Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: F3

  • Barcelona tyre allocation

    We are back in Europe this week, as we head to Spain for Round 6 for the F1 season. We also have Formula 2 and 3, joining us this weekend to carry on their season.

    Pirelli has decided to bring the hardest tyres in the 2022 range, C1 (Hard), C2 (Medium), C3 (Soft). It’s a pretty straight forward choice, which is the same as last year albeit using a brand-new family of tyres.

    The teams were at Barcelona as recently as February, for pre-season testing, however there are three big differences to consider since last being there:

    • The teams concentrated on testing compounds in the middle of the range, rather than the hard.
    • The weather conditions were much cooler.
    • The new cars were in their most basic launch specification, the cars have since moved on considerably since then.

    With the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya being a very well-used circuit, there will not be much track evolution expected over the weekend, thanks to a busy schedule of support races also.

    Last years winning strategy was a two stopper, the traditional approach to Barcelona, with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton triumphing a pole to a win using a soft-medium-medium strategy. Soft-medium-soft was used by all the finishers from P2 to P8.

    It’s hard to say much about Barcelona that hasn’t been said already, as it’s possibly the best-known circuit on the calendar for the drivers, with its wide-ranging layout making it a perfect testing venue. It has a bit of everything, with the very technical final sector being particularly important when it comes to looking after the tyres. As a result, the teams will have a good opportunity to assess the progress they have made with their cars since the start of the season, although the weather conditions will be much warmer and there will probably be a lot more running on the hard tyre than there was in testing, which will perhaps be the key to the race. In the past, Barcelona has traditionally been a two-stopper, so it will be interesting to see if the new generation of tyres this year leads anyone to target a one-stopper.

    Mario Isola, Motorsport Director.

    Formula 2

    The Hard and Soft tyres have been nominated for Round 4 in Spain. This is the same nomination as the championship’s last raced at the circuit in 2020, and one which has already been seen this year at Bahrain and at the in-season test in Barcelona last month.

    Formula 3

    The Hard tyre is nominated for the third round of the season. Drivers will have three sets of the hard compound plus one set of Medium tyres which are carried over from the previous round in Imola, these are to be used in free practice only.

  • Emilia Romagna Grand Prix

    We are back this weekend racing not just Formula 1 but Formula 2 and 3 also! We are now in Italy for the return of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. The Sprint returns this weekend also, for the first time in 2022.

    Its both Ferrari and Alpha Tauri home race this weekend, can the teams provide a good weekend? Will Max have more reliability issues? Or will he conquer through? Carlos retired last race, can he get back on the podium on Sunday?

    Could we see a wet qualifying? It’s definitely looking that way and a possibility of some rain across the weekend also. This could shake the order up quite a bit!

    Who needs a good weekend?

    Red Bull, or more likely Max. 2 DNF’s in 3 races isn’t a good start for defending his title. I know it isn’t his fault as they were things to do with the car and not himself but he will be wanting this weekend to go as smoothly as possible.

    Aston Martin will be wanting a good weekend especially Seb, he DNF’ed in Australia and will be wanting to get through the whole Grand Prix this weekend.

    Carlos will also be wanting a good weekend also, he has had a good start to the season apart from the DNF in Aus, but with his new contract being announced this week he will be wanting to perform even more than before.

    Predictions for qualifying-

    My top 5 are- Pole: Leclerc, P2: Verstappen, P3: Perez, P4: Sainz and P5: Hamilton. Apparently Red Bull are bringing upgrades this weekend, if they work well the fight could be on between both RB and Ferrari.

    A part of me don’t want to count out Russell, we all saw what he could do in qualifying when it was raining and at the moment its predicted to rain whilst quali is going on, so we could see a masterclass from him again.

    Hopefully we see at least one Haas in Q3, would be nice to see both in there as well as the McLaren’s. Lando likes driving in the wet as we all saw last year, so it may help him get further up the grid for the sprint on Saturday.

    Times for the weekend-

    Friday 22nd-

    • Free Practice F3- 8:55am – 9:40am (BST)
    • Free Practice F2- 10:05am – 10:50am (BST)
    • Free Practice 1 F1- 12:30pm – 13:30pm (BST)
    • Qualifying F3- 14:00pm – 14:30pm (BST)
    • Qualifying F2- 14:55pm – 15:25pm (BST)
    • Qualifying F1- 16:00pm – 17:00pm (BST).

    Saturday 23rd-

    • Sprint Race F3- 9:35am – 10:15am (BST)
    • Free Practice 2 F1- 11:30am – 12:30pm (BST)
    • Sprint Race F1- 15:30pm – 16:30pm (BST)
    • Sprint Race F2- 16:55pm – 17:40pm (BST).

    Sunday 24th-

    • Feature Race F3- 7:50am (BST)
    • Feature Race F2- 9:20am (BST)
    • F1 Race- 14:00pm (BST).

  • JMC to not race

    Juan Manuel Correa will not be racing this weekend in Imola for Round 2 of the Formula 3 2022 Championship. This means that ART Grand Prix will make the unprecedent move of running two cars instead of 3.

    Correa participated in Bahrain’s season opener without many complications, a metatarsal fracture on his left foot put him in a serious amount of pain and led him to cut his running short at the Jerez test and also skip the Barcelona test.

    Although Correa was replaced for the Barcelona test by stock car racing bound Matteo Nannini, who is also a winner in FIA F3 and a former F2 racer, the only ART GP cars on the grid will be Correa’s teammates.

    Teams in Formula 2 and 3 are deterred from not racing all of their cars when a seat becomes vacant, with disincentives that put teams in a position where filling the car as a loss-making venture with a driver without the budget needed is fiscally less punishing than not running the car at all.

    I’ve taken the difficult decision not to race in Imola. Very sad to not be there, but after assessments with my doctors, and with the profile of the injury, we feel the risk of making the injury worse is too high. I’ll be cheering ART GP on from home and I hope to be back soon.

    Juan Manuel Correa took to social media to tell the news.

    Victor Martins & Gregoire Saucy will be the only two ART GP drivers racing this weekend. We wish JM a quick recovery. See you soon on track.

    The team also confirmed with the above.

    Wishing you well JMC, hopefully not to long and we will see you back on track!

  • Imola tyre allocation

    After a two week break we are back this week and we are in Imola for Round 4, along with Formula 2 and 3.

    Pirelli have chosen the C2 (Hard), C3 (Medium), C4 (Soft) tyres for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. This is the same nomination which was made for Imola last year, although the compounds are of course different with the latest 18 inch tyres.

    Imola, marks the first sprint of the year, with rules that are slightly revised compared to last year, including more points on offer. The tyre rules are the same as last years sprint events though, rather than 13 sets for a normal weekend, this weekend will see 12 sets.

    The asphalt dates back to 2011, which makes the 11 year old surface reasonably abrasive, that’s why we don’t see the same double step between medium and soft tyres, like we did in Australia. The more mature surface at Imola, generates more grip and therefore more heat in the tyres.

    The forces at work on the tyres are generally equal between lateral and longitudinal, making it a flowing track where drivers need to find a good rhythm.

    Imola is an old-school, challenging track, where overtaking can be tricky, also because the circuit is quite narrow in places. So the strategy is likely to centre around avoiding traffic, and effectively the teams start from scratch here in terms of tyre knowledge – as the compounds are completely different this year, and last year’s race also began on the wet-weather tyres, before being interrupted by a lengthy red flag period. Generally speaking, Imola is a medium severity track for the tyres, and it’s a venue that is used quite frequently. This means that we might see a little less track evolution than we’ve been accustomed to at other circuits as the track is well rubbered-in already: the first round of the Pirelli-equipped GT World Challenge took place at Imola last month, which gave us some useful data. These are just some of the factors that the teams will have to take into account when establishing the tyre strategy for the opening sprint session of the year: another first for the 2022 season.

    Mario Isla, Head of Pirelli Motorsport.

    Formula 2

    Formula 2 will support a Formula 1 grand prix at Imola for the first time in 16 years, when the championship was known as GP2. The Medium and Supersoft tyres have been nominated- this will be the debut for the revised supersoft tyre for 2022, featuring optimisations to improve resistance.

    Formula 3

    This weekend will be the first time that the modern Formula 3 championship has raced at Imola. The medium compound is the sole nominated tyre for the first time this season.

  • F3 Barcelona Testing

    The past few days, Formula 3 have been testing in Barcelona at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for their second and final in season test of the year. Formula 2 had spent three days laying down rubber in mostly cold conditions before F3 hit the track on Friday.

    Day 1-

    David Schumacher had arrived as a late replacement for Ayrton Simmons for Charouz, the German driver needed a seat fitting before getting out onto track, he managed eight laps towards the end of the session as he looked to get back up to speed with F3 machinery.

    When the laps started flowing, Zane Maloney set the benchmark at 1:33.926 before his teammate, Stanek broke the 1m 33s barrier with a 1:32.678. Isack Hadjar was one of two stoppages, with the driver coming to a stop at Turn 2 in the middle of the session. ART Grand Prix’s Matteo Nannini was the other, stopping at Turn 10.

    In between the two red flag, Nannini’s teammate Saucy set the quickest time of the morning, with a 1:32.247. Colapinto completed the most mileage in the morning with 49 laps in total.

    Onto the afternoon session, all 30 drivers made a swift exit from the pitlane when the light went green and got stuck into the long runs. MP Motorsport’s Caio Collet set the benchmark at 1:34.465, before it was replaced by Hadjar at the midway point.

    Smolyar dropped a 1:33.342 to steal the top spot of Collet again pushing him to second, Stanek put in a late lap of a 1:33.642. It was Franco Colapinto who completed the most laps in the afternoon session, adding 54 to his 49 he already done in the morning.

    Day 2-

    It was a busy final morning, as many of the drivers got stuck into some qualifying simulations. Gregoire Saucy set the marker at 1:32.109 for ART GP. Collet then drooped a 1:31.507 to put himself top of the standings.

    Coalpinto’s one lap speed was shown once again, as the Round 1 pole sitter made the top three for the second day in a row. The Argentine was the busiest man for the third session in a row adding a further 51 laps to his tally from Day 1.

    HiTech’s rookie, Isack Hadjar was another one impressing as his short run speed put him up to 4th and just over three tenths off P1. Tridents, Roman Stanek completed the top five.

    The field dedicated the afternoons running to race simulations, with Jenzer heading out as soon as the lights went green. Alatalo set the benchmark at 1:34.488 before they were joined by the ever-busy Van Amersfoort Racing trio. When the remainder of the grid left the pits to head out on track, Marti jumped to second for Campos.

    Villagomez, ended the afternoon session with the highest lap count, completing 58 tours of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. He also spent the majority of the session in third but was bumped down to fourth by Ferrari junior Leclerc, who couldn’t quite beat the 1m 35s barrier.

    Formula 3 doesn’t have to wait long till there back on track, as Round 2 starts in Imola on Friday the 22nd of April.

  • JMC to not test in Barcelona

    Juan Manuel Correa, will not be taking part in the Formula 3 test in Barcelona this week after a metatarsal fracture on his left foot, his participation in Imola for Round 2 is also at risk.

    Correa, was in pain during the whole two day F3 testing at Jerez last week, even being forced to cut short his running on the second day as the pain became unbearable.

    His ability to brake was unsurprisingly impaired, particularly in the dry conditions of the test’s second day when he could only manage 47 laps in total.

    Entering his second season in F3 with ART Grand Prix after his comeback after he sustain injuries whilst racing in Formula 2 at Spain in 2019, Correa qualified and finished in fourth position in the feature race in Bahrain, despite the pain that he was in.

    After the Barcelona test, Correa was due to make his European Le Mans Series debut at Paul Ricard this weekend for Prema’s new LMP2 team alongside Louis Deletraz and Ferdinand Habsburg, which he will also have to miss.

    I couldn’t drive too much unfortunately because I have still a bit of an issue with the leg from the race in Bahrain. In the last race of the weekend, I got some inflammation in the tendons in the left foot and it still hasn’t recovered so I’m in quite a bit of pain when I drive.I was actually lucky that it rained all day yesterday because it’s softer on the brake. Ever since Bahrain, we’ve been working mainly on trying to reduce that but it’s still not perfect. The whole left foot has a lot of inflammation. And the nerves have gotten inflammated. Everything at the end goes back to that [the Spa crash] and both to my physical limitations, especially the ones I had last year, and that I’m having now which I was not expecting to have this year. It is a very frustrating to be in that position right now.

    Juan Manuel Correa, talking at Testing in Jerez.

    We did an MRI scan yesterday night (Thursday), got the results today (Friday) and there is indeed a stress fracture there. The doctors have recommended a couple of weeks rest. Lets see how it heals itself, how the pain improves. We are going to try to push the recovery to be able to do the Imola race but nothing is guaranteed.

    Correa took to social media at the weekend, with a video message.

    Absolutely gutted for him, it seems like just as things were getting good for him something like this happens! But health always comes first, so its the right decision for him to sit out of testing in Barcelona. Hopefully we see Correa back on track in Imola!

  • F3 Jerez Testing

    F3 Jerez Testing

    Formula 3 was back for the past two days as they were testing in Jerez. Let’s take a look at how it went down.

    Day 1-

    A few drivers, braved the wet and windy conditions at Jerez when the lights went green, with the majority of the field just doing an installation lap. As the rain began to ease, the field headed out for some flying laps and HiTech Grand Prix’s Isack Hadjar set the baseline time.

    With the people below him chopping and changing times, Hadjar was the only red flag, with his car coming to a stop on the gravel. This allowed Collet to take his place at the top of the leaderboard, with the MP Motorsport driver dipping below 1m 42s. But it was PREMA’s Arthur Leclerc who finished on top at the end of the morning session.

    Moving onto the second session of Day 1, Arthur Leclerc dropped a 1:43.790 once things started up again. Collet didn’t get the chance to improve as he brought out a red flag at Turn 4.

    Martins, Stanek, Rasmussen, Leclerc and Bearman all shared P1 between them as the times started to drop once the track was drying out. But it was Bearman who come out on top in the afternnon!

    PositionDriverTeamLaptime
    1Oliver BearmanPREMA Racing1:33.009
    2Josep Maria MartiCampos Racing1:33.666
    3Zane MaloneyTrident1:33.736
    4Victor MartinsART Grand Prix1:33.751
    5Arthur LeclercPREMA Racing1:33.998
    Top 5 Afternoon Session.

    Day 2-

    The track remained damp on the final and second morning, Josep Maria Marti set the pace for Campos before the field switched to dry weather tyres.

    Martins broke the 1m 31s barrier for the first time, and several others joined him, he was bumped down to fourth with Leclerc replacing him at the top with a 1:30.628.

    Leclerc’s time was only marginally better than Carlin’s rookie O’Sullivan who dropped a 1:30.634.

    Onto the afternoon, the sun decided to make an appearance with a completely dry track, Caio Collet produced a benchmark time of 1:30.359.

    Yeany’s Campos caused a red flag and interrupted the action around the halfway point, but once it got underway the quickest time fell. Leclerc took the biggest chunk out of it, posting a 1:29.556 to go quickest for the third session out of four.

    The session came to a slightly premature end as Juan Manuel Correa stopped at Turn 6 and brought out a red flag in the final seconds. Ushijima posted the most laps of the afternoon stint, completing an impressive 65 laps of the Jerez Circuit.

    PositionDriverTeamLaptime
    1Arthur LeclercPREMA Racing1:29.366
    2Victor MartinsART Grand Prix1:29.380
    3Isack HadjarHiTech Grand Prix1:29.611
    4Franco ColapintoVan Amersfoort Racing1:29.614
    5Oliver RasmussenTrident1:29.634
    Top 5 Afternoon Session.

    Formula 3 will be back next week, on the 15th April for two more days of in-season testing at Barcelona.

  • Edgar to be replaced by Rasmussen

    Edgar to be replaced by Rasmussen

    British driver, Jonny Edgar will not continue his FIA Formula 3 Championship season due to health reasons. The decision was made by himself, his family, management, Red Bull and Trident motorsport. They all believe that recovery is the absolute priority for him.

    The 18 year old will be replaced by Oliver Rasmussen. Rasmussen will be making his Trident debut at the upcoming test in Jerez. It will be Rasmussen’s second season in F3, having spent his last year with HWA Racelab.

    The Danish driver stepped up in 2021 after finishing third in the 2020 Formula Regional European Championship, in which he won six times and took a further seven podiums- finishing inside of the points in every race he started.

    The 21 year old, had stepped up to single-seaters with Jenzer Motorsport in the 2018 Italian Formula 4 Championship, before switching to PREMA for a second season. He also has experience in ADAC F4 and the Toyota Racing Series.

    It is with great regret that we say goodbye to Jonny Edgar, and we wish him the quickest possible recovery. Since the start of the season, he was weakened by physical issues, but he fought like a lion. He did not back down and continued to race. However, his conditions necessitate a break from his competitive activity to support his recovery. Jonny always gave his maximum to the team, he has a fantastic family and is a wonderful guy. Oliver Rasmussen will be replacing Edgar. He is a quick and experienced driver, and we are proud to welcome him to the Trident Motorsport family. I am sure that he will quickly gain the chemistry needed to gel with the team, making the most of the four days of testing between Jerez and Barcelona, which will be followed by the round at Imola. We will put up our best effort to help Oliver and we are sure that he will provide a great contribution to the team.

    Giacomo Ricci, Trident Team Manager.

    I am delighted to line up for the upcoming events of the FIA Formula 3 Championship with Trident Motorsport. Joining the line-up of the reigning champion team is something that only happens a handful of times in a driver’s career, and I want to make the most out of this chance.I want to thank Trident Motorsport for the opportunity and Jota Sport for their continued support. I will give my 100 per cent on track to reward the trust that Trident Motorsport has placed in me, and I cannot wait to wear the team’s colours.

    Oliver Rasmussen.

    My Opinion-

    Gutting for Jonny, but it was the right decision health always comes first! Wishing him well and hope to see him back on track soon!

    But moving on to Rasmussen, this is a big opportunity for him now, being in the reigning teams champion car it will be interesting to see what he can do. He has testing to catch up with the car which is the perfect window for him to join the team really.

  • Bahrain tyre allocation

    For the first time this year, we get to take a look at the tyre allocation for the weekend ahead, not just for F1 but for Formula 2 and 3.

    Pirelli has selected the three hardest compounds in the new 18 inch tyre range: C1 (Hard), C2 (Medium) and C3 (Soft). The nomination is one step harder than the selection which was made last year, as the new tyres are completely different in comparison to the old 13 inch tyres.

    The choice has been made because of the layout of the track, asphalt characteristics and temperatures. Bahrain remains one of the most abrasive tracks on the calendar thanks to a high percentage of granite within the asphalt, which leads to higher levels of wear and degradation. Even though asphalt abrasion is high, the sand which blows in from the surrounding desert can cause a lot of sliding which automatically affects grip.

    The rear tyres work the hardest at Bahrain due to lateral loads. There s a high degree of track evolution over over the weekend, and this year it will be even higher as normal as both Formula 2 and Formula 3 are support races.

    The teams had the chance to get familiar with the 2022 18-inch tyre range, having spent a total of six days of testing with all the compounds, although not always in representative conditions. We know from the past that track temperatures can play an important role in Bahrain, affecting tyre degradation, and that’s something we noticed at the recent test as well. During the race temperatures should be milder compared to FP1 and FP3, so the teams will have to focus on their data from FP2 and qualifying. It’s still hard to predict the race strategy as, in the past, Bahrain has been a multi-stop race, but it will be interesting to see if anyone will try something different this year.

    Mario Isla, Head of Pirelli Motorsport.

    Formula 2

    Formula 2 begins its season in Bahrain with the Hard compound and the Soft compound. The hard compound has been revised for this season to offer improved resistance increase the performance gap to the medium with the aim of challenging the drivers and increasing strategy options.

    Formula 3

    For the first time, Formula 3 will begin in Bahrain with the hard compound as the nominated tyre. Even though the compounds are the same before, the rear tyres have been designed to degrade faster which should shift the balances towards oversteer and make the car more challenging, with the aim of promoting greater driver involvement and showcasing talent.

  • Ollie Bearman F3 2022

    It has been announced that Oliver Bearman will be racing in Formula 3 for PREMA Racing, who he joined for the successful post-season test in Valencia.

    The 16 year old Brit became the first driver to win both Italian and ADAC Formula 4 Championships in the same season, which saw him earn a spot in the Ferrari Driver Academy.

    2021 was Bearmans second year of single seaters, he grabbed 15 podiums, 11 wins and eight poles in Italian F4 as well as 11 podiums, six wins and five poles in ADAC F4.

    “I’m really looking forward to stepping up to FIA F3 with PREMA, as my first official year being part of the Ferrari Driver Academy,” said Bearman. “We worked really well together in the post-season test at Valencia, and their results in previous years across everything which they do, speaks for itself. I can’t wait to get started in Bahrain!”

    PREMA Team Principal Rene Rosin added: “We are looking forward to working with Oliver in 2022. The results he achieved this year speak for themselves, and we have obviously been observing him as rivals. The step for him will be huge and particularly challenging, with a lot to learn, but we will do everything we can to help him maximize his potential and be competitive right from the start. It will be extremely interesting to see the season develop, and what we will be able to accomplish together.”

    My Opinion-

    I think this is great! Ollie is a very talented driver especially at 16 years old, and because of his achievements so far he deserves to get this seat in F3. It will be interesting to see how he does next year he is most definitely one to watch!

  • Van Amersfoort Racing joins F2

    The Formula 2 Championship promoters have confirmed that Van Amersfoort Racing will replace HWA Racelab entry and assets for the 2022 Formula 2 season. The Dutch team will be running for the first time this week in the post season test taking place in Abu Dhabi.

    This follows two months after Formula 3 announced their grid that Van Amersfoort Racing will be joining F3 next season (2022).

    VAR started over forty years ago, with a number of different drivers coming through. From the likes of Jos Verstappen, Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, Mick Schumacher, Dennis Hauger and Jonny Edgar all having driven for the team over the years.

    FIA Formula 2 Championship CEO Bruno Michel said: “I am very pleased to welcome Van Amersfoort Racing to the Championship. I am certain that they will be a great addition to our grid, with them also competing in Formula 3 from next year. Joining F2 is always challenging, but their expertise and professionalism will undoubtably help them get to grips with the category quickly. I would like to take this opportunity to thank HWA RACELAB for their collaboration for the past two seasons, and I wish them success for their next challenge.”

    Rob Niessink, CEO of Van Amersfoort Racing adds: “After having recently announced our entry into the FIA F3 Championship, it now is an absolute pleasure to become part of the FIA F2 Championship as well. We are simply proud and consider this step as an important milestone in the long history of our team. It will be a challenge we don’t take lightly, and it might not come as a surprise that watching “our” F2 cars leave the pit-lane for the first time during the upcoming post-season test at Abu Dhabi will be a big moment for us. I want to thank Bruno Michel and HWA RACELAB for their support in making this happen.”

    My Opinion-

    I have heard of the Dutch team before with some drivers having driven for them in the past shows only good things. With them joining both Formula 2 and 3 grids it only shows good things in my opinion, looking back on the history of their drivers, it looks like they take time in spotting which drivers they want and they are all very talented now…

  • F3 Post-Season Test Day 1

    Today we had the first day of post-season testing for Formula 3, it took place in Valencia. Testing takes place over three days, with an overall of 18 hours in total. Lets take a look on how things have ended today.

    Morning-

    To start the day off, we started in wet conditions with everyone being forced to head out on wet tyres, but it soon switched to blue skies.

    Rookie Franco Colapinto set the early pace with MP Motorsport lapping a 1:35.044 just ahead of team-mate Caio Collet. P1 then kept switching between the rookie duo, Zane Maloney and Grégoire Saucy before Jonny Edgar took the time below 1:30’s and took the lead.

    Then a switch to the slicks with an hour left on the clock produced some better lap times under 1m 26s. Caio Collet broke the 1m 24s barrier with only 15 minutes left, just before Doohan put the Dutch-based team, Van Amersfoort Racing in first.

    The top 10 from the morning session is as follows:

    DriverTeamLaptime
    1Jack DoohanVan Amersfoort Racing1:23.349
    2Victor MartinsART Grand Prix1:23.541
    3Kaylen FrederickHiTech Grand Prix1:23.546
    4Roman StanekTrident1:23.580
    5Jak CrawfordPREMA Racing1:23.668
    6Oliver RasmussenCharouz Racing System1:23.747
    7Arthur LeclercPREMA Racing1:23.765
    8Caio ColletMP Motorsport1:23.838
    9Franco ColapintoMP Motorsport1:23.847
    10Zane MaloneyTrident1:23.863

    Afternoon-

    For the afternoon session things warmed up, as MP Motorsport set the pace with Collet leading Colapinto with a lap time of 1:23.125. Kaylen Frederick then briefly replaced Colapinto in P2 before Martins drove into P1 being the first driver to break the 1m 23s today.

    With less than an hour to go on the clock, Doohan broke into the top two but still remained a hundredth of Martins time. During the final stages he managed to push Martins down to P2 after putting a 1:22.402 on the board.

    Saucy and Maloney led the rookies this afternoon where they placed third and fourth, ahead of Stanek. Rasmussen put in the most laps of the afternoon completing 60.

    The top 10 of afternoon session is as follows:

    DriverTeamLaptime
    1Jack DoohanVan Amersfoort Racing1:22.402
    2Victor MartinsART Grand Prix1:22.533
    3Grégoire SaucyART Grand Prix1:22.684
    4Zane MaloneyTrident1:22.708
    5Roman StanekTrident1:22.739
    6Lorenzo ColomboCharouz Racing System1:22.846
    7Arthur LeclercPREMA Racing1:22.893
    8Jak CrawfordPREMA Racing1:22.967
    9Oliver RasmussenCharouz Racing System1:23.071
    10Franco ColapintoMP Motorsport1:23.072

  • F2, F3 announce ’22 calendar

    So with Formula One announcing their calendar for next season, Formula Two and Three have announced theirs!

    Formula Two will have a total of 14 rounds, which will see two races each round, so a total of 28 races, it will make the most sizeable calendar since the launch of the championship in 2017.

    The season will kick off in Bahrain on the weekend of 18th March and with it finishing on the weekend of 18th November in Abu Dhabi. F2 will be going to two new tracks which are Imola and Zandvoort.

    CEO Bruno Michel said: “I am pleased to present the largest calendar we have ever had in Formula 2, with 14 rounds and 28 races. This results from a strong will from our stakeholders to have F2 race alongside as many Formula 1 Grand Prix as possible.”

    F3 will have a total of nine rounds, which makes it an 18 race championship. Again F3 will start in Bahrain on the same weekend as F1, it will end on the weekend of 9th September in Monza, just like this year. Also F3 will be at two new circuits next year and they are Zakhir, Bahrain and Imola, Italy.

    CEO Bruno Michel said: “Our 2022 Formula 3 season will start at the Bahrain International Circuit, at the opening round of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship and the new Formula 2 campaign. It will be very exciting to start all together.”

    My Opinion-

    I’m very much looking forward to both F2 and F3 next year, especially with both series racing at new tracks and both of them being on the same weekends as F1.

    With F2 this year there has been pretty big gaps, the season started end of March and then the next race weekend was 20th May. And then again currently we are on our 4th week of a 10 week break until the season comes back for the last two rounds. So they have planned it well so there isn’t as big of breaks.

    With F3 they started quite late this year compared to next, they started in May where as next year they will be starting in March. They have been able to bring a couple more races in to make the season a bit longer without big gaps.

  • F3 reveal teams for 22-24

    Formula Three has announced 10 teams which have been selected for the 2022-2024 seasons. Nine out of the ten are the same outfits which competed in 2021, and the newcomers Van Amersfoort Racing have been chosen to join the F3 grid.

    The full chosen 10 are: ART Grand Prix, Campos Racing, Carlin, Charouz Racing System, HiTech Grand Prix, Jenzer Motorsport, MP Motorsport, PREMA Racing, Trident and Van Amersfoort Racing.

    As usual each team will enter three cars, making it a 30-car field as seen in previous years.

    FIA Formula 3 CEO Bruno Michel said: “For the next three-year cycle, we have decided to renew our trust in nine of our current teams. They have been with us for many years now, and they have proven their value, expertise, and professionalism. I would like to welcome Van Amersfoort Racing to the list of selected teams. Their success in other categories make them a nice addition to our grid. I am confident that they will adapt quickly to the demands and challenges of our championship.”

    “Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank HWA RACELAB for their commitment to Formula 3 for the past three seasons, during which they claimed four wins and 10 podiums.”

    The Netherlands based team has been running for over 40 years, throughout those years they have had Jos Verstappen, Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, Mick Schumacher, Dennis Hauger and many others come through VAR.