Rafael Villagómez Jr. (Spanish pronunciation: [rafaˈel βiʝaˈɣomes]; born 10 November 2001) is a Mexican racing driver who competes in the FIA Formula 2 Championship for Van Amersfoort Racing.
Villagómez previously competed in the FIA Formula 3 Championship for three seasons. He won the Richard Mille Young Talent Academy competition in 2019.
Lower formulae
In 2020, Villagómez made his car racing debut in the French F4 Championship, whilst also competing part-time with Fortec Motorsport in the F4 British Championship. He achieved a second-place finish at Le Castellet and, with 121 points, finished sixth in the championship.
In the British series, Villagómez scored a maiden podium finish with third in only his second race. However, in the following races, he was unable to replicate this result and finished eleventh in the standings, only ahead of four other drivers.
Euroformula Open Championship
2020
Villagómez participated in the final round of the 2020 Euroformula Open Championship at the Circuit de Catalunya with Drivex as a guest driver.
2021
Villagómez joined Van Amersfoort Racing for the 2021 season. His best results were five podium finishes, all of which were third-place results. He finished the season eighth in the Drivers' Championship with 135 points.
FIA Formula 3 Championship
2021
In 2021, Villagómez made his debut in the FIA Formula 3 Championship for HWA Racelab, racing alongside Matteo Nannini and Oliver Rasmussen, becoming the first driver from Mexico to compete in FIA F3. Unfortunately for Villagómez, he was unable to score any points throughout the campaign, finishing 29th in the standings with a best race result of 13th. He drove for Van Amersfoort Racing in the post-season test.
2022
The following year, Villagómez returned to Formula 3, partnering Franco Colapinto and Reece Ushijima at Van Amersfoort Racing. In Imola, he achieved his first ever points finish. At the end of the season, he partook in the post-season test remaining with Van Amersfoort Racing in September.
2023
Having competed in the Formula Regional Middle East Championship during the winter, Villagómez returned to Formula 3 in 2023, once again driving for Van Amersfoort Racing. The campaign proved lacklustre, as it only yielded a pair of tenth-placed finishes at the season finale in Monza, leading Villagómez to finish 25th overall for the second successive season.
FIA Formula 2 Championship
Villagómez was invited to partake in the 2022 F2 post-season testing with Van Amersfoort Racing. He returned to the test in 2023, once again driving for VAR at Yas Island.
2024
In January 2024, Villagómez was announced that he would step up to the 2024 FIA Formula 2 Championship, remaining with Van Amersfoort Racing for a fourth consecutive year, partnering up with Enzo Fittipaldi. The Mexican's best result was seventh place, which he achieved during the Melbourne Feature Race at Albert Park. Other notable performances included an eighth place finish at Monza and scoring his maiden points with a ninth place finish in the Jeddah Feature Race. He ended the 2024 season 24th in the standings with 13 points.
2025
Villagómez returned to Van Amersfoort Racing for the 2025 FIA Formula 2 season, partnering GB3 graduate John Bennett. Villagómez achieved his first podium in FIA Formula 2 with a drive from 22nd to third in the sprint race at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. Villagómez secured another podium by finishing third in the Lusail sprint race. He concluded the 2025 season in 14th place in the Drivers' Championship with 43 points.
2026
Villagómez continued with Van Amersfoort Racing for a third season in 2026, partnering Nico Varrone. This is set to be his final season in the championship.
Personal life
Villagómez's father, Rafael Villagómez Sr., is the CEO of mining company CoMinVi S.A. (Constructora Minera Villagómez), and a majority shareholder of Van Amersfoort Racing.
Racing career summary
† As Villagómez was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score points.
* Season still in progress.
Complete F4 British Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete French F4 Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete Euroformula Open Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate points for the fastest lap of top ten finishers)
Complete F3 Asian Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate the fastest lap of top ten finishers)
Complete FIA Formula 3 Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate points for the fastest lap of top ten finishers)
Complete Formula Regional Middle East Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete FIA Formula 2 Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
* Season still in progress.
Official website
Rafael Villagómez career summary at DriverDB.com