Nicole Havrda will be racing in American Express colours in 2025, as the F1 Academy partner announced her as their chosen driver for the upcoming season.
The 19 year old began karting on home soil in 2019, achieving first place in the Calgary Shootout alongside success in the Rotax Max Finals.
Graduating to open-wheel racing in 2022, she achieved two top five finishes in the Indian Racing League Championship. The following year saw her make history, becoming the first female Formula Pro USA Champion as well as taking home the title in both SFR FA2 and the Formula Pro USA Winter Series.
In 2024, the Canadian competed in the Formula Regional Americas Championship, finishing sixth overall in her rookie campaign with four podiums to her name. In addition, she participated in two endurance races in an Audi R8 GT4.
I’m honoured to partner with American Express for my F1 ACADEMY debut this upcoming season, especially at the F1 Montreal Grand Prix in June. Their support fuels my drive to compete at the highest level and I’m thrilled to represent a brand that champions performance, resilience, and ambition, both on and off the track. Havrda on the news.
Hitech Pulse-Eight have confirmed that Dino Beganovic will be stepping up to Formula 2 full-time next season, completing their 2025 lineup.
Beganovic graduated to F2 for the final two rounds of the 2025 season, scoring 22 points across the Lusail and Yas Marina weekend, including a P3 finish in the final Sprint Race of the year.
This followed his title-contending 2024 Formula 3 season in which he achieved two victories and a further two podiums on his way to ending up sixth in the Standings.
Prior to that, the Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy member won the 2022 Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine and following the announcement of his plans for 2025, the Swede expressed his delight at the news.
I’m thrilled to join Hitech GP for my first full season in Formula 2 next year. Having had a brief introduction to F2 over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been really impressed by the car and the level of the championship. Stepping up full time in 2025 with one of the series’ top teams is an amazing opportunity. I’m tremendously grateful to Hitech, Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy, and everyone else who made this possible. It’s a big, important step in my career and I can’t wait to start working with the team this week at the post-season test. Beganovic on the news.
We’re delighted to welcome Dino for our 2025 Formula 2 campaign. Having competed against him for several years, it is great to have him driving for Hitech and we look forward to working with him. Dino’s record in single-seater racing is impressive. After two highly competitive seasons in Formula 3, he took his F2 debut in his stride in Lusail, demonstrating that he was ready to take the next step up the ladder. His performance in Abu Dhabi one week later was outstanding. Together with Luke, we have a strong line-up to fight for the Formula 2 Championship title next year. They each bring F2 race experience that will be invaluable heading into testing and the new season. Clive Hatton, HiTech Team Manager.
Hitech Pulse-Eight have announced that Luke Browning will race for the team in Formula 2 next season, their first confirmed driver for 2025.
Browning made the step up to F2 earlier this season in Baku after a stellar 2024 campaign with Hitech in F3 in which he fought for the title until the final race of the year.
The Williams Racing Driver Academy member finished the year with three podiums, including two Feature Race victories in Sakhir and Spielberg.
He goes into the 2025 season having accumulated F2 experience this year, taking part in the final three rounds of the year in Baku, Lusail and Yas Marina, scoring points across the six races.
I’m so happy that I’ll be racing in F2 with Hitech next season. I’ve been through every category of single seater racing with this team and to be able to complete the ladder with them is incredibly important and special for me. I would like to thank Oliver Oakes in particular for his support throughout the last three seasons. There is nothing I want more than to win the F2 Championship with this group of people around me, and that is our goal for 2025. Browning on the news.
After three seasons with Hitech, Luke has worked closely with the team at every stage of his journey up the single-seater ladder. We’re extremely proud of his progression to F2, and to see him get his competitive F1 debut last week in Abu Dhabi. With Luke getting the opportunity to step up to Formula 2 for the final three rounds of the current season, coupled with the experience he has gathered from his Formula 1 Free Practice, and the Young Driver Test this week, we couldn’t have wished for better preparation for his 2025 campaign. Luke and Hitech share the same objective for 2025 – to win the Formula 2 Championship – and we have no doubt that he will be fighting for victories every step of the way. Clive Hatton, Hitech Team Manager.
F1 Academy has announced that Hitech Grand Prix will join the grid and operate three cars from the 2025 season, expanding the grid to 18 cars.
The expansion of the grid in the third season of F1 Academy reflects the series’ rapid growth since it was founded in 2022 and the increasing talent pool of young female drivers. The increase will create additional opportunities for progression for emerging talents who are ready to make the next step into F1 Academy.
The British team, which currently compete in the GB3 Championship, British Formula 4 and Formula Winter Series, will operate two cars with full time drivers, and a third car which will host the Wild Card entry.
Six Wild Card entries have featured on the F1 Academy grid in 2024, with three previous Wild Cards, Courtney Crone, Ella Lloyd and Nina Gademan having secured full time seats for 2025.
HiTech Grand Prix joins five existing teams, ART Grand Prix, Campos Racing, Rodin Motorsport, MP Motorsport and PREMA Racing, with each team set to field three cars for the 2025 season. All six teams have an established history in junior racing including the FIA Formula 3 Championship and FIA Formula 2 Championships.
We are proud to be expanding the F1 ACADEMY grid to 18 cars in just our third season of racing. It’s clear to us that change is already in motion, and this expansion reflects not just the growing talent pool of drivers ready to make the step up but also the incredible growth of F1 ACADEMY as a platform to develop female talent. Hitech Grand Prix have an impressive history in the junior formula, including FIA Formula 2 and Formula 3 and we are pleased to welcome them to our grid from 2025. Susie Wolff, Managing Director of F1 Academy.
I’m delighted to confirm Hitech’s participation in F1 ACADEMY from the 2025 season. A platform that inspires and supports young girls and women to embark on their motorsport journey is one that we have always fundamentally believed in and the opportunity to translate support into positive action by entering a team in F1 ACADEMY is really important to us. We applaud the commitment and determination of Susie Wolff as the force behind the change that the series is driving. Oliver Oakes, Owner of Hitech Grand Prix.
HiTech Pulse-Eight have confirmed Joshua Dufek for the 2025 FIA Formula 3 season. He joins Martinius Stenshorne and Gerrard Xie and completes the team’s line up for next season.
The Austrian driver completed his rookie campaign with AIX Racing in 2024, finishing the year with a best-finish of 10th.
Dufek took part in post-season testing with Hitech, finishing eighth fastest in Jerez and fifth in Barcelona on the second and final day of the respective tests.
Prior to F3, Dufek raced in Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine, and race in the EuroFormula Open Championship in 2023.
Moving up to my second full season of F3 with Hitech is a fantastic next step in my career. The team is really strong and we’ve seen this year that they were always in the fight for the title. I think it will be the perfect environment for me to build on my 2024 experience and achieve some good results. I’m really excited about this opportunity and I’m looking forward to getting to work with the team and with a brand-new generation of F3 car. Dufek on the news.
We’re very happy to welcome Joshua back to Hitech after he was part of the team’s Formula Regional Asian campaign in 2022. He knows Hitech well and that familiar environment will be of benefit to him as he embarks on his second full season in Formula 3. He drove for us in the end of season tests in October and we were very pleased with his performances. Together with Martinius Stenshorne and Gerrard Xie I think we can make another strong bid for both Championship titles. Hitech F3 Team Manager, Paul Bellringer.
Pole sitter Bearman covered off Hadjar at light out as the Championship challenger settled into P2 ahead of compatriot Victor Martins, who launched his way into the top three from seventh on the grid.
With the medium compound fitted, Hadjar was hustling Bearman around the opening two laps and he seized the lead at Turn 10 to take top spot on the second lap.
The Campos driver set off into the distance, leading by 3.5s over Bearman by Lap 5 while Martins followed a further two seconds adrift on the Brit and with a DRS train in his mirrors.
Gabriel Bortoleto moved himself up to seventh with a pass on Oliver Goethe just before the MP driver was forced into retirement with an issue. With his car stationary in the second sector, a Virtual Safety Car was called upon to recover the stricken MP.
The VSC was withdrawn on lap 7, and the battle for third was incredibly close. With Martins also running the Medium tyres, he came under pressure from Crawford as the yellow marked rubber began to fade.
Bearman took four tenths out of Hadjar on Lap 9 as the race leader also began to struggle with his tyres despite running in clear air.
Behind them, Martins and Crawford’s fight for third continued and the American looked to have the move done, but the ART driver defended hard and held onto the place. Their squabbling allowed Richard Verschoor, Paul Aron, Gabriel Bortoleto and Dino Beganovic to join their fight in the points positions.
Bearman continued to work away at Hadjar’s advantage and broke into DRS range on lap 17 while Crawford finally got a move done on Martins. Verschoor was through on the ART car to take fourth place, while Bortoleto attempted to round Aron at Turn 1, but he ran out of road and had to run through the gravel.
After getting to within half a second in the final sector, Bearman had the sliptsream he needed to attempt a pass and he dived to the inside of Hadjar to take the lead on Lap 21.
The Frenchman’s night was made worse immediately, as he dropped to fourth with a spin at Turn 4. Contact between Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Kush Maini brought out a late race Safety Car as both were left stricken on the side of the track.
The full top 10 are- P1: Bearman, P2: Crawford, P3: Verschoor, P4: Hadjar, P5: Bortoleto, P6: Maloney, P7: Aron, P8: Durksen, P9: Martins and P10: Beganovic.
Day 3-
It was a great start from Bortoleto who got ahead of pole-sitter Aron off the line, while debutant Dino Beganovic came out on top in the Turn 1 battle for third with Victor Martins.
The race settled down early on until Kush Maini had a difficult start to Lap 4, dropping from P7 to P11 in the space of a few corners.
Back at the front the top two were separated by 1.2s at the start of Lap 6. They had created a gap of over three seconds to Beganovic in third.
But Beganovic’s teammate Jak Crawford was the first of the option tyre runners to pit from sixth. The Swede followed him in a lap later as did Aron, Martins, Verschoor and Antonelli.
However, a VSC was soon deployed with Antonelli in the gravel in the first sector. The Italian driver complained of a broken steering wheel after having collided with Verschoor in the pitlane. With his car stranded, a full Safety Car was deployed, allowing Bortoleto to pit and retain the net race lead on Lap 9, but was soon given a five second penalty for failing to follow the Race Director’s instructions relating to crossing the line at pit entry.
Racing returned on Lap 13 of 32, as Duerksen challenged Bearman for the lead, although the Brit was able to keep the position.
However, the Safety Car was back out after Crawford and Rafael Villagomez collided at Turn 6. The former was forced to retire with a suspension issue, while the latter was stationary on track.
The drama resumed on lap 17 as Bearman went wide at the final corner to give Duerksen the lead. The PREMA driver managed to stay within track limits, making Duerksen’s overtake before the start/finish line against the rules.
After the Safety Car interventions, the race was run to time, and with less than 13 minutes to go, Bearman was now over four second clear out in front.
Duerksen was now back up to second ahead of Maini, who pitted at the end of the lap, allowing Bortoleto to move up to third on the road. The Brazilian then got ahead of Duerksen after a multi-lap battle with just over five minutes left in the race, as Aron followed him through a lap later and Hadjar closed in.
With under three minutes to go, Bearman and Duerksen pitted, giving Bortoleto the lead on track with four seconds separating him and his closest title rival Hadjar in third,
Despite pushing on the last lap, Bortoleto could not create the gap needed across the line, giving Aron the victory and Hadjar second as the Brazilian dropped third.
The full top 10 are- P1: Aron, P2: Hadjar, P3: Bortoleto, P4: Goethe, P5: Beganovic, P6: Mansell, P7: Cordeel, P8: Bennett, P9: Maloney and P10: Miyata.
Paul Aron was in impressive form in Formula 2’s first session at the Lusail International Circuit after finishing at the top of the Practice leaderboard.
The Hitech Pulse-Eight driver was in eye catching form throughout as he ended up 0.642s clear of Invicta Racing’s Gabriel Bortoleto. MP Motorsport’s Richard Verschoor rounded out the top three.
However, it was ART Grand Prix driver, Victor Martins that led the way early on, going to the top of the leaderbaord on a 1:43.018.
But as the first set of laps were being completed, the Virtual Safety Car was signalled after DAMS’ debutant Dino Beganovic stopped on track with an issue.
Action then resumed with 33 minutes left on the clock as the drivers started to return to track for their second flying laps it was Championship leader, Bortoleto that went fastest with a 1:40.366.
The times continued to drop as the track ramped up but this time it was Aron who was quickest with a 1:39.236 putting him three-tenths clear of Bortoleto as Martins once again ended up in P3.
Aron went even quicker on his next two attempts, first moving to a 1:38.926 before going over nine tenths fastest on his next lap to drop the benchmark to 1:38.024.
However, there was 17 minutes left on the clock when the drivers were forced to return to the pit lane after ART’s Luke Browning beached his car in the gravel at Turn 9 bringing out the Red Flags.
The green flag was waved with under nine minutes left leading to a flurry of activity in the pit lane as the drivers came out for their final laps of the sessions.
Qualifying-
Paul Aron made it a Friday weep, topping Qualifying for Hitech Pulse-Eight in impressive fashion. The Estonian driver went to the top with his first flying lap and couldn’t be dethroned.
Championship leader, Bortoleto wounded up second, 0.3s down on the 1:35.115 of Aron, while Victor Martins rounded out the top three.
With the early laps of the session, PREMA Racing’s Oliver Bearman put himself to the top with a 1:38.065, 0.125s quicker than familiar foe Martins.
The track evolution continued to be rapid and on the next go around, Bortoleto set the time to beat with a 1:36.914. Bearman, Martins and then Aron bettered his time, the Hitech driver quickest again on a 1:36.614.
While Bearman and Aron opted to pit, Bortoleto continued to do a third push lap, and he set a 1:36.586 to take over at the halfway stage with direct title rival Hadjar in 13th.
With 12 minutes to go, drivers returned to the track with fresh Mediums fitted, but the first of the final attempts came with seven minutes left on the clock.
Aron lowered the time to beat a 1:36.088 with an impressive final sector, while Bortoleto filtered through 0.3s down on that effort in P2.
Inside the final five minutes and the track ramped up once more, and Richard Verschoor lifted himself into P1, but Aron had yet another answer for his rivals. Bortoleto responded and closed the gap down once more but was 0.023s down in second position.
The full top 10 are- Pole: Aron, P2: Bortoleto, P3: Martins, P4: Beganovic, P5: Verschoor, P6: Crawford, P7: Maini, P8: Goethe, P9: Hadjar and P10: Bearman.
Hitech Pulse-Eight have confirmed that Martinius Stenshorne will be staying with the team for a second season of FIA Formula 3 in 2025.
Stenshorne returns to F3 after a strong rookie campaign in which he achieved one victory in the Melbourne Sprint Race before adding another podium in the Barcelona Sprint. The Norwegian driver ended the season in 18th in the Drivers’ Championship.
Prior to joining Formula 3, Stenshorne finished second in the 2023 Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine, where he achieved five wins and an additional six podiums.
In 2022, Stenshorne competed in the Italian F4 Championship, where he finished the season in seventh place overall, which included two podiums.
The McLaren Development driver will now be returning for a second season, he is keen to help the team challenge on both fronts in 2025.
I’m really happy and excited to be entering my second season of FIA Formula 3 and with Hitech. 2024 was a strong first year in the championship and we achieved some good results that also contributed to the team being able to fight for both titles – something I hope we will see again next season. I’m looking forward to getting down to work with the new car in the new year Stenshorne on the news.
I’m delighted to confirm that Martinius will continue with us for the 2025 campaign. In only his first year on the international stage – one of the most competitive seasons F3 has ever seen – he punctuated his obvious potential with a win in the second round, a podium, and he was regularly in the fight for points. When the field is as tight as it was last season, it can be difficult for strong performances to translate to the standings, but within the team, Martinius’ progress was clear for all to see and I feel confident that he will really make his mark in a second season of F3. Paul Bellringer, Hitech Team Manager.
Hitech Pulse-Eight have confirmed that Gerrard Xie will be driving for them in FIA Formula 3 next year, becoming their first signing for the 2025 season.
Xie stepped up to single seater racing from karting and had instant success by winning the 2022 Chinese F4 Championship with 13 victories in 14 races. That same he year he also won the Formula Renault Super Challenge and finished second in the Macau Grand Prix.
In 2023, he competed in GB3 Championship driving for Hillspeed, where he achieved one win after a difficult season. Xie, then returned for a second campaign this year with Hitech, he ended the season seventh in the standings, with three podiums including a win.
I’m thrilled to be making the step up to FIA Formula 3, and to be doing so with Hitech. t’s been a strong season for me and the team in GB3 and I’m proud of everything we achieved together. The results were there but we also had a bit of bad luck along the way that could have brought us even greater success in both title fights. I feel ready and I hope to play a big part in ensuring Hitech’s F3 challenge is as strong as it was this season. Xie on the news.
It is always exciting and rewarding for us to see one of our young drivers progressing through the ranks with Hitech. Gerrard has been ‘there’ throughout the GB3 Championship season. As well as his impressive victory and podium finishes, he has consistently been in the hunt for many more podiums, and racked up the strong points finishes that secured him seventh in the Drivers’ title and contributed so much to Hitech securing the runner-up spot in the Teams’ battle. Gerrard is ready for Formula 3. I’m confident he will be a significant force within our line-up for next season and we’ll be able to fight for both Championship titles once again. Paul Bellringer, Team Manager.
Isack Hadjar started the Spa-Francorchamps weekend on the front foot for Campos Racing, narrowly heading up ART Grand Prix driver Victor Martins with a 1:58.730, just 0.010s quicker than his compatriot. PREMA Racing driver, Andrea Kimi Antonelli was able to improve to third late on in the practice session to complete the top three.
There was no rush to get time on the board but once the first laps of the session were completed, Juan Manuel Correa led the way for DAMS Lucas Oil on a 2:02.634.
A red flag arrived with just over 23 minutes to go as Rafael Villagomez hit the barrier out of Turn 9. He was ok but the Van Amersfoort Racing needed clearing up before the session was resumed.
Practice got back underway with 14 minutes left, and this time there was a rush to get some running in compared to earlier in the session. Martins took over at the top for ART Grand Prix as the clock ticked into the final 10 minutes, setting a 2:00.773.
The track continued to improve lap after lap and Dennis Hauger became the first driver below the two-minute mark with a 1:59.682 on his next effort.
Martins restored himself at the top until Hadjar secured P1 for Campos Racing with a 1:58.761 to lead by 0.026s. The French duo could hardly be separated once again on their final laps, but it was Hadjar who recorded the fastest time of the session.
Qualifying-
It was Paul Aron that claimed an important pole position for Hitech Pulse-Eight around Spa-Francorchamps, his 1:56.959 putting him on top ahead of his title rivals.
Gabriel Bortoleto was closest to the Estonian, 0.168s back in P2 while Championship leader Isack Hadjar wound up third on the grid, 0.2s down on his nearest rival.
Before anyone could record a timed lap, there was a Red Flag as the ART Grand Prix car belonging to Victor Martins slowed to a half at the start of sector three.
The session resumed with 24 minutes on the clock, and when the first time filtered through, Hadjar set the pace with a 1:57.803 just 0.102s ahead of title rival Aron in P2.
Kush Maini and Franco Colapinto were one of the few that opted to put a second lap in on their first set of Soft tyres and the pair improved to fifth and sixth respectively.
Drivers then returned to the track with 10 minutes left of the session on a fresh set of tyres for their next attempts and there were improvements everywhere.
Aron improved his time to take provisional pole with three minutes to go on a 1:56.959. Hadjar couldn’t beat that and went second until Bortoleto went quicker still.
The full top 10 are- Pole: Aron, P2: Bortoleto, P3: Hadjar, P4: Crawford, P5: Antonelli, P6: Maloney, P7: Colapinto, P8: Verschoor, P9: Hauger and P10: O’Sullivan who will be starting on reverse grid pole for Sprint Race.
Rodin Motorsport’s Zane Maloney made a strong start to his Budapest weekend by going fastest of all in Free Practice thanks to his time of 1:32.668.
Maloney was in fine form throughout the session and ended up over a tenth faster than DAMS Lucas Oil’s Jak Crawford in second with Van Amersfoort Racing’s Enzo Fittipaldi in third.
It was Maloney who led the way after the first set of laps, as his time of 1:33.556 put him on top, with Trident’s Richard Verschoor crossing the line to go to second, 0.390s behind.
PREMA’s Andrea Kimi Antonelli then went up to second, only for Invicta Racing’s Gabriel Bortoleto to jump ahead of him moments later, the Brazilian just 0.188s off Maloney.
The Virtual Safety Car was briefly deployed after Campos Racing’s Josep Maria Marti spun and made slight contact with the barrier at Turn 11.
Martins though was showing good pace and on his next flying effort beat Maloney’s time by just 0.002s, sending him to the top. But he would not hold that position for much longer with Hauger going fastest on a 1:33.100.
With less than four minutes to go, the drivers started to push on their tyres once more and Maloney went back to the top of the leaderboard with a lap of 1:32.668.
Qualifying-
Paul Aron sealed his second pole position of the season after edging out Van Amersfoort Racing’s Enzo Fittipaldi to the top spot in a tightly contested Budapest Qualifying session.
The Hitech Pulse-Eight driver completed a late lap of 1:30.028 to beat Fittipaldi to first by just 0.068s with Campos Racing’s Isack Hadjar over a tenth back in third.
But it was Free Practice table-topper, Zane Maloney who led the way early on clocking a time of 1:30.515 to lead his ART Grand Prix rival Victor Martins by over a tenth.
Then came Invicta Racing’s Gabriel Bortoleto setting the fastest times in the first two sectors before going to the top of the leaderboard with a 1:30.269, beating Malone by 0.246s.
A few drivers went on to try go for a second push lap on their first set of tyres, one of those being Aron, but as he came across the line he went up to P7, the Red Flags were waved.
Josep Maria Marti spun at the exit of Turn 11 and while he managed to stay out of the barrier, he stopped by the side of the road meaning the marshals had to wheel his car away.
With under 10 minutes remaining in the session, the drivers returned to the track after strapping on a new set of softs, led by Fittipaldi. This meant that the Brazilian was the first to set a timed lap on his second set and went up to provisional pole.
However, his time was quickly beaten by Aron, as the Hitech rookie went just 0.068s clear of the Brazilian with a 1:30.028.
The full top 10 are- Pole: Aron, P2: Fittipaldi, P3: Hadjar, P4: Bortoleto, P5: Martins, P6: Hauger, P7: Antonelli, P8: Maloney, P9: Maini and P10: Verschoor.
Jenzer Motorsport’s Max Esterson ended up with the fastest time in the Free Practice, leading HiTech Pulse-Eight Cian Shields in a rain-hit session.
Esterson completed a lap of 2:00.153 to take top spot, eclipsing Shield’s previous benchmark time by just 0.114s as ART Grand Prix driver Nikola Tsolov ended up third.
With the full wet tyres strapped on as rain continued to fall at Silverstone, MP Motorsport’s Tim Tramnitz was the early pacesetter thanks to his time of 2:02.391.
However, the fastest time continued to change as home favourites Joseph Loake and then Arvid Lindblad went to P1 only for Campos Racing’s Mari Boya to go over a second quicker on a 2:00.873.
Then came Tsolov in his ART car who then eclipsed Boya’s time by 0.323s while his teammate Christian Mansell went up to third, over half a second behind the Bulgarian driver.
With 20 minutes left of practice, the teams brought their cars in and bolted on the slicks for the first time in the day, but just as they did the rain began to fall even harder.
This meant that drivers did not improve on their best times, leaving Esterson fastest ahead of Shields, with Tsolov in third ahead of James Wharton, who has made a good start to his debut weekend with Hitech Pulse-Eight as Boya ended up fifth.
Qualifying-
Hitech Pulse Eight’s Luke Browning took a last gasp pole position at a rain-hampered qualifying in Silverstone ahead of Jenzer Motorsport’s Max Esterson and Trident’s Sami Meguetounif.
The Championship leader left it late on a drying lap with a time of 1:44.992 to take top spot with Esterson following his P1 in practice to go within 0.045s off pole to seal a maiden front row start.
Van Amersfoort Racing’s Noel Leon then set the initial time to beat with a lap of 1:45.475, Alexander Dunne moved up to second, just 0.070s off top spot, while Gabriele Mini settled into third for PREMA Racing.
However, as most of the grid returned to the pitlane looking to strap on a new set of hards, the rain intensified. This left Dino Beganovic at the back after the Swede lost his initial time to a track limits violation, while Championship leader Luke Browning was demoted to P13 by Tim Tramnitz.
But with all looking lost, the drivers ventured out on to the track aiming to do as much learning in mixed conditions before tomorrow’s sprint race.
However, the track began to improve heading into the final minute, with Leonardo Fornaroli going fastest on a 1:45.265. This was bad news for the drivers in the pit lane like Leon and Dunne as the timing screens lit up with purple and green sectors.
Browning then came across the line to complete a lap of 1:44.992 giving him pole position on home soil, as Esterson went second moments later.
The full top 10 are- Pole: Browning, P2: Esterson, P3: Meguetounif, P4: Fornaroli, P5: Van Hoepen, P6: Wurz, P7: Mansell, P8: Tsolov, P9: Voisin and P10: Zagazeta.
Pole sitter, Stenshorne tried to cover off Mansell from lights out but the Australian was able to get alongside him into Turn 1 to take the lead. The Hitech driver tried a re-pass into Turn 3 but was left running off the track, giving Tsolov momentum to take second position into Turn 4, making it an ART 1-2.
Dino Beganovic was a spinner at Turn 1 falling from inside the top 10 down to 25th. Kacper Sztuka was an early retirement and was stranded on the circuit which required the Safety Car to neutralise things.
Racing then resumed on lap 5 and Mansell was able to retain the advantage in front. Luke Browning was on the move after his grip penalty left him from starting 15th, going three-wide into Turn 4 to pass Nikita Bedrin and Arvid Lindblad to move into 11th.
With DRS, Tsolov was able to get alongside Mansell into Turn 4 and rounded the Australian on the outside to take the lead on lap 7.
Browning moved himself into the points-paying positions at the expense of Tim Tramnitz, moving down the inside at Turn 3 on lap 10 to secure 10th from the MP driver.
Lap 12, and Fornaroli put a brave move on Bedrin to move up to 14th, passing the AIX Racing driver around the outside of Turn 6.
Lap 16, was a busy one as Montoya looked to make a move on Alex Dunne at Turn 1, but the MP driver resisted the pressure to hold onto the position.
Up further ahead, Mansell got a move at Turn 4 to stick on Tsolov, able to take the lead from his ART teammate and remain ahead. Gabriele Mini got brave and rounded Oliver Goethe on the outside at Turn 6 to secure sixth position.
Contact with Trident’s Sami Meguetounif at the end of the lap for Lindblad left the PREMA Racing rookie with a puncture and dropped him out of the points fight.
On lap 17, the fight for the lead continued with Tsolov getting back through on Mansell at Turn 4, a slow corner exit for the Australian allowed Stenshorne a run through Turn 5, putting the Norwegian up to second.
The fight for the top five places continued just behind the trio but after a heated battle Montoya made contact with Dunne and was left spinning at Turn 4. The Colombian driver out of his car and ok, but the crash required another Safety Car.
The Safety Car was withdrawn with one lap to go, setting up a final lap sprint to the finish. Tsolov got the restart he needed to put some distance between himself and Stenshorne, and the Bulgarian earned his second sprint race victory of the year ahead of the Hitech driver.
The full top 10 are- P1: Tsolov, P2: Stenshorne, P3: Mansell, P4: Dunne, P5: Van Hoepen, P6: Mini, P7: Goethe, P8: Tramnitz, P9: Leon and P10: Meguetounif.
Day 3-
Browning launched into a clear lead at the first corner while PREMA Racing teammates Lindblad, Mini and Beganovic followed in second through to fourth as Tim Tramnitz dropped down to seventh. Lindblad and Mini battled on the exit of Turn 4 which allowed Beganovic the run into Turn 6 to take third from the Italian.
That became second for the Swede on lap 2, as he dived down the inside of his teammate into Turn 3. Noel Leon was on the move too further back, taking sixth from Sebastian Montoya as he continued his charge from 13th.
Lindblad was dropping through the pack on lap 8 after brief contact with Alex Dunne into Turn 3 as the MP Motorsport driver passed Goethe. Leon, Dunne and Goethe were able to clear the Brit on the run to Turn 4 to relegate the Red Bull Junior Team driver to seventh.
Contact at Turn 3 between Mari Boya in the Campos and AIX Racing’s Nikita Bedrin brought out a Virtual Safety Cat on lap 11 while marshals retrieved the latter’s car.
Back to racing conditions and Goethe was on the attack against Leon for fourth. The slightest of touches resulted in a puncture for the Van Amersfoort Racing driver, ending his charge through the pack and tumbling down the order.
10 laps to go, everyone behind leader, Browning had DRS down to ninth-placed Tramnitz as the fight for points ebbed and flowed.
Christian Mansell made his way into sixth position with a pass around the outside of Lindblad at Turn 4 on lap 19. That became fourth for the Australian with five laps to go, diving down the inside of Goethe at Turn 4.
Mini made an attempt on Beganovic for second at Turn 3 on the following lap, but it was Mansell that went surging around the outside of the Italian at the following corner to take third. That was until Mini pulled off his own audacious pass to re-take P3 at Turn 6.
Onto the penultimate lap and the battling behind allowed Browning to break out of DRS range to Beganovic, who was under attack from teammate Mini at Turn 4, with the Alpine Academy driver securing second a Turn 6.
The full top 10 are- P1: Browning, P2: Mini, P3: Beganovic, P4: Mansell, P5: Goethe, P6: Tsolov, P7: Lindblad, P8: Vans Hoepen, P9: Fornaroli and P10: Dunne.
Jenzer Motorsport’s Charlie Wurz ended up quickest of all in the opening session. The Austrian saved his best effort for the final five minutes to go top on a 1:21.182, while Trident’s Santiago Ramos got closest to him, just half a tenth back in second.
Joshua Dufek set the early pace for AIX Racing, though it was beaten shortly afterwards by ART Grand Prix’s Laurens van Hoepen, as he set a 1:22.409 to lead after 10 minutes of running.
Van Amersfoort Racing’s Noel Leon then moved to the top of the timing screens, lowering the fastest effort to a 1:22.387 to narrowly head up the field. Sami Meguetounif then put Trident in P1, going quicker still onto a 1:22.325.
After a minor lock-up on his first flying lap, Luke Browning went quickest of all approaching the halfway stage on a 1:21.781. Teammate Martininius Stenshorne made it a one-two for Hitech Pule Eight.
Fornaroli took back over at the top with 16 minutes to go of the session, lowering the benchmark to a 1:21.663 to lead the way.
After a lull in action, and return to the pits, cars ventured back out onto the circuit with under 10 minutes to go for the final laps.
Charlie Wurz for Jenzer Motorsport was the first to go quickest of all, deposing Fornaroli and then going quicker still, putting in a 1:21.182 to go almost half a second quicker than anyone else.
Santiago Ramos closed the gap down to just 0.054s with under two minutes remaining to go second.
Qualifying-
Luke Browning earned his first pole position in FIA Formula 3, opting to run without a tow on the final runs to take the top spot around the Red Bull Ring.
The Hitech Pulse Eight driver was at the head of the train going into the final few laps and was able to record a 1:20.222 without a slipstream to lead PREMA Racing’s Arvid Lindblad and MP Motorsport driver Tim Tramnitz.
In the opening stages, Noel Leon set the pace before being deposed by Nikola Tsolov, then Oliver Goethe and finally Gabriele Mini, with the PREMA driver’s 1:21.013 the time to beat.
The Van Amersfoort Racing driver repositioned himself in P1 with his next effort, just over a tenth quicker than Mini, before the Alpine Academy driver responded to go quickest by just 0.005s.
A return to the pits and switch to a fresh set of tyres, the field was back out onto the circuit. After trying unsuccessfully to not lead the field across the line to gain a tow, Browning led the line for the final flying laps without a slipstream and set a 1:20.222 for provisional pole.
Lindblad got closest to him, moving into second just 0.048s off that effort, while Tramnitz was another late improvement for MP.
The full top 10 are- P1: Browning, P2: Lindblad, P3: Tramnitz, P4: Mini, P5: Beganovic, P6: Goethe, P7: Van Hoepen, P8: Montoya, P9: Dunne and P10: Tsolov.
Paul Aron started the Barcelona weekend in good form, topping the Free Practice session for Hitech Pulse-Eight. The Estonian set a 1:26.922 to head the pack ahead of Enzo Fittipaldi in the Van Amersfoort Racing car and MP Motorsport’s Franco Colapinto.
AIX Racing’s Joshua Duerksen set the initial pace, a 1:27.742 putting him on top early with the majority waiting to venture out onto the circuit.
That was bettered by Ritomo Miyata in the Rodin Motorsport, lowering the time to beat to a 1:27.639. As the clocked ticked to under 30 minutes remaining, the track filled up and the times kept flowing.
Championship leader, Paul Aron was the first to break into the 1:26s, setting the fastest time of 1:26.922 with just over 20 minutes left of the session. Fittipaldi filtered through in second, 0.136s down with Colapinto third for MP.
Qualifying-
Paul Aron continued the way he left free practice, setting the fastest time in Qualifying for his maiden Formula 2 pole position in an incredibly close session.
DAMS Lucas Oil’s Jak Crawford ended up just 0.002s back in second, with Franco Colapinto third for MP Motorsport, 0.006s behind Aron.
After ending up fastest in practice, Aron set the first time to beat on a 1:25.385. MP teammates Dennis Hauger and Colapinto filed through in second and third places respectively.
The red flag was then thrown after AIX Racing’s Taylor Barnard went off at Turn 9 and into the barriers. He was out of the car and ok, but his car needed recovering.
Running resumed with 23 minutes left on the clock but there were no threats to Aron’s provisional pole time until Isack Hadjar ventured out for his first flying lap. The Frenchman put his Campos at the top of the times, setting a 1:25.205.
PREMA Racing’s Andrea Kimi Antonelli was able to move up to second place, just 0.141s down on Hadjar’s effort.
After a brief spell of quiet in the pitlane, everyone was fitted with fresh soft tyres and took to the track once again with under 10 minutes to go.
Aron was able to find further improvements to retake the top spot with a 1:24.766 before Ritomo Miyata put himself up to P2 for Rodin, 0.182s behind.
The full top 10 are- Pole: Aron, P2: Crawford, P3: Colapinto, P4: Bortoleto, P5: Antonelli, P6: Miyata, P7: Durksen, P8: Correa, P9: Martins and P10: Maini.
The top five remained the same at the start with pole-sitter van Hoepen covering off Stenshorne to retain the lead. His ART teammate and home favourite Christian Mansell stayed in third ahead of the Red Bull-liveried cars of Oliver Goethe and Lindblad.
However, van Hoepen and Stenshorne quickly became embroiled in a multi-lap battle for the lead on lap 3. But this battle brought the rest of their rivals into play, with the top 10 only covered by three seconds.
On lap 6, Mansell was now coming under attack from Lindblad with the PREMA driver taking P3 at Turn 9. Just behind the pair, Goethe lost P5 to his Campos teammate Mari Boya at the same corner.
In the battle for points, Dino Beganovic was on the move in other PREMA car and quickly dispatched Fornaroli at Turn 12 for 9th, the Trident driver then ran wide onto the gravel, dropping him to 15th.
Back at the front, Stenshorne had built a gap of over two and a half seconds to van Hoepen, but the ART driver was then overtaken by Lindblad. As the race moved past the halfway stage, Beganovic was now coming under attack from Sebastian Montoya. The Campos driver made the move past on the run down to Turn 1, with the Swede then losing another position to Charlie Wurz two corners later.
Van Amersfoort Racing’s home hero Tommy Smith collided with the rear of Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak at Turn 1. The Thai racer was out of the car and the race whilst the Australian continued on.
Back to green flag racing, Beganovic made the move past Wurz for P8 at the popular Turn 9. The Austrian ran wide at corner exit, losing further positions to drop him down to 13th.
The full top 10 is – P1: Stenshorne, P2: Lindblad, P3: Van Hoepen, P4: Boya, P5: Goethe, P6: Mini, P7: Dunne, P8: Montoya, P9: Fornaroli and P10: Mansell.
Day 3-
Fornaroli led away from pole, staying ahead of the PREMA pair of Mini and Beganovic. But there was plenty of action at the back of the pack as MP Motorsport’s Tim Tramnitz suffered a puncture after colliding with Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak.
The PHM AIX Racing driver then hit Sophia Floersch and despite both being able to continue to the pitlane, they were both forced to retire with damage.
We were back to green flag conditions, with the top three remaining the same, Luke Browning and Arvid Lindblad rounded out the top five with the pair pouncing on the PHM AIX’s Nikita Bedrin to move up the order.
On lap 11, there was more bad news for the Australian fans as Christian Mansell lost two places at Turn 11, with Jenzer Motorsport’s Charlie Wurz and Campos’ Sebastian Montoya overtaking the ART Grand Prix driver.
Beganovic after being given the all clear to overtake Mini for second, and he did just that on lap 12, making his way past at Turn 9. The PREMA driver then quickly got within DRS range of Fornaroli.
Mini’s struggles continued as by the end of Lap 13, he lost another position at Turn 9. A lap later, Beganovic took the lead from Fornaroli at the same corner. Elsewhere, Campos Racing teammates Mari Boya and Sebastian Montoya quickly got past Bedrin, moving them up to fifth and sixth.
The top three were now covered by just a second a half with Fornaroli well within DRS range of Beganovic as the drivers set off on lap 18. Mini was however beginning to show strong pace and closed in on Browning for third.
The full top 10 is: P1: Beganovic, P2: Fornarolli, P3: Mini, P4: Browning, P5: Wurz, P6: Montoya, P7: Boya, P8: Bedrin, P9: Goethe and P10: Mansell.
Hitech Pulse-Eight have become the fifth team to confirm their lineup announcing that Cian Shields will be driving for them in the 2024 Formula 3 season.
The 18 year old moves up to the third tier off the back of a successful campaign in the Euroformula Open Championship this year. He earned the Vice Champion title with four wins and 10 podiums to his name.
Shields got his first taste of the F3 car during the three post-season tests, earning the sixth-fastest time of the second day of running in Jerez.
Shields’ karting career began in 2016, with him going on to achieve third in the IAME Winter Cup X30 Junior category two years later, before being crowned Champion in the IAME Series Benelux Junior category in 2019.
Graduating to single seaters in 2022, he competed in the GB3 Championship with Hitech, he finished 13th in the standings, securing one victory and two podiums across the season. He will be reuniting with the British team to partner compatriot Luke Browning and fellow rookie, Martinius Stenshorne next season.
I am excited to join Hitech in FIA F3 next year. It will be a new challenge for me, but one I am looking forward to. Having raced with the team in GB3 in 2022, I have every confidence that they will allow me to develop in my rookie season in the series. Looking forward to getting the season started in Bahrain!
Shields on the news.
We are delighted to add Cian to our Formula 3 line-up for next season. We are confident in his ability, having raced with the team in GB3 last year and taking a win and podiums together. Here’s to a successful season ahead!
HiTech Pulse Eight have confirmed that Martinius Stenshorne will move to FIA Formula 3 with the British team in 2024.
Stenshorne joins the team after finishing second in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine in 2023, taking top rookie honours with four pole positions, five wins and six podiums to his name.
The 17 year old began his racing career in karting, earning multiple titles between 2018 and 2020, including the 2018 WSK Master Series in 60 Mini alongside the Italian Championship in the same category.
The Norwegian moved up to single seaters in 2022, completing a season in Italian F4 where he finished seventh overall before moving up to FRECA.
Stenshorne also took part in post-season testing with Hitech Pulse-Eight earlier this year, he finished the final day in Jerez as the fastest driver.
I am looking forward to making the step up to FIA F3 with Hitech next season. I have every confidence that they will allow me to develop in my rookie season in the championship. It will be a new challenge for me, however I am feeling eager to be fighting for the top spots from the get-go.
Stenshorne on the news.
We are delighted to add Martinius to our Formula 3 line-up for 2024. He showed great potential during testing and given his race-winning form in FRECA this year, we are confident that we will have an exciting and successful season together.
Paul Bellringer, Hitech Pulse-Eight F3 Team Manager.
HiTech Pulse-Eight have retained Luke Browning for the 2024 Formula 3 campaign, announcing that the Williams Academy driver will spend his second season in the Championship with them.
2024 will be Browning’s third year in the Hitech fold, having achieved the GB3 Championship title with them in 2022. Earning his promotion to F3 this year, the Brit went on to score one podium finish in the Barcelona Sprint Race, overall he finished 15th in the Standings. Alongside this, Browning stormed to a lights to flag victory in the Macau Grand Prix last month.
Browning’s racing career began in saloon cars in 2019, before joining the British F4 grid in 2019. His follow up season included seven wins, 16 podiums and six pole positions to bring home the title. He then went on to finish third in the ADAC Formula 4 Championship the next year, in addition to three-race appearances in Italian F4 and GB3 Championship.
Completing a full campaign in GB3, Browning was crowned Champion with five victories and 13 podiums to his name. Not only this, he went on to win the BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award, completing his prize in an F1 car with Aston Martin and followed that up by earning a spot in the Williams Driver Academy this year.
I am super excited to announce I’ll be joining the grid with Hitech Pulse-Eight for the 2024 Formula 3 season. I have an abundance of faith in the team around me, with the things we learned throughout the season last year I believe we will be able to build on our skills and ability to execute which we showed a glimmer of most recently in Macau. This Championship will never be easy with the standard of drivers but also with just the nature of the Championship. However, having visited all of the tracks we’re going to next year once before, I believe puts us in a great position to score points in every race weekend going forward. I’m super grateful to Williams Racing and Hitech Pulse-Eight for their support going into the new season. Consistently delivering is the goal, and one I look forward to achieving next year.
Browning on the news.
We are delighted to have Luke racing with the team again in his second season of FIA Formula 3. We are confident in his ability to fight for wins and come away with a consistent set of results. Following our win in Macau together last month, we are eager to be fighting upfront from the get-go when the 2024 season commences in February.
Hitech Pulse-Eight have become the latest Formula 2 team to finalise their driver line-up for 2024, announcing that Paul Aron and Amaury Cordeel will race for them next season.
Cordeel joins the team for what will be his third season in FIA Formula 2, having completed this season with Invicta Virtuosi Racing.
He is aiming to make another step forward with the team in 2024 having achieved multiple points finishes once again at the tail end of the season.
Aron will be making the step up to the Formula 2 Championship full time after competing in his maiden F3 season in 2023. The Estonian finished third in the Drivers’ Standings, picking up one race victory and four podium finishes, before making his F2 debut at the season finale in Yas Marina.
The 19 year old has achieved multiple top three finishes on his way up the junior categories, finishing third overall in Italian F4, Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine and FIA F3 so far in his career.
I’m really pleased to be joining Hitech in F2 for 2024. It will be a really important step in my career, coming off a strong rookie season in F3 where I took third overall. I’m looking forward to developing my skills with the Hitech team and I am confident we can hit the ground running next year.
Aron on the move.
I am excited to be staying in Formula 2 for another season, this time joining Hitech on the grid. I’m ready to take on the challenge and write the next chapter of my racing journey with this incredible team. I am so grateful for the opportunity and look forward to the start of the new season in February.
Cordeel on the news.
As a team we are enthusiastic to work with our 2024 FIA F2 drivers, Amaury Cordeel and Paul Aron. Amaury has 2 years’ worth of experience in FIA F2. Showing a rise in performance in recent rounds we hope to build on this in post season testing and into next season. Paul has proved himself to be a championship contender last year in FIA F3, and the previous 2 years in FRECA. We are eager to see them both working with the team, performing on track and fighting for victories.
In his first front row start of Formula 3, Nikita Bedrin didn’t let inexperience fail him, as he nailed his getaway and gave him the run he need to swoop around the outside and take the lead out of Turn 1.
Bortoleto tried to execute the same move on Mansell for third, but the Trident driver couldn’t keep it within the white lines, going across the run-off.
Further back on the grid, Tommy Smith and Sebastian Montoya made contact on the opening lap, with Van Amersfoort Racing driver pitched into the air and across the gravel.
Having been waiting for a time to make the right move, Bortoleto pounced for third on lap 7. Utilising the DRS, the Trident driver sailed from a long way back down the inside of the Campos at Turn 1. Aron tried to do the same two laps later, with a great run out of the final corner but couldn’t make the late move stick and ended up running wide.
Attempting to find his way through on Tsolov, O’Sullivan tried moves left, right and centre as the Bulgarian driver got his elbows out to defend eighth. Looking up at the apex, the PREMA car tagged the rear of the ART forcing O’Sullivan to box.
Montoya came to a halt between Turns 12 and 13, which triggered a Virtual Safety Car which was quickly converted into a full Safety Car.
Once racing resumed on lap 17 the field faced a three-lap sprint to the line. Aron instantly forced Mansell onto the defensive for fourth position, having been unable to get past at Turn 1, the Estonian got the job done around the outside of Turn 3.
The full top 10 are- P1: Mini, P2: Bortoleto, P3: Bedrin, P4: Aron, P5: Goethe, P6: Mansell, P7: Colapinto, P8: Edgar, P9: Saucy and P10: Beganovic.
Day 3-
O’Sullivan wasted no time breaking clear out front, as he bolted off the line to cover off his teammate Beganovic on the run down into Turn 1.
Oliver Goethe tried to swoop around the outside of Colapinto, but the MP Motorsport driver fought back to cling on to fourth. Having lost P6 off the line, Paul Aron muscled his way past Jonny Edgar through Turn 3.
After a disappointing Qualifying, Josep Maria Marti was on a redemption charge from 13th on the grid. The Spanish driver moved up into the points, where he quickly dispatched his teammate Mansell along with Edgar on Lap 8 to move into 8th position.
Championship rivals Bortoleto and Marti squared off against each other for seventh. The Campos car tried to pass the Brazilian at Turn 1, but a huge lock-up sent him sailing wide across the run-off area.
Edgar began hounding Mansell at the tail end of the points. Mansell suffered a lock up into Turn 1 on Lap 18, allowing the Briton to breeze through, with his MP teammate Mari Boya taking advantage to demote him out of the top 10.
The full top 10 are- P1: O’Sullvian, P2: Beagnovic, P3: Colapinto, P4: Goethe, P5: Aron, P6: Marti, P7: Bortoleto, P8: Edgar, P9: Fornaroli and P10: Boya.
Not long to wait until round 9 as it’s this week! We only have two rounds remaining of the Formula 3 2023 Championship, who will be our new champion?…
Jordan's Track Talk 