Van Amersfoort Racing 2025 Season Review: Making the right moves

18 December 2025

It was a positive season overall for Van Amersfoort Racing, with the Dutch squad enjoying a late season flourish with impressive race pace and stronger results.

Team Principal Bradley Joyce reflected during post-season testing on how the team had gotten on, the areas that they’d improved upon and areas they’ll be focusing on for 2026.

“I think over the course of 2025 we made quite a lot of progress with the team and the car, and with Rafa especially,” he explained at Yas Marina.

“He scored points in the last four events. If we can continue that into 2026, we’d be in quite a strong position. So I think we’ve definitely made some progress compared to the very beginning of the year.

“Testing here helps us to continue to understand and develop the car, the setup and helps the team itself as well.”

Team Principal Bradley Joyce was happy with the improvements across the 2025 campaign

Expanding on Villagómez’s improvements over the course of 2025, Joyce pointed to his late-season form that included a run of four point-scoring results in the final four rounds, including a podium finish in the Lusail Sprint Race.

He added that the Mexican driver’s wheel-to-wheel showing in Qatar in particular was evidence of a driver finding their best form and building on experience in the Championship.

“Compared to the beginning, Rafa’s improved quite a lot. He’s really improved in many aspects. He’s now developed a lot more confidence as well. You could see that in Monza, where he was running at the front in the Feature Race. He got himself there.

“He was running at the pace of the leaders in the Sprint Race in Qatar, and the move he did at the end was very confident and strong. So he’s developed really well in terms of both ability to race and fight.

“His general pace has improved, so I think we’ve got a good basis to improve there some more as well.”

Looking ahead to next season, the VAR Team Principal was optimistic of the team taking another step forward in competitiveness.

Joyce believes that stability within the team’s structure and operations will be a huge helping hand.

Villagomez was more competitive across the final four rounds, a positive sign going into 2026

“We’re continuing with the same group of people in 2026 whereas at the start of 2025, we had a completely new group of people together.

“It takes everyone time to gel. For example, our pitstops have been getting better and better, and we’re now pretty quick on the pit stops in the last few events.

“In general, I think we’re on a good trajectory. There’s still a lot of work to do, but everyone here is trying their hardest but I think we’re making a lot of progress, so we’re mildly confident.”

He added that the team would be looking to improve across the board regardless, as they aim to better they’re 2023 P7 finish in the Teams’ Standings.

“We’re focusing on everything from the way the team operates to how the engineering structure works. How the interactions with the drivers are, communication, car setup. Just incrementally improving in all these areas.

“There’s never one magic bullet, everyone’s got the same car in the beginning, so it’s about how you optimise that performance over the course of the season.”