4, the American took his first pole position. He would be unable to convert it into a victory, taking third place along with the fastest lap in race 1 at Donington Park. In the remainder of the season Ugochukwu took two race wins at Brands Hatch and Knockhill to finish third in the championship behind Alex Dunne and Oliver Gray and also became Rookie Cup champion.
In August Ugochukwu joined Prema Racing to race in some of the remaining rounds of the Italian F4 Championship and ADAC Formula 4 Championship, where he achieved multiple podium finishes.

#### 2023

He remained with Prema for 2023 competing in the Formula 4 UAE Championship and Italian F4 Championship. In the UAE championship he took five wins en route to third in the standings. In the Italian championship he became vice-champion after fighting Kacper Sztuka for the title until the final round at Vallelunga Circuit. In 2023 Ugochukwu also became the first champion of the new Euro 4 Championship.

### Formula Regional
#### 2024

In 2024 Ugochukwu remained with Prema Racing to compete in the Formula Regional European Championship where he finished eleventh, taking a race win at the season finale at Monza. Ugochukwu also competed in the Formula Regional Middle East Championship with the Mumbai Falcons, placing 7th overall.
Later that year, Ugochukwu joined R-ace GP to contest the Macau Grand Prix. He qualified on pole position and won the race, becoming the first American winner of the event since Bob Earl in 1981.

#### 2025

In preparation for his Formula 3 season, Ugochukwu competed in the Formula Regional Middle East Championship with R-ace GP.

### FIA Formula 3

Ugochukwu took part in post-season testing of the 2023 FIA Formula 3 Championship with Rodin Carlin. He will also compete in the non-championship Macau Grand Prix with Trident.

#### 2025

In October 2024, Ugochukwu was announced to be stepping up to FIA Formula 3, whilst continuing his relationship with Prema Racing.

### Formula One

Following his victory in the FIA OK-Junior European Karting Championship with the Sauber Karting Team in 2020, Ugochukwu signed a long-term deal with the McLaren Driver Development Programme in 2021 to facilitate his transition from junior motorsport to professional racing driver.

### Formula E

In May 2024, McLaren Formula E Team announced that Ugochukwu and Grégoire Saucy will drive for the team at the official rookie test at the Berlin ePrix.

## Personal life

Ugochukwu is the son of Nigerian model Oluchi Onweagba and Italian fashion designer Luca Orlandi.

## Karting record
### Karting career summary

| Season | Series | Team | Position |
| 2015 | SKUSA Pro Tour — TaG Cadet | | 12th |
| 2015 | SKUSA SuperNationals — TaG Cadet | Team Koene USA | 34th |
| 2015 | Florida Winter Tour — Rotax Micro Max | | 1st |
| 2016 | WSK Champions Cup — 60 Mini | Orlandi, Luca | NC |
| 2016 | WSK Super Master Series — 60 Mini | Energy Corse | 28th |
| 2016 | WSK Night Edition — 60 Mini | Energy Corse | 27th |
| 2016 | Italian Championship — 60 Mini | | 6th |
| 2016 | ROK Cup Italy Area Nord — Mini ROK | | 56th |
| 2016 | ROK Cup International Final — Mini ROK | Energy Corse | 12th |
| 2016 | SKUSA SuperNationals — Mini Swift | | 18th |
| 2016 | WSK Final Cup — 60 Mini | Energy Corse | 32nd |
| 2017 | WSK Champions Cup — 60 Mini | ASD Giugliano Kart | 22nd |
| 2017 | WSK Super Master Series — 60 Mini | ASD Giugliano Kart | 7th |
| 2017 | IAME International Open — X30 Mini | | 1st |
| 2017 | IAME Euro Series — X30 Mini | | 10th |
| 2017 | Italian Championship — 60 Mini | | 2nd |
| 2017 | IAME International Final — X30 Mini | | 15th |
| 2018 | Florida Winter Tour — Junior ROK | | 2nd |
| 2018 | Challenge of the Americas — Junior ROK | | 1st |
| 2018 | Italian Championship — ROK Junior | | 2nd |
| 2018 | Italian Championship — X30 Junior | | 10th |
| 2019 | WSK Champions Cup — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 9th |
| 2019 | WSK Super Master Series — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 17th |
| 2019 | Coupe de France — OKJ | | 3rd |
| 2019 | WSK Euro Series — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 4th |
| 2019 | Italian Championship — OKJ | | 5th |
| 2019 | CIK-FIA European Championship — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 8th |
| 2019 | CIK-FIA World Championship — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 30th |
| 2019 | WSK Open Cup — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 4th |
| 2019 | WSK Final Cup — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 4th |
| 2020 | WSK Champions Cup — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 25th |
| 2020 | South Garda Winter Cup — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 32nd |
| 2020 | WSK Super Master Series — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 5th |
| 2020 | CIK-FIA European Championship — OKJ | KR Motorsport | 1st |
| 2020 | WSK Euro Series — OKJ | Sauber Karting Team | 9th |
| 2020 | Champions of the Future — OKJ | Sauber Karting Team | 2nd |
| 2020 | CIK-FIA World Championship — OKJ | Sauber Karting Team | 8th |
| 2020 | WSK Open Cup — OKJ | Sauber Karting Team | 33rd |
| 2021 | WSK Champions Cup — OK | Sauber ORLEN Karting Team | 6th |
| 2021 | WSK Super Master Series — OK | Sauber ORLEN Karting Team | 11th |
| 2021 | WSK Euro Series — OK | KR Motorsport | 2nd |
| 2021 | CIK-FIA European Championship — OK | KR Motorsport | 7th |
| 2021 | WSK Open Cup — OK | KR Motorsport | 7th |
| 2021 | Champions of the Future — OK | KR Motorsport | 13th |
| 2021 | CIK-FIA World Championship — OK | KR Motorsport | 4th |
| Sources: ||||

### Complete CIK-FIA Karting European Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Class | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | DC | Points |
| 2019 | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | OKJ | ANG QH 4 | ANG R 5 | GEN QH 45 | GEN R DNQ | KRI QH 35 | KRI R DNQ | LEM QH 7 | LEM R 3 | 8th | 38 |
| 2020 | KR Motorsport | OKJ | ZUE QH 13 | ZUE R 2 | | | | | | | 1st | 65 |
| 2020 | Sauber Karting Team | OKJ | | | SAR QH 1 | SAR R 1 | WAC QH 1 | WAC R (2) | | | | 1st | 65 |
| 2021 | KR Motorsport | OK | GEN QH 13 | GEN R 10 | AUB QH 7 | AUB R 7 | SAR QH 10 | SAR R 8 | ZUE QH 22 | ZUE R 35 | 7th | 28 |

## Racing record
### Racing career summary

| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
| 2022 | F4 British Championship | Carlin | 30 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 290 | 3rd |
| 2022 | ADAC Formula 4 Championship | Prema Racing | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | NC† |
| 2022 | Italian F4 Championship | Prema Racing | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 84 | 10th |
| 2023 | Formula 4 UAE Championship | Prema Racing | 15 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 185 | 3rd |
| 2023 | Italian F4 Championship | Prema Racing | 21 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 13 | 280 | 2nd |
| 2023 | Euro 4 Championship | Prema Racing | 9 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 193 | 1st |
| 2023 | Macau Grand Prix | Trident | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 15th |
| 2024 | Formula Regional Middle East Championship | Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 105 | 7th |
| 2024 | Formula Regional European Championship | Prema Racing | 20 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 76 | 11th |
| 2024 | GB3 Championship | Rodin Motorsport | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 185 | 13th |
| 2024 | Macau Grand Prix | R-ace GP | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | N/A | 1st |
| 2025 | Formula Regional Middle East Championship | R-ace GP | 15 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 205 | 3rd |
| 2025 | FIA Formula 3 Championship | Prema Racing | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1* | 14th* |
| Sources: ||||||||||
* Season still in progress. † Driver participated as a guest driver and was thus ineligible to score points.

### Complete F4 British Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | DC | Points |
| 2022 | Carlin | DON 1 3 | DON 2 9$^1$ | DON 3 5 | BHI 1 4 | BHI 2 4$^3$ | BHI 3 1 | THR1 1 2 | THR1 2 6$^3$ | THR1 3 2 | OUL 1 Ret | OUL 2 3$^1$ | OUL 3 10 | CRO 1 2 | CRO 2 13† | CRO 3 13† | KNO 1 11 | KNO 2 8 | KNO 3 1 | SNE 1 15 | SNE 2 2$^2$ | SNE 3 6 | THR2 1 2 | THR2 2 9 | THR2 3 2 | SIL 1 Ret | SIL 2 2$^3$ | SIL 3 6 | BHGP 1 4 | BHGP 2 5 | BHGP 3 6 | 3rd | 290 |

### Complete Italian F4 Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | DC | Points |
| 2022 | Prema Racing | IMO 1 | IMO 2 | IMO 3 | MIS 1 | MIS 2 | MIS 3 | SPA 1 | SPA 2 | SPA 3 | VLL 1 | VLL 2 | VLL 3 | RBR 1 3 | RBR 2 | RBR 3 2 | RBR 4 3 | MNZ 1 | MNZ 2 | MNZ 3 | MUG 1 6 | MUG 2 5 | MUG 3 2 | 10th | 84 |
| 2023 | Prema Racing | IMO 1 | IMO 2 1 | IMO 3 DNS | IMO 4 3 | MIS 1 6 | MIS 2 3 | MIS 3 2 | SPA 1 4 | SPA 2 7 | SPA 3 1 | MNZ 1 25† | MNZ 2 2 | MNZ 3 8 | LEC 1 2 | LEC 2 3 | LEC 3 5 | MUG 1 2 | MUG 2 2 | MUG 3 2 | VLL 1 1 | VLL 2 4 | VLL 3 2 | 2nd | 280 |
| Sources: ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
*Season still in progress. † Ugochukwu finished 1st on track, but received three post-race penalties - one ten-second penalty for dangerous driving, and two five-second penalties for overtaking off-track.

### Complete Formula 4 UAE Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | Pos | Points |
| 2023 | Prema Racing | DUB1 1 1 | DUB1 2 1 | DUB1 3 3 | KMT1 1 3 | KMT1 2 1 | KMT1 3 18 | KMT2 1 1 | KMT2 2 4 | KMT2 3 35† | DUB2 1 9 | DUB2 2 Ret | DUB2 3 10 | YMC 1 11 | YMC 2 3 | YMC 3 1 | 3rd | 185 |

### Complete Euro 4 Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | DC | Points |
| 2023 | Prema Racing | MUG 1 1 | MUG 2 1 | MUG 3 2 | MNZ 1 4 | MNZ 2 7 | MNZ 3 21 | CAT 1 4 | CAT 2 2 | CAT 3 1 | 1st | 193 |

### Complete Macau Grand Prix results

| Year | Team | Car | Qualifying | Quali Race | Main race |
| 2023 | Trident Motorsport | Dallara F3 2019 | 9th | DNF | 15th |
| 2024 | R-ace GP | Tatuus F3 T318 | 1st | 1st | 1st |

### Complete Formula Regional Middle East Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | DC | Points |
| 2024 | Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited | YMC1 1 16 | YMC1 2 11 | YMC1 3 3 | YMC2 1 10 | YMC2 2 Ret | YMC2 3 7 | DUB1 1 6 | DUB1 2 4 | DUB1 3 9 | YMC3 1 6 | YMC3 2 2 | YMC3 3 Ret | DUB2 1 3 | DUB2 2 4 | DUB2 3 6 | 7th | 105 |
| 2025 | R-ace GP | YMC1 1 10 | YMC1 2 4 | YMC1 3 Ret | YMC2 1 7 | YMC2 2 4 | YMC2 3 19† | DUB 1 1 | DUB 2 5 | DUB 3 2 | YMC3 1 2 | YMC3 2 8 | YMC3 3 3 | LUS 1 2 | LUS 2 7 | LUS 3 2 | 3rd | 205 |

### Complete GB3 Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | DC | Points |
| 2024 | Rodin Motorsport | OUL 1 3 | OUL 2 4 | OUL 3 3$^7$ | SIL1 1 6 | SIL1 2 2 | SIL1 3 C | SPA 1 4 | SPA 2 4 | SPA 3 Ret | HUN 1 | HUN 2 | HUN 3 | ZAN 1 | ZAN 2 | ZAN 3 | SIL2 1 8 | SIL2 2 6 | SIL2 3 21 | DON 1 | DON 2 | DON 3 | BRH 1 | BRH 2 | BRH 3 | 13th | 185 |

### Complete Formula Regional European Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | DC | Points |
| 2024 | Prema Racing | HOC 1 7 | HOC 2 Ret | SPA 1 15 | SPA 2 21 | ZAN 1 28 | ZAN 2 10 | HUN 1 8 | HUN 2 3 | MUG 1 10 | MUG 2 13 | LEC 1 DSQ | LEC 2 DSQ | IMO 1 15 | IMO 2 5 | RBR 1 8 | RBR 2 20 | CAT 1 Ret | CAT 2 8 | MNZ 1 1 | MNZ 2 7 | 11th | 76 |

### Complete FIA Formula 3 Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | DC | Points |
| 2025 | Prema Racing | MEL SPR 12 | MEL FEA 10 | BHR SPR | BHR FEA | IMO SPR | IMO FEA | MON SPR | MON FEA | CAT SPR | CAT FEA | RBR SPR | RBR FEA | SIL SPR | SIL FEA | SPA SPR | SPA FEA | HUN SPR | HUN FEA | MNZ SPR | MNZ FEA | 14th* | 1* |
* Season still in progress.