Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: Laurens Van Hoepen

  • F2 – RND 3 – Day 1

    Practice-

    Alexander Dunne started the Montreal weekend on the front foot, topping the times with a 1:22.524.
    He led Rodin Motorsport teammate Martinius Stenshorne by a slender 0.012s, while Campos Racing’s Nikola Tsolov completed the top three just over a tenth behind the Alpine Academy driver.

    With preparation laps complete, Joshua Duerksen set the opening time of the session on a 1:25.319 for Invicta Racing.

    Trident’s Laurens van Hoepen then lowered the fastest lap to a 1:24.100, while Duerksen filtered through on his next attempt just 0.066s behind in P2.

    Stenshorne then broke into the 23s as the Rodin driver logged a 1:23.888 to take P1 from van Hoepen with just over half an hour to go.

    The track continued to rubber in quickly as the Paraguayan driver took top spot back on his next lap on a 1:23.519, while the other Rodin of Dunne jumped up to second, 0.296s down.

    That was until Tsolov put Campos Racing top of the pile with a 1:23.124, before van Hoepen edged ahead by just 0.019s.

    Nico Varrone put Van Amersfoort Racing into the top five just and was followed across the line by Tsolov, who moved the goalposts once more.
    A 1:22.625 was enough to retake P1 and leave him a tenth clear of Dunne before the Irishman followed up with his own improvement to go fastest of all on a 1:22.524.

    Into the final 10 minutes and Colton Herta moved Hitech up to fourth, leaping up the order with the track continuing to improve.

    Varrone went within 0.177s of Dunne’s earlier time to move VAR into third place briefly, before Stenshrone restored the Rodin 1-3 on his next lap.
    Rafael Villagomez brought out the yellow flags briefly with a spin at the final corner.

    Qualifying-

    Laurens van Hoepen earned his maiden Aramco Pole Position Award, taking the top spot with his final lap and a 1:21.442 for Trident.

    Rafael Camara rebounded from mid-session contact with the wall to take P2 ahead of Alexander Dunne in third.

    Ritomo Miyata was first across the line to set a competitive lap, but his initial effort was quickly beaten as Joshua Duerksen recorded a 1:22.914 to go fastest.

    Gabriele Mini took over P1 on his first attempt with a 1:22.615 to go 0.2s clear, with Kush Maini also going quicker than Duerksen.
    Rafael Camara then closed that deficit down to just 0.005s as he filtered through to go P2.

    After opting for an extra preparation lap, Nikola Tsolov went to the top of the timing screens but Nico Varrone then bettered that effort, a 1:22.078 the new benchmark time by the Van Amersfoort Racing driver.

    Camara delivered a purple first sector and two personal bests to then take P1, 1:22.025 leaving him 0.053s ahead of the Argentinian driver.

    Van Hoepen made an improvement of his own to go third fastest for Trident as the session approached the halfway stage.

    Drivers then returned to the pitlane for fresh Supersoft tyres and headed back out onto circuit for the final 12 minutes of running.

    As the next set of laps were set to begin, Oliver Goethe tapped the outside wall at Turn 4, causing session-ending suspension damage and bringing out the Red Flag.

    The session resumed and drivers returned to the track with eight minutes to go for their final attempts, but a second red flag followed with Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak hitting the wall at Turn 4.

    Back underway, Noel Leon recorded the new fastest time only for teammate Tsolov to take P1 back on a 1:21.789.
    Stenshorne set a lap good enough to usurp the Bulgarian and a 1:21.744 put the Norwegian top of the pile with just over a minute to go.

    Teammate Dunne then made a final improvement to record a 1:21.709 and take provisional pole position.
    Championship leader Tsolov improved on his last attempt but couldn’t better Dunne, but Camara and van Hoepen did, with the latter taking his maiden F2 pole position,

  • Trident confirm Van Hoepen

    Laurens van Hoepen will race with Trident in 2026 the team has confirmed, stepping up to FIA Formula 2 full-time next season.

    The Dutch driver has raced with the Italian team in both the Baku, Lusail and Yas Marina rounds, gaining valuable experience ahead of the 2026 season.

    During the F3 campaign this season, van Hoepen achieved two podium finishes en route to P12 in the Drivers’ Standings.

    I’m excited to compete in next season’s FIA Formula 2 Championship with TRIDENT Motorsport. The experience gained in the three appearances I made in this championship has been very useful in preparing for this step. Together with the technical staff, we made progress that will be fundamental for next year. We have an intense and challenging season ahead of us.
    van Hoepen on the news.

    We are very pleased to announce that Laurens Van Hoepen will contest the 2026 FIA Formula 2 Championship with Trident Motorsport. He is a driver we’ve had the chance to get to know and appreciate in the final part of this season. After his positive debut in Baku, Van Hoepen immediately felt comfortable with the team. I am sure the Dutch driver has all the qualities required to do a great job with our technical staff and to compete in a highly competitive season.
    Giacomo Ricci, Trident Team Manager.

  • Van Hoepen returns with ART Grand Prix

    ART Grand Prix have confirmed that Laurens van Hoepen will be staying with the team for the 2025 FIA Formula 3 season, the Dutch driver returned for a second campaign.

    The 19 year old enjoyed a strong rookie year with ART, achieving one pole position and three podiums on his way to finishing 13th in the Drivers’ standings.

    Prior to his debut F3 campaign, van Hoepen raced in ART colours for two season in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine, finishing 10th with two podiums in 2023.

    He is now getting ready to race with the French team for a fourth consecutive season, and van Hoepen is excited for the challenges that lie ahead.

    I’m really excited to continue with ART Grand Prix for the 2025 season. We’ve built a strong foundation together this year, and I feel ready to take on the new challenges that the next era of Formula 3 will bring. The team has been incredible in supporting my development, and I’m confident we can achieve great things together in 2025.
    Van Hoepen on the news.

    We are thrilled to continue our collaboration with Laurens Van Hoepen as we enter the exciting new era of Formula 3 in 2025. Laurens has shown great promise and dedication in his debut season with ART, and we believe that together we can achieve even greater success in the coming year.
    Sebastien Philippe, Team Principal on the news.

  • F3 – RND 8 Day 1

    Practice-

    Mari Boya started his Budapest weekend on the front foot, winding up quickest for Campos Racing with a 1:34.236 in practice.
    The Spaniard led Hitech Pulse-Eight teammates Martinius Stenshorne and Luke Browning, who completed the top three.

    After a quiet start to the session, drivers headed out onto the circuit with 15 minutes gone. Following tyre preparation laps, Alex Dunne set the first time to beat with a 1:34.986 which was swiftly bettered by Gabriele Mini.

    His PREMA Racing teammate Dino Beganovic had been on a strong lap just ahead of him but a snap of oversteer at the penultimate corner cost the Swede time, crossing the line almost a second down in fifth.

    Sebastian Montoya had been inside the top five earlier in the session but lost his first effort to track limits.
    The Campos Racing driver bounced back right away though to go second overall, 0.117s off Leon’s time.

    Teammate Boya beat the pair of them shortly afterwards, going well clear of the rest on a 1:34.236 with just over 10 minutes left of the session.

    Hitech Pulse-Eight teammates Martinius Stenshorne and Browning then moved themselves into the top positions, the former going second and the Briton fourth. On his final lap, the latter was able to find the time to lift himself up one more spot to take third at the chequered flag.

    Qualifying-

    ART Grand Prix’s Laurens van Hoepen earned his first pole position in FIA Formula 3, with a 1:33.995 coming in the nick of time.
    The Dutch driver finished the session on top and ahead of teammate Nikola Tsolov in P2, while title contender Leonardo Fornaroli took third for Trident.

    There was a late red flag as another contender Luke Browning spun into the barriers on his final attempt, ending the session early.

    With tyre preparation laps complete, AIX Racing’s Joshua Dufek set the initial pace with a 1:34.414 ahead of teammates Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak and Nikita Bedrin in a 1-2-3 for the team.

    There was more vying for track position ahead of the second attempts but this time it was van Hoepen that took over at the top, setting a 1:34.316 until Van Amersfoort Racing’s Noel Leon secured P1 with a 1:34.174.

    Further back and with clear track, Fornaroli was next to go quickest but it was very closely run. The Italian driver went just 0.001s quicker than Leon to secure provisional pole.

    Van Hoepen returned to the top as the first into the 1:33s ahead of teammate Tsolov in P2. Fornaroli put himself in third just as the red flags came out as title rival Browning found the barriers at Turn 11, bringing the session to a conclusion and those behind unable to improve.

    The full top 10 are- Pole: Van Hoepen, P2: Tsolov, P3: Fornaroli, P4: Leon, P5: Ramos, P6: Dufek, P7: Mehuetounif, P8: Browning, P9: Tramnitz and P10: Mansell.

  • Laurens Van Hoepen signs with ART Grand Prix

    Laurens Van Hoepen will step up to FIA Formula 3 next season with ART Grand Prix.

    The 18 year old moves to Formula 3 having completed two seasons in Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine with ART.
    He finished 10th in 2023, taking two podium finishes at his home event in Zandvoort.

    Prior to that, he earned national success in karting, including a IAME Euro Series title in the X30 Mini class in 2017 before moving up to single seaters.

    Speaking about the prospect of racing in F3, Van Hoepen said that he was looking forward to carrying on the momentum from post-season testing with the team.

    I’m really happy to make the step up to FIA F3 with ART Grand Prix. This will be my third year working with the team and over the past two years, we have really gotten to know each other well, and we have shown that in the positive F3 tests. Next year will be exciting and I fully trust that ART Grand Prix and I can do a good job.

    Van Hoepen on the news.

    Despite a difficult environment in 2023, Laurens has always been a fighter and helped the team to turn things around. During his first F3 test, he quickly found his feet and developed a good relationship with the engineers. His qualities as a driver and fighter will be invaluable in a complex championship that leaves nothing to chance.

    Sebastien Philippe, Team Principal.