Finnish driver Tuukka Taponen, driving for R-ace GP, won the Rookie Cup after the fourth round at Yas Marina with three races to spare.
All drivers competed using identical Tatuus-built Formula Regional cars powered by a 270HP turbocharged Alfa Romeo engine and on Giti tires.
[21] The second season of the Formula Regional Middle East Championship opened up around Yas Marina's Corkscrew Layout with last year's runner-up Taylor Barnard taking a pair of pole positions for PHM AIX Racing.
[25][26] When the championship moved to the circuit's Grand Prix Layout one week later, Taponen was the man to beat, taking two pole positions in qualifying.
Taponen converted his lead into a win, only threatened during a mid-race safety car restart by Stenshorne, who eventually finished second ahead of Pinnacle's Mari Boya.
[29] Taponen was back on top for the final race, resisting pressure amid a last-lap safety car restart to take a second win ahead of Naël and Barnard.
[30] After a break weekend, the championship moved to Dubai Autodrome for round three, where Barnard and Mumbai Falcons's Rafael Câmara shared pole positions.
[35] The Brit resisted the Fin at the start of the first race and kept a steady gap to him from then on to take his fourth win of the year, with Evans GP's Costa Toparis five seconds back in third.
Taponen only needed to finish inside the points to deny Barnard any chance at the championship, but he began the final weekend in Dubai with two pole positions in qualifying.
[40] The penultimate race of the season was then won by Barnard, who thereby took the runner-up position for the second year in a row by starting third, dropping to fifth and fighting his way back into the lead.