Gabriele Mini will return for a second Formula 3 season in 2024, switching to reigning Teams’ Champions PREMA Racing.
A two-time race winner after scoring victories in the Monte Carlo Feature Race and Budapest Sprint, Mini rounded out his rookie campaign seventh in the Drivers’ Standings for Hitech Pulse-Eight.
Participating in the three two-day post-season tests with PREMA, the Alpine junior put together an impressive showing. The 18 year old topped the timing sheets across both days in Imola and earned a further three top two worthy times in Barcelona and Jerez.
Next season, Mini reunite with the team that helped take him to glory in Italian F4 in 2020. From there, the Italian racer finished seventh in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine. Returning for a second campaign, he earned the runner-up honours, just behind eventual Champion and 2024 teammate Dino Beganovic.
I’m very happy to join PREMA Racing for the 2024 season. The team had a very strong season last year, and we had some very promising tests together at Jerez and Barcelona. Our only goal will be to fight for the title, and I cannot wait to hit the track and start the new season! I would like to thank the Alpine Academy and All Road Management for their strong support to make it happen.
Mini on the news.
We are really proud to have Gabriele back with us. We thoroughly enjoyed working with him back in 2020 and we are happy to do it again now. We are extremely delighted by how our 2024 line-up is coming together as we have proven winners with high potential and great experience on our side. We cannot wait for the new season to start, and we look forward to the preparation work ahead.
PREMA Racing have announced that Andrea Kimi Antonelli will be graduating to Formula 2 with the team, becoming the first driver announced for the 2024 campagin.
The 17 year old Italian racer steps up as the reigning Champion of the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine. Earning five victories and a further six podiums on his way to claiming his fifth title in two years.
The Mercedes junior made his step up to single seaters with the Italian team in 2021, making a three-round appearance in Italian F4. A full season followed the next year alongside a campaign in German F4, securing the Drivers’ title in both Championships with a combined total of 22 wins. Additionally, he won the gold medal in the FIA Motorsport Games Formula 4 Cup.
From there, Antonelli earned three wins and seven podiums on his way to the Formula Regional Middle East Championship title, before going on to triumph in FRECA during his rookie season.
Antonelli will get his first taste of Formula 2 action during the post-season test at Yas Marina from November 29th to December 1st.
I’m very happy for this opportunity. From Formula Regional to Formula 2, it will be a huge jump. I’m aware that it will be very challenging because the level is really high there. It will be a new car, for me and the others as well but it’s still going to be tough. I don’t want to set expectations, I will try to learn as much as possible in testing to be ready for the first race, have fun as always, and do a good job. I’m delighted to continue with PREMA as I started my single-seater career with them and they are my second family and I love working with them.
Antonelli on the news.
We are proud to welcome Kimi to our FIA Formula 2 Championship team. He has been with us since the very beginning so not only do we know him well, but we are also particularly proud of what he was able to achieve in his first two years full-time in single seaters. Kimi is a gifted racer and a great team player, so we cannot wait to see what the 2024 season will bring and we are focused on helping him make the step in the smoothest possible way.
Dino Beganovic will be returning to Formula 3 with PREMA Racing, becoming the first driver announced for the 2024 campaign. The Swede made his F3 debut this year with the Italian team, finishing his maiden campaign in sixth in the Drivers’ championship.
The partnership between Beganovic and PREMA is a longstanding one, with the 19 year old having first raced for the team back in 2020 when he claimed P3 in Italian F4.
He continued with PREMA in 2020 and 2021, moving up to the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine, achieving a P13 finish before winning the series in ’21 taking four victories and a further 10 podiums along the way.
In 2023, the Ferrari Academy junior, scored four podium finishes in F3 and a further six top 10 finishes. Beganovic said that he was pleased to a continuing with the team next year having achieved so much already in PREMA colours.
During post-season testing, Beganovic was the fastest driver at Jerez finishing the second day with a 1:29.900. He also ended the Barcelona test on top leading the afternoon session on Day 2.
I’m super happy to confirm that I’m staying for another year with my team, PREMA Racing, in Formula 3. It’s very nice to stay with the team as it will be our fifth year together. I cannot wait to continue the work we have done together throughout the years, starting from Formula 4. Our targets are clear and have been set high, but they are achievable. We will continue to focus on the testing sessions to prepare as much as possible for the first race next year.
Beganovic on the seat.
We always enjoyed working with Dino. He is a quick and knowledgeable driver and works really well in our team’s environment. With the experience gained this year, he will make his challenge even more solid and by what we saw so far in testing, there is great promise for sure. We are very happy to continue the path we started together in 2020, and we look forward to seeing what the future will bring.
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?…
Zak O’Sullivan was the driver to beat in the opening Free Practice session in Budapest. The PREMA Racing driver clocked in a 1:32.701 to take the top spot during the first half of the session.
Mari Boya started MP Motorsport weekend strong in second, three-tenths off the #3 car and Paul Aron secured third moments before the session ended early due to a red flag.
On his debut at the Hungaroring, Max Esterson took advantage of every opportunity to learn the track. Setting the initial time to beat with a 1:35.804s.
Williams Academy junior, Luke Browning took the lead with a 1:33.726 putting the Hitech Pulse Eight car 0.792s clear of Nikola Tsolov. Jenzer Motorsport’s Nikita Bedrin joined Browning inside the 1:33s as the remained of the field slowly peeled out of the pits.
PREMA Racing assumed the top of the timing sheets. Dino Beganovic went fastest with a 1:33.186 which was immediately beaten by O’Sullivan’s 1:32.702 and Aron joined his teammates inside the top three.
Rafael Villagomez brought out the Red Flag with six minutes remaining, the Van Amersfoort driver spun and crashed into the barriers at Turns 11 and 12.
Qualifying-
PREMA Racing’s Zak O’Sullivan stormed his way to his second FIA Formula 3 pole position and secured his and the Italian squad’s first pole position of the 2023 season.
Dino Beganovic couldn’t quite get close enough to his teammate’s 1:31.091 and had to settle for second, 0.403s off the Briton’s pace. Leonardo Fornaroli led Trident’s charge as he secured third.
After a dry and humid free practice, conditions changed for Qualifying and the field faced a slippery albeit drying Hungaroring. With drivers getting in banker laps early, with Fornaroli setting the early pace.
The red flag brought the session to a pause with 22 minutes on the clock. Oliver Gray got caught out around the slippery track, hitting the barriers out of Turn 3 but managed to crawl his way back to the pitlane.
As the clocked ticked down, so did the lap times. Hugh Barter went quickest momentarily with a 1:33.784, before Boya, Mini and Mansell all found even more margin out front.
O’Sullivan responded, going fastest in all three sectors to lay down a 1:31.091 with four minutes to go. As the medium tyres faded away, few could improve and the Williams junior’s time remained untouchable.
The full top 10 are- P1: O’Sullivan, P2: Beganovic, P3: Fornaroli, P4: Colapinto, P5: Goethe, P6: Aron, P7: Tsolov, P8: Edgar, P9: Bortoleto and P10: Mansell.
Reserve pole sitter, Vesti got things underway with a rolling start, pulling well clear of Isack Hadjar, Pourchaire and Bearman, who dispatched Enzo Fittipaldi with a brave move around the out of Becketts.
Further down the order, Brad Benavides spun off at the loop after being tagged by Clement Novalak, as the pair tried to avoid a slowing Ayumu Iwasa.
Once the safety car went in on Lap 3, Vesti once again nailed his getaway steadily began building his advantage out front. Teammate Bearman wasted no time dispatching two cars in one lap.
Fittipaldi and Victor Martins were locked in battle over sixth. From the loop, the pair were side-by-side until the Rodin car was able to sweep into Copse to keep the position.
As conditions slowly improved, Doohan caught Bearman on lap 11 to set up fight for the remaining laps. Up ahead, Pourchaire utilised his better traction out of Club to snatch second from Hadjar on Lap 12.
Doohan and Bearman then resumed their battle on lap 17. Desperate to keep the place after Doohan got alongside him out of Stowe, Bearman locked-up into Vale and ended running up into the gravel.
The full top 10 are- P1: Vesti, P2: Pourchaire, P3: Doohan, P4: Fittipaldi, P5: Hadjar, P6: Bearman, P7: Martins, P8: Leclerc, P9: Nissany and P10: Maloney.
Day 3-
Ayumu Iwasa got a lightning start from third, immediately getting the better of pole sitter Martins off the line. However, the ART Grand Prix instantly fought it back, diving up the inside of the loop to retake the lead.
Meanwhile, second-place Kush Maini got bogged down off the line, allowing Oliver Bearman to move up into third and Enzo Fittipaldi dived up past Jack Doohan for fourth.
Martins already had a 4.5s advantage before the first Safety Car arrived on Lap 7 following a spin for Amaury Cordeel at Stowe. The ART driver and the top six soft tyre runners took the opportunity to complete their mandatory stops.
Racing resumed on lap 11, Hadjar was able to put a gap between himself and Leclerc, while Doohan lost out to both Maloney and Pourchaire. Further back, Championship leader Frederik Vesti was caught up in a crash at Vale, tagged from behind by Dennis Hauger. The contact knocking him straight into Roman Stanek’s Trident, triggering a second Safety Car.
On Lap 17, Martins was handed a five-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage just as the Safety Car made a third appearance of the day.
The full top 10 are- P1: Martins, P2: Maloney, P3: Pourchaire, P4: Doohan, P5: Iwasa, P6: Daruvala, P7: Fittipaldi, P8: Bearman, P9: Leclerc and P10: Crawford.
Marti retained his lead off the line, but Oliver Goethe didn’t pull away cleanly as he dropped down from fourth to 27th, where as Aron was flying and got up to third by the end of the first lap.
On Lap 2, Trident’s Gabriel Bortoleto dropped down to 14th having been in ninth after a slow exit out of Turn 3 but the Brazilian was quick to start his fightback, taking 13th from Mari Boya and then 12th from Dino Beganovic.
The Safety Car was deployed on Lap 11 after contact between Oliver Gray and Rafael Villagomez at Turn 4. The VAR driver was spun around following contact with the Rodin Carlin car, where the Brit had nowhere to go to avoid him.
Aron had closed on Marti gradually lap after lap following the restart and on Lap 18, he cleared the Spanish driver into Turn3 3, fending off Mini in the process who’d put them all three-wide entering the corner.
Collet dived to the inside of Marti at the final corner on the penultimate lap to move himself into third, and O’Sullivan capitalised on his lost momentum to pass Marti for fourth.
The full top 10 are- P1: Aron, P2: Mini, P3: Collet, P4: O’Sullivan, P5: Edgar, P6: Marti, P7: Frederick, P8: Beganovic, P9: Montoya and P10: Bortoleto.
Day 3-
Gregoire Saucy held onto pole from lights out whilst Bortoleto had to fend off pressure from Paul Aron to keep hold of third. Further back, Gabriele Mini had slight contact with Luke Browning at Turn 4. The Hitech driver was sent across the gravel and was left out the race, which prompted a safety car on lap 2.
Racing got back underway entering Lap 5 with Saucy able to build up a small gap to Dino Beganovic behind him. The ART driver couldn’t escape the one-second DRS window though, and the Swede was through for P1 on Lap 7 under breaking at Turn 4.
Aron made a late dive down the inside of Bortoleto at Turn 3 to take third position on Lap 10. One lap later he tried the same on Saucy but had no room to make it stick.
In the fight for the lead, Bortoleto was able to slipstream his way past Beganovic for P1 into Turn 4 on Lap 13, while Aron was finally forced to out for a new front wing due to contact.
Further back, Caio Collet and Sebastian Montoya made progress up the top 10, passing Kaylen Frederick to take fifth and sixth places.
The full top 10 are- P1: O’Sullivan, P2: Bortoleto, P3: Collet, P4: Colapinto, P5: Beganovic, P6: Edgar, P7: Mansell, P8: Barter, P9: Marti and P10: Fornaroli.
Frederik Vesti started the Barcelona weekend where he left off in Monte Carlo, ending the opening session of the weekend P1 for PREMA.
The Dane set a 1:26.722 to lead from Oliver Bearman, as the Italian team looked comfortable around the circuit. Jehan Daruvala was third for MP Motorsport, 0.3s down on Vesti’s session topping effort.
A red flag was thrown with just over 20 minutes to go following a spin for Victor Martins coming out of Turn 10. The ART Grand Prix driver lost the back end of the car and couldn’t get going again.
Enzo Fittipaldi made a late improvement to jump up into third position until he lost his time for exceeding track limits, his next lap put him into the top five.
Qualifying-
Oliver Bearman denied Enzo Fittipaldi pole position by just 0.077s with a 1:23.546 in the final moments of Qualifying. The Rodin Carlin provisionally held the top spot until the PREMA Racing driver’s late effort was just good enough to beat the Brazilian. Jack Doohan will be hoping to realign his season, going from P3 on the feature race.
Victor Martins led the field out of the pitlane as the light went green to get Qualifying underway. The Frenchman set the initial benchmark but that was swift beaten by those behind.
PREMA Racing opted to run both of their drivers in the gap after the first efforts were complete, joined on track by only the MP Motorsport drivers. Hauger took the sport with a 1:23.923 while Jehan Daruvala lifted himself up to third.
With 10 minutes left, the next flurry of laptimes arrived and it was Theo Pourchaire who went to the top of the times. That was until Enzo Fittipaldi set a 1:23.623 to put himself P1 once again.
The full top 10 are: P1: Bearman, P2: Fittipaldi, P3: Doohan, P4: Iwasa, P5: Pourchaire, P6: Hauger, P7: Martins, P8: Vesti, P9: Crawford and P10: Amaury Cordeel.
Ayumu Iwasa ended a frantic Free Practice session fastest of all as the DAMS man set a 1:22.081 to lead the grid. The Japanese driver got his best lap in prior to the third Red Flag of the incident session.
Next to him was Victor Martins for ART Grand Prix, whilst Richard Verschoor ended up third for Van Amersfoort Racing but found himself in the barriers in the closing minutes.
The first Red Flag came early into the session, as we saw contact between Ralph Boschung and Roman Stanek, with both cars having to be recovered.
The second Red Flag of the session came out with just over 20 minutes remaining after Bearman lost the rear of his PREMA at Turn 8 and nosed into the barriers.
Day 2-
With Monte Carlo Qualifying split into two groups of 11, the random ballot allocated the even numbered cars into Group A and odd numbered cars going second in Group B.
The first 16 minute segment began with several warm-up laps but it was Victor Martins who set the initial benchmark. But it didn’t stay that way for long as Richard Verschoor was next to hit the top spot just before a red flag was waved due to home-hero Arthur Leclerc who tagged the barriers and saw him out of the session.
With a 1:21.231 to beat, group B headed out for their turn and Dennis Hauger laid down the first effort. His 1:22.979 was bettered by several, but it was Theo Pourchaire who went quickest overall.
Plenty of personal bests followed but the ART Grand Prix man remained on top with a 1:21.354 ahead of Zane Maloney and Frederik Vesti by a tenth with less than five minutes to go.
The Dane put in three purple sectors on his following attempt to go top with a 1:21.053 ensuring Group B was fighting for pole. It was enough for pole as on the final attempts, Clement Novalak hit the barriers at Portier to bring out the Red Flags, ending the session early.
Formula 2 was back at the weekend for Round 4, lets take a look at how the weekend went/
Day 1, Practice-
Oliver Bearman wasted no time getting up to speed on his first visit to Baku, topping the opening session of Formula 2 weekend and ending Free Practice fastest of all.
The PREMA driver went quickest late on gaining a nice slipstream down the main straight to set a 1:54.063. Fellow rookies, Isack Hadjar and Kush Maini followed in second and third places respectively.
The early laps in the session were tricky with the freshly resurfaced circuit offering little grip. Ralph Boschung was the first driver underneath the two minute barrier, but times continued to fall with every lap on the board as the surface continued to clean up.
With just over one minute left of practice, Arthur Leclerc spun in his DAMS out of the first corner, bringing out the Red Flags and ending the session early.
Qualifying-
Oliver Bearman turned his fortunes around in the final seconds of a tense Qualifying session in Baku to claim his first Formula 2 pole position. Utilising the slipstream from the train of cars ahead, the PREMA Racing rookie stole first from Rodin Carlin’s Enzo Fittipaldi by just 0.012s at the chequered flag.
Less the a tenth of a second separated the front-runners, as Theo Pourchaire and Frederik Vesti benefitted late on to seal their spots in third and fourth.
After a delayed start to running, an early Red Flag halted the session inside the opening seven minutes before any representative laps could be put on the board. Brad Benavides overshot the entry to Turn 1 and planted the PHM Racing by Charouz car into the barriers.
With the tow around the Baku City Circuit proving so powerful, drivers squabbled for track position entering the final stages. Punching in a 1:53.271, Vesti went 0.085s clear of Pourchaire on his penultimate lap, just as PREMA Racing teammate Bearman brushed the barriers at the exit of Turn 2, bending his steering in the process.
Day 2, Sprint Race-
Oliver Bearman demonstrated that to finish first in Baku – first you have to finish, as the British rookie claimed his first Formula 2 victory in a dramatic Sprint Race.
Off the back of his maiden pole position, he lined up 9th on the grid and carved his way through the field to snatch the win from teammate Frederik Vesti.
A late restart with only three laps to go brought drama, as race leader Dennis Hauger and second-placed Victor Martins crashed out. The PREMA pair were there to pick up the pieces as the race concluded behind the third and final Safety Car. HiTech Pulse-Eight’s Jak Crawford also kept himself out of trouble to take his second podium in third.
Reserve pole sitter Verschoor didn’t hold the lead for long. Contact with the wall at Turn 1 left the Van Amersfoort Racing driver with damage and forced to retire.
After making his way up into the points, Ralph Boschung’s race came to an end on Lap 3, clipping the inside wall at Turn 11. His retirement triggered an early Safety Car appearance.
Locking up his front left tyre, on the approach to Turn 15, Roy Nissany found the wall on the exit, which brought out the Safety Car once again.
The full top 10 are: P1: Bearman, P2: Vesti, P3: Crawford, P4: Maini, P5: Fittipaldi, P6: Correa, P7: Novalak, P8: Stanek, P9: Cordeel and P10: Benavides.
Day 3, Feature Race-
Oliver Bearman made it a clean sweep in Baku, adding the Feature Race victory to his Sprint win from Saturday. The PREMA Racing driver put together a controlled race at the front, managing the gap to rivals behind him after losing the lead briefly early on,
Enzo Fittipaldi secured his first rostrum visit of 2023 for Rodin Carlin with second place, pulling off a move around the outside of Theo Pourchaire in the closing stages.
Martins’ charge continued as Frederik Vesti became the first driver to peel into the pits and swap the supersofts for mediums on Lap 7. He was followed in by Jehan Daruvala, Arthur Leclerc and Ralph Boschung, kicking off the first of the mandatory pitstops.
The Virtual Safety Car was deployed briefly after Brad Benavides found the barriers at Turn 4. His PHM Racing by Charouz car was quickly recovered and racing resumed on Lap 11.
There was a few close calls for Bearman during the middle phase of the race, almost scraping the wall at Turn 15 on multiple laps as he began to drop Pourchaire to the tune of 2.3s by Lap 20.
The full top 10 are: P1: Bearman, P2: Fittipaldi, P3: Pourchaire, P4: Vesti, P5: Maini, P6: Hauger, P7: Hadjar, P8: Verschoor, P9: Crawford and P10: Leclerc.
Franco Colapinto was victorious in an event-filled Sprint Race, winning from P6 on the grid. The MP Motorsport driver put an impressive move on pole-sitter Sebastian Montoya at Turn 9 to take the lead early on.
Zak O’Sullivan made a late-race pass on reverse pole-sitter Montoya to take second. The Hitech Pulse-Eight driver held on for a podium in third as the race ended under the Safety Car.
But after the race was complete, Franco Colapinto lost the Melbourne Sprint Race victory following a post-race inspection found a technical infringement on his car.
Pieces of bodywork were found to be outside of the regulatory limits, contravening Articles 1.2 and 2.5 of the Technical Regulations. Modifications to the geometry of the parts in question are prohibited by the rules outside of basic repairs.
MP Motorsport drivers, Mari Boya and Jonny Edgar have also been disqualified from the race for the same technical infringement as was found on Colapinto’s car.
It means that PREMA Racing’s Zak O’Sullivan inherits the victory, promoting Hitech Pulse-Eight’s Sebastian Montoya to 2nd and Paul Aron to 3rd.
The full top 10 after the disqualifications are: P1: Sullivan, P2: Montoya, P3: Aron, P4: Mini, P5: Beganovic, P6: Bortoleto, P7: Fornaroli, P8: Saucy, P9: Mansell and P10: Frederick.
Day 3-
Gabriel Bortoleto made it two Feature Race wins in Formula 3 out of two, keeping Gregoire Saucy at bay for his second victory of the year. The Trident driver led every lap from pole position, leading through two safety car restarts in what was a measured performance.
Saucy was on the podium for ART Grand Prix for the first time this season in second, finishing just 0.5s down on the winner. Gabriele Mini was third for HiTech Pulse-Eight.
On Lap 2, Franco Colapinto claimed seventh from Luke Browning on the run to Turn 3 but his joy was short-lived. The MP Motorsport driver made brief contact with the Brit completing the move and sustained a puncture, which sent him into the barriers at Turn 5 and out of the race.
Josep Maria Marti was on a charge, he went from 30th to 21st on the first lap alone and he was battling Campos Racing teammate Mansell for 12th.
Contact between Ido Cohen and Rafael Villagomez out of Turn 4 the following lap spun the Rodin Carlin man into the barriers, bringing out the Safety Car once more. The Van Amersfoort Racing man was handed a 10 second time penalty for the incident.
Once we went back to racing conditions on Lap 16 and Marti was on the move again clearing Goethe into Turn 4 to take 11th position, that then became 10th on Lap 18 after he put a brave move on Jonny Edgar going around the outside at Turn 9.
The full top 10 are: P1: Bortoleto, P2: Saucy, P3: Mini, P4: Fornaroli, P5: Sullivan, P6: Aron, P7: Marti, P8: Browning, P9: Barnard and P10: Mansell.
Formula 3 is not back now until the 19th to 21st May for Round 3 in Imola. However they do have in-season testing on the 13-14th April in Barcelona.
PREMA Racing have announced that Marta Garcia will be joining them, becoming the 15th and final driver confirmed for the all-women series.
The Spanish racer, had a successful karting career, winning the 2015 CIK-FIA Karting Academy Trophy and the prestigious Trofeo delle Industrie.
Making the step up to single-seaters in 2016, she undertook a partial Spanish F4 campaign, before returning for a full season the following year. There she took 14 points-scoring finishes in 20 races to claim ninth in the standings.
From there, Garcia switched to W Series in 2019, finishing fourth in her rookie season with one win and two podiums. Returning for the 2021 and 2022 campaigns, the 22 year old went to score two further podium finishes and a maiden pole position in Singapore last year.
I’m super happy to be racing for PREMA in F1 Academy. I think this is a great opportunity for me to show what I am capable of and it’s great to do it with PREMA, which is one of the best operations in motorsport. I’m looking forward to working with them and putting their colours at the front in this new series.
Garcia on her seat.
We are looking forward to racing together with Garcia as she had some impressive showings in the past. We think she can be a leading competitor in the F1 Academy field so to join forces was really natural. She also has a good amount of experience which is a bonus asset for the whole team.
Chloe Chong has become PREMA Racing’s second signing for the F1 Academy’s first campaign, with the British-Canadian racer joining Bianca Bustamante at the Italian team.
After beginning competing in karts in the UK back in 2013, she made her first foray into the international karting scene in 2021, racing in the Rotax Max Euro Trophy and the IAME Ladies Cup in France.
Last year saw Chong race in the British Kart Championships X30 Junior Class and achieve one of the four finalist spots in the FIA Girls on Track Rising Star Programme.
Speaking about the announcement, Chong said she is excited to continue her development as she progresses from karting to single-seater racing.
This will be my first year in cars and it’s a dream come true to have been given the opportunity to make my debut with such a renowned team as PREMA. I look forward to working with them, both in and out of the car to form some solid foundations and results in F1 Academy.
Chloe on her new seat.
We always relish the chance to welcome new drivers from karting and having Chloe on board for her auto racing debut in our new F1 Academy team is particularly exciting. She has been impressive so far and she demonstrated it through the FIA Girls On Track – Rising Star selections and the FDA Scouting Camp. We think we spotted some great potential in terms of driving and mentality and knowing that she has so much road ahead makes us confident about our future together.
PREMA Racing have announced that Filipino driver, Bianca Bustamante is the first driver in their three-car line up for the F1 Academy season.
Bustamante made her single-seater debut last year, competing in W Series, scoaring points in her first race with a ninth-place finish in Miami.
The 18 year old went on to end the season 15th in the drivers’ standings, claiming the top rookie honours.
Bustamante is currently competing in the Formula 4 UAE Championship with PREMA ahead of her debut in the all-female series, where she scored her first points of the season at the third round in Kuwait.
I’m very excited to be joining PREMA for the 2023 season. As a rookie in formula cars, 2022 was a year full of challenges, but today is definitely a big step up in my career. PREMA is one of the most prestigious racing organisations in the world, and I’m incredibly grateful to join their family of drivers. With PREMA, I’m joining a top driver development programme both on and off the race track, and most importantly, I will have a rigorous race and test programme, giving me the much-needed seat time to perform at my best in competition. Thank you PREMA for bringing me into the programme, and Formula 1 for launching this series to support young female drivers. Most importantly, thanks to Laurence Escalante for believing in me and supporting my journey, getting me one step closer to my F1 dreams.
Bustamante on her seat.
We are happy to announce Bianca for our new F1 Academy programme. We enjoy working together in the F4 UAE Championship and we feel there is great potential we can build on for the future. I think she will be an outstanding fit right from the start, especially considering what she was able to achieve in her first experiences, and we are determined to provide her with our best support.
The all woman F1 Academy series have confirmed the team line-up for the inaugural campaign in 2023.
Five veteran outfits in junior categories have confirmed their entries for next year with ART Grand Prix, Campos Racing, Carlin, MP Motorsport and PREMA Racing fielding three cars each to comprise the 15 car grid.
Each team has an established history in junior racing including the Formula 2 and Formula 3 Championships, and will now be adding the all-women driver category to their motorsport setup from next year.
F1 Academy focuses on young women drivers emerging in the junior ranks and aiding them in progressing to the higher levels of single seater racing.
The first season will include seven events and with such experienced teams forming the ’23 line up, the drivers will gain vital experience both in and out of the car, helping each achieve their full potential.
It is exciting to be able to announce the five teams that will be racing in the F1 Academy for next year and who will be providing this fantastic opportunity to the young and talented women to begin their journey into competitive motorsport. We believe it is important that everyone has the chance to follow their ambitions and get the support and guidance needed to progress and excel. The F1 Academy is an important part of our plan to increase diversity and representation in motorsport and we are looking forward to the first season in 2023 and stay tuned for more news in this area.
Stefano Domenicali, President and CEO of Formula 1.
I am very pleased to reveal the five teams entering the F1 Academy for the next three-year cycle, starting from 2023. We know them very well and we have been collaborating with each one for many years. They are well-known for their experience and expertise in nurturing and developing young drivers. I fully trust that they will give the drivers competing in the F1 Academy the keys to grow technically, and that they will help them with the physical and mental preparations for the journey ahead.
Frederik Vesti will be driving for PREMA Racing, the team has confirmed. The Dane will swap from ART Grand Prix for next season, reuniting with the Italian team for the first time since 2020.
During his last spell with PREMA, Vesti captured the Formula Regional European Championship title in 2019, the following year he finished fourth in the FIA Formula 3 Championship before switching to ART for the 2021 F3 season.
This year, Vesti finished ninth in the Driver’s Championship on 117 points in what was his rookie F2 campaign, he took a maiden victory in Baku Spritn Race and a further four podium finishes.
We are delighted to welcome Frederik back. He is a quick and hard-working driver, which we already had the chance to appreciate in 2019 and 2020. We are obviously looking forward to joining forces again and seeing what we will be able to achieve together next season. With his skills and the experience, he has matured. We expect him to be a contender and we are determined to support him the best way we can.
Rene Rosin, PREMA Team Principal.
To join PREMA Racing for the 2023 Formula 2 season is great news for me. I have known PREMA since 2019 when we won the Formula Regional European Championship together. PREMA is an amazing place to be at and in my opinion gives me the best opportunity to fight for the F2 title in 2023! I have big dreams and PREMA is the team I believe that I can achieve those dreams with. There is no doubt that 2023 F2 is going to be incredibly close, but I will give my everything to be fast and consistent throughout the season.
PRMEA Racing have announced that Williams junior, Zak O’Sullivan will be joining them for his second Formula 3 season, completing their driver line-up for the 2023 campaign.
17 year old O’Sullivan finished 11th in the Drivers’ Championship this year for Carlin with 54 points and two podiums – including a spectacular showing on home soil in Silverstone where he claimed his first F3 pole position.
He will be partnering Mercedes Junior, Paulo Aron and Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine Champion and Ferrari backed junior, Dino Beganovic as the Italian team aim to retain their Teams’ Championship title.
O’Sullivan’s single-seater career began in 2019 and has included plenty of success for the British race. In his first two years racing, he finished second in both the Ginetta Junior Championship and the F4 British Championship.
In 2021, he dominated the field on his way to the GB3 Championship title, racking up seven wins, 14 podiums and five pole positions on his way to glory – earning him a promotion to F3 in 2022 and a spot in the Williams Driver Academy.
Making his debut with PREMA at the post-season testing in Jerez, O’Sullivan finished five out of the six sessions inside the top 10 clocking in the third fastest time of Day 2’s morning session.
I am really excited to be joining PREMA for the 2023 FIA Formula 3 season. It will be a new environment for me, but PREMA’s history says all we need to know, so hopefully, we can have a good year together. The first impressions in testing were good, and the pace was pretty strong. I was still learning the car as there are a few differences, getting to know all the team and the engineers, and learning some Italian as well!
Zak on his new move.
We are particularly looking forward to working with Zak. We are impressed by what he achieved in his maiden FIA F3 season and his career so far. He will bring in his experience, which is something we always really value, and he already did an outstanding job in post-season testing. That will boost our preparations for 2023, and we are confident we will see Zak thrive in our environment. We are equally delighted to work with the Williams Driver Academy, and we are grateful for the trust they have put into us.
PREMA Racing have announced that Ferrari junior, Oliver Bearman will be graduating to Formula 2 with the team for the 2023 season.
The 17 year old will be getting his first taste of F2 machinery during the post-season test at the Yas Marina Circuit from November 23rd to 25th.
Bearman steps up on the back of an impressive rookie season in Formula 3 with the Italian team, where he finished third in the Drivers’ Championship. Along the way, he claimed eight podiums, including a maiden victory in Spa-Francorchamps and his efforts helped PREMA to regain the teams title.
The British driver, already has an impressive single-seater CV with 2023 set to be only his fourth season in single-seaters. In 2021, he broke new ground as he became the first driver to achieve two Formula 4 titles in the same year by winning the ADAC and Italian F4 Championships.
I’m really excited to continue another year with the PREMA family, this time in F2. I’m really happy with how my first season went in F3. It was a really nice introduction and I felt like the team coached me throughout the year really well. I will continue to work hard over the winter with the Ferrari Driver Academy, in order to be fully prepared for 2023. It will be a tough challenge, but everyone works so hard and I’m really looking forward to the challenge. I’m already really excited for the test in Abu Dhabi and for the first round of 2023 in Bahrain.
Ollie on his move.
We were amazed by how quickly and successfully Ollie transitioned from F4 to Formula 3 racing. He is a really talented driver, and while he will be making his first steps in the FIA Formula 2 Championship, we are confident he will improve race by race with the support of our team and the Ferrari Driver Academy as well. It won’t be easy, because the step from F3 to F2 is considerable, but we are confident in his potential for the season ahead.
PREMA Racing have announced that Dino Beganovic will be graduating to FIA Formula 3 with the team next year, off the back of his title-winning season in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine.
The 18 year old made his single-seater debut with the Italian squad in 2020, finishing third in Italian Formula 4. Moving up to FRECA the following year, Beganovic took one podium during his maiden campaign before returning for a second outing this season.
Dominating the start of the campaign, Beganovic claimed four victories on his way to being crowned Champion at the penultimate race in Mugello.
The Ferrari junior had a successful showing for PREMA in his first outing in F3 machinery during the post-season test in Jerez last month, clocking in the second fastest time of Day 1’s afternoon session.
I am extremely happy to be racing with PREMA, my team, in the 2023 FIA Formula 3 Championship. It will be our fourth year together, and I’m very proud to continue working together. PREMA has an amazing history in Formula 3 and won at least one championship per year there. I think it is definitely a step in the right direction for my future and for the team, as we have been working for a long time together. Testing in Jerez put us in a good position with the preparations for next year, and we want to continue from that.
Dino Beganovic on his new seat.
We have been working with Dino since the very beginning of his single seater career, and we are elated to continue for 2023. We went through Formula 4 and Formula Regional with increasingly impressive results together, and his run in FRECA shows how competent and outstanding he has become as a driver. The 2023 season will be a key step in shaping the rest of his career and there is great promise. We are willing to support Dino in making a positive impact right from the start, and we will work as hard as possible throughout the winter months.
PREMA Racing has confirmed one driver for their Formula 3 2023 season, with Paul Aron making the step up to the series.
The Mercedes Junior driver, has driven for PREMA almost exclusively since his single-seater debut in Italian F4 back in 2019. Since then, he returned to the outfit for his Formula Regioanl European Championship by Alpine efforts in 2021 and ’22, most recently achieving a P3 finish in the drivers standings last season.
The 18 year old, currently sits third in the Championship on 176 points, with four victories and a further two podium finishes to his name in 2022.
As a member of the Mercedes F1 Junior driver set-up, Aron will complete the remaining races of the 2022 FRECA campaign before turning his attentions to F3 and the 2023 season with the PREMA team.
I am very, very happy, excited, and thankful to join a team like PREMA in the FIA Formula 3 Championship for the 2023 season. They proved themselves year after year, always having three cars on top and showing great pace. I am delighted to spend another year with them, and I am confident they will give me the best possible package to fight for the win. I am really looking forward to seeing what we will be able to achieve next year.
Aron said.
We are extremely delighted to continue working with Paul. We have always been aware of his winning potential, and we think he will keep producing impressive runs in the future, even in a very competitive and highly-challenging environment like Formula 3. It will be a learning year, but we are sure there will be many chances to challenge for high-profile results, so our goal is to push right from the winter preparations to be ready for 2023.
Maloney had a great launch off the line and got alongside Alexander Smolyar into Turn 1 to take the lead on the inside. Martins managed to clear Stanek into the first corner after making use of the tow.
A safety car was deployed on the opening lap after contact between Villagomez and Vidales at the second Lesmo with both ending up in the gravel and out of the race. The green flags were back out entering Lap 4 and race leader Maloney went halfway down the back straight.
The PREMA Racing drivers weren’t taking things easy against one another. Leclerc managed to re-pass Bearman on the first lap back to racing, using the exact move the Briton pulled on him at the start.
Isack Hadjar wasn’t having a good feature race and found himself well out of contention. He was relegated to 14th by Reece Ushijima on Lap 11 into Turn 1.
The Safety Car was back out on Lap 16 after Kush Miami and Brad Benavides crashed out of the second Lesmo. The debris and barrier repair required the red flag, with five laps of the 2022 season to go. As things stood at the red flag, Martins held the lead of the Championship with Maloney 2nd and Bearman third. As the drivers sat in the pitlane it was confirmed that the race would not restart whilst Martins was simultaneously handed a five second time penalty for exceeding track limits.
The classification was taken from count back which meant with Martins’ time penalty applied and a further penalty for track limits violation for Alatalo taken into account, the Frenchman finished P4, the 12 points for fourth ensured he had enough to seal the Driver’s Championship.
The full top 10 are- P1: Maloney, P2: Bearman, P3: Crawford, P4: Martins, P5: Leclerc, P6: Stanek, P7: Alatalo, P8: Edgar, P9: Hadjar and P10: Ushijima.
The Championship-
With the feature race results, Victor Martins takes the 2022 Formula 3 Drivers’ Championship on 139 points. Zane Maloeny and Oliver Bearman rounded out the top 3 in the standings on 134 and 132 points.
PREMA Racing secured the Teams’ Championship ahead of Trident in P2, and ART Grand Prix keeps third.
A massive congratulations to Victor! A well deserved Championship for the Frenchman, hopefully we get to see him graduate to Formula 2 next year! But overall, a massive congratulations to all the title contenders, amazing season by them all!
Zak O’Sullivan retained the lead from pole into La Source with teammate Benavides attempting to wrestle second from Juan Manuel Correa. With the two on the Kemmel Straight, the ART driver turned defence into attack, taking the lead but only momentarily.
Title rival, Victor Martins meanwhile had made his way up to 16th by the time the Safety Car was deployed but had jumped the start, he was handed a drive-through penalty as a result.
A wide moment, from Oliver Goethe heading into Stavelot left the Campos driver under pressure from the Trident duo of Roman Stanek and Zane Maloney. Stanek was able to clear the Monegasque driver for fifth but contact on the exit of Blanchimont between Goethe and Maloney resulted in a big crash for the pair, but thankfully both drivers were able to walk away from their cars.
Leclerc’s charge continued at the expense of Benavides, another DRS pass down the Kemmel Straight moved him up to fifth position and within range of Edgar as a result of the latter’s pending time penalty.
The full top 10 are- P1: Bearman, P2: Stanek, P3: Smolyar, P4: Edgar, P5: Leclerc, P6: Alatalo, P7: Vidales, P8: Benavides, P9: Hadjar and P10: Collet.
Day 3-
Having become the seventh different driver to take pole this season, Collet lined up on the front row along side Maloney whilst four of the top five in the Championship found themselves starting P20 or lower.
Maloney’s time out front didn’t last long as he was ordered to give the place back by his team. In the mean time, Goethe had gotten past Collet for P2, forcing the Trident to drop down to third behind the MP in order to return the position.
Disaster soon struck for title contender, Martins. The ART Grand Prix driver found himself collected in chaos ahead as Kush Maini overshot the corner sending him into the side of Pizzi, tagging Ido Cohen and Martins.
No sooner than the action resumed did the safety car return to the track after Gregoire Saucy and Josep Maria Marti touched wheels, resulting in the early retirement of a second ART car.
Having been handed a five second penalty for rejoining the track unsafely, Collet knew it was time to be strategic as he battled with Stanek for second.
As the penultimate lap began, it was Bearman’s time to strike as Goethe went too deep into Turn 1, the pair flew up side-by-side into Eau Rouge, but the Prema Racing driver cautiously decided to back out and go again one lap later.
The full top 10 are- P1: Maloney, P2: Stanek, P3: Bearman, P4: Goethe, P5: Edgar, P6: Collet, P7: Vidales, P8: Alatalo, P9: Smolyar and P10: Ushijima.
We don’t have long to wait till the next round, we are back next weekend and are in Zandvoort for Round 8, we only have two rounds left now…
Holding his nerve until the final few minutes of the race, Isack Hadjar took the victory out of Victor Martins hands, with a breath-taking lunge around the ART Grand Prix driver on the penultimate lap was enough to secure his second Formula 3 win in his rookie season.
Martins was forced to settle for second after sustaining pressure from rookie, Reece Ushijima in the final few laps, a brilliant effort from the Van Amersfoort Racing driver, who started on reverse grid pole, paid off to seal his maiden F3 podium in third.
12th placed qualifier, Reece Ushijima had a little bit longer to wait to get off the line in his highest ever starting position. Ushijima had to led the field for a second formation lap after an issue for a slow Brad Benavides led to an aborted start.
Determined to make up for a disappointing Fridays, Martins wasted no time driving up the inside of Ushijima to snatch the lead of the race and the VAR racer found himself under a bit of pressure from Maini going side-by-side in the opening sectors.
But the full top 10 are- P1: Hadjar, P2: Martins, P3: Ushijima, P4: Maini, P5: Frederick, P6: Stanek, P7: Maloney, P8: Leclerc, P9: Bearman and P10: Crawford.
Day 3-
Zak O’Sullivan covered off Arthur Leclerc to retain the lead in the opening corners. Jak Crawford fought with Zane Maloney for third but was squeezed out by the Trident driver, allowing PREMA teammater Ollie Bearman to gain a run onto the Wellington Straight. The Briton tried to hang it around the outside, but Maloney made his Trident as wide as possible, heading into Luffield, Bearman didn’t back out which resulted in contact which spun the Bajan off track and down the order.
Looking at the front of the gird, Leclerc had fought back and with a two down Hangar Straight, swept around the outside of O’Sullivan into Stowe. Just as the move happened the Safety Car was deployed and Leclerc relinquished the position to the Brit.
O’Sullivan got a good restart, but Leclerc had clung with him and with DRS enabled on Lap 6, the Monegasque made a move and led the race. Hadjar and Crawford were fighting for fifth and the pair came to blows on Lap 8. Side-by-side out of the final corner and down the main straight, the duo entered Abbey with Crawford on the outside but just ahead, Hadjar narrowly clipped the rear right tyre of the PREMA driver, sending him off track and down to P8.
A slight collision between Gregoire Saucy and Roman Stanek required both to pit at the end of lap 9 for repairs. The ART GP driver was able to re-join but the Trident driver was out of the race. Another Safety car was deployed, following a crash for Rafael Villagomez at Copse. Contact with Nazim Azmna resulted in the front wing becoming stuck underneath the VAR driver’s car, sending him straight into the barriers.
With just three laps remaining, the top five was separated by just 1.5s, Bearman had been shaping up a move on Collet for several laps and finally made a lunge into Brookland on the penultimate lap for third.
However, Leclerc was untroubled and secured his third victory in F3 and his first of the 2022 season! O’Sullivan came home to finish 2nd, his first podium in F3 and infront of his home crowd. And Ollie Bearman finished the podium places, in front of his home crowd aswell.
The full top 10 are- P1: Leclerc, P2: O’Sullivan, P3: Bearman, P4: Collet, P5: Hadjar, P6: Crawford, P7: Martins, P8: Edgar, P9: Vidales and P10: Ushijima.
We don’t have long to wait until we see F3 cars back on track, we are returning next week for Round 5 at Spielberg, Austria from the 8th to 10th July!
Speaking ahead of the Sprint Race, Mercedes junior Frederik Vesti believed it would be decided on the final lap around Baku, but I don’t think he even could predict what happened. Throwing caution to the wind late on, the ART Grand Prix driver charged his way to the front and to his first victory in Formula 2.
Having led the majority of the race, Jehan Daurvala had to settle for second after three safety cars in the second half of the race wiped away his advantage. Whilst Liam Lawson, demonstrated Baku’s overtaking capabilities as he carved his way through from P9 to get the final podium spot.
Hauger was the first to bring out the safety car as he tried to make a move past Pourchaire into Turn 3, but went straight into the barrier after locking up. Once we was racing again, it didn’t last long as Vips HiTech was cut off by Enzo Fittipaldi and was unable to turn left, sending the duo into the run off area at Turn 2.
Leaving it late on the restart, Daruvala locked up leaving the door wide open for Vesti to storm past the PREMA and up into the lead. Lawson then made his way past Drugovich, and set his sights on Verschoor ahead for P3, unfortunately for the Trident driver he went in to deep at Turn 7 and planted himself in the barriers bringing out the Safety Car.
The full top 10 are- P1: Vesti, P2: Daruvala, P3: Lawson, P4: Armstrong, P5: Drugovich, P6: Sargeant, P7: Pourchaire, P8: Iwasa, P9: Hughes and P10: Nissany.
Day 3-
Dennis Hauger claimed his first F2 Feature Race win after a tense battle with Juri Vips, which saw the Estonian driver crash out of the race. The pair were battling sector by sector in the closing stages and with just over five minuted remaining, the Hitech GP man clipped the wall in the castle section.
Logan Sargeant completed a measured drive to take second, whilst our Championship leader, Felipe Drugovich extended his points advantage finishing third.
Contact between Amaury Cordeel and Olli Caldwell at Turn 4 brought out the Safety Car early on. Racing then resumed on Lap 5, and Marcus Armstrong was immediately on the attack for P2.
The Safety car was then back out on Lap 12 following an incident between Roy Nissany and Cem Bolukbasi – the Charouz Racing driver went into Turn 2 but on the exit the pair made wheel to wheel contact which saw both drivers go into the wall.
Back to back fastest laps for Vips on Lap 19 and 20 but couldn’t quite break Hauger’s pursuit. Vips then clipped the wall with 5 minutes remaining and the frustration was clear on the Estonian’s face when he got out the car. The race finished under the Safety Car due to the HiTech car still being on track and debris.
The top 10 were: P1: Hauger, P2: Sargeant, P3: Drugovich, P4: Daruvala, P5: Verschoor, P6: Fittipaldi, P7: Vesti, P8: Sato, P9: Boschung and P10: Hughes.
We haven’t got that long to wait until we see F2 cars back on track, we have just under 3 weeks and we will be at Silverstone for Round 7 which marks the halfway mark in the championship!
The Formula 3 2022 grid is complete before the first round this weekend in Bahrain, the first of 9 rounds and 18 races across the year.
There are 14 rookies this year, including Zak O’Sullivan in which his come of the back of 3 impressive year, being runner up in Ginetta Junior Championship, runner-up in F4 British Championship and GB3 Champion last year. Ollie Bearman, also comes inot F3 being the ADAC Formula 4 Champion and Italian F4 Champion.
Which drivers should we look out for this season?
Trident drivers, they are coming of the back of winning the 2021 Team standings, and no doubt will be wanting to do it again.
PREMA, you can never ever count out, obviously they have won the drivers championship 3 years in a row. As well as this, Arthur Leclerc has already won one championship this year and it looks like F3 will now be his main focus.
Martins and Collet, both with Alpine Academy will be looking to fight for the championship this year. It is their second year in F3 and will be hoping to move up to F2 next season if they provide the results.
Juan Manuel Correa sticking with ART Grand Prix, hoping to fight for more points this year as he goes into his second year in Formula 3.
Formula 2 has now had all their drivers confirmed for this year. The 2022 season will see a 14 round calendar, and 28 races across the year.
Half of the grid are rookies this year, with reigning Formula 3 Champion, Dennis Hauger making the step up into F2. As well as many different drivers from all different F1 team juniors, but 2022 their will be no Ferrari Driver Academy drivers, with the most recent drivers graduating to other roles…
Which drivers should we look out for this season?
Definitley both PREMA drivers, they will be want to go for both the drivers and teams championship for a third year running.
Liam Lawson moving to Carlin, is definitely one to watch, he had a few reliability issues last year, so if he doesn’t have those this year hopefully he can be a title contender.
ART Grand Prix, have a very strong line-up this year, Pourchaire will be wanting to go for the drivers championship, and Vesti will be wanting to help as the team and possibly fight for the team championship.
Jack Doohan, Olli Caldwell, Jake Hughes and Clement Novalak all stepped into F2 seats last year with some scoring points rather quickly. These 4 are ones to look out for, with scoring points consistently.
Formula 2 is back next Wednesday the 2nd of March in Sakhir, Bahrain for pre-season testing, then 2 weeks later is the first race of the season!
For the first time in FOUR years, Prema will field an all new line-up in Formula Two. With the recent news of Dennis Hauger joining and now Jehan Daruvala.
Red Bull junior, is returning to Prema after being at Carlin for two season in F2. He was with the Italian team in Formula 3 for the 2019 Championship, that was where he challenged for the title, he ended the season in third with two wins and five podiums in total.
When he took the step up into F2, Daruvala took two more podiums which includes a win in his rookie year- where he finished 12th overall. In his second season (2021), he managed to grab two wins, as well as 3 more podiums, in which he ended the year in 7th.
“I’m really happy to be back at PREMA and continue to be part of the Red Bull Junior Team for the 2022 FIA F2 Championship,” said Daruvala. “We have worked together in the past and share a fantastic relationship. PREMA is a champion team and I can’t wait to get started and look forward to a successful F2 campaign.”
Discussing the return of Daruvala, Team Principal René Rosin said: “We have had a great relationship with Jehan when we raced together in FIA F3 and we have deep respect for his skills and work ethics. I think he fits our team very well and I’m looking forward to seeing how much progress he has made in the last couple of years. He performed impressively in post-season testing and he has a great deal of experience also in terms of race formats and procedures. Together with the Red Bull Junior program, we will provide him with all the support he needs to pursue his goals.”
My Opinion-
I think he needs a championship winning team to show what he can do, he knows the team well after competing with them in 2019 so it makes sense for him to only go back to them. Prema have another strong line up once again! And both Red Bull junior drivers in the team.
Prema, have now completed their 2022 line-up with Jak Crawford taking the final seat.
The Red Bull junior, made his debut in Formula 3 in 2021 with HiTech Grand Prix, he finished 13th overall, also in 2021 Jak competed in Euroformula Open Championship where he finished 3rd overall, even after missing two rounds due to his commitment to F3.
The American, made his debut with Prema at post-season testing in Valencia where he finished five out of the six session in the top 10 and led the second day overall.
Crawford started his single-seater career in 2018 where he took second place in the NACAM Formula 4 Championship and moving to the USF 2000 Championship for 2019. In 2020, he made the move to the European racing scene where he joined the Red Bull junior team as well as finishing second in the ADAC Formula 4 Championship.
“I’m very excited to be joining PREMA for a second season of FIA F3 as well as contesting the Formula Regional Asian Championship with them. I am very much looking forward to building on what I learned last year in my rookie season, and hoping to emulate the success that other drivers have had with the team in the past. FIA F3 will be the main focus for me this year and I am eager to get the season underway.” said Crawford.
“We have always kept a close eye on Jak,” added PREMA Team Principal René Rosin. “He established himself as one of the most promising drivers since his Formula 4 days, and finally working together will be extremely interesting. I’m sure that there is enough potential to aim high for 2022. We already had the chance to work with him in testing, and we look forward to continuing that process in the Formula Regional Asian Championship. I’m equally delighted to continue our work with the Red Bull Junior Team in order to develop the next generation of high-profile racing drivers.”
My Opinion-
I think this is the right move, his now got experience in Formula 3, and I think now he is with Prema he will show everyone what he can do and I am personally looking forward to it!
It has been confirmed that Dennis Hauger will be racing in Formula 2 for the 2022 season, he will be sticking with Prema in which he won the Formula 3 Championship with last year.
The 18 year old managed to clinch the title last season, where he got nine podiums, including four wins and three pole positions. But before he managed to clinch the title, he finished 17th with HiTech Grand Prix in 2020 as he initially struggled with the step up to F3.
In 2019, the RedBull backed driver took to victory in the Italian F4 Championship where he won it, which included 12 wins, 7 pole positions and 16 podiums in total. In the same year, Hauger also competed ADAC Formula 4 Championship with Van Amersfoort Racing where he finished 2nd overall with 6 wins, 5 pole positions and 10 podiums in total.
“I’m delighted to continue with PREMA in 2022,” said Hauger, who was the 2019 Italian F4 champion. “We had a good year in 2021 with some amazing teamwork, and I really enjoyed it. I’m extremely happy that they keep believing in me, and I’m looking forward to carrying on the hard work we put in together this season as well.”
On the graduation of Hauger, Team Principal René Rosin commented: “We are delighted to continue the work we started with Dennis last year in F3, and that led to so many great results. Of course, being a rookie is not always straightforward. However, in the official postseason test, Dennis made consistent and impressive progress, and we are looking forward to a positive season together. We are also proud to work with the Red Bull Junior Team again, and hopefully, we will be able to add more chapters to our successful history together.”
My Opinion-
I think we all knew this was coming! Even more so with Prema- he had a good year last year and it was shown by him winning the championship. He will want to go for the F2 Championship this year and try to make the move to Formula One as soon as possible. I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do in F2 this year!
Arthur Leclerc has took the 2nd out of 3 Prema seats for the 2022 season, making the Italian team to be the only team who have signed two drivers so far.
This will be his second season in Formula 3, but third season with the team as he first joined them in 2020 in the Formula Regional European Championship where he finished runner up with six wins, and 15 podiums.
With that in the bag, the Monégasque earned a promotion into F3, where in his rookie season he won twice, as well as pole position and P2 in Budapest. Overall he finished 10th in the standings.
Leclerc’s single seater journey began back in 2018 where he entered the French F4 where he finished 5th overall, the next year he finished second in the ADAC F4.
“I am extremely happy to continue the work we started with PREMA Racing in the 2021 FIA Formula 3 Championship,” said Leclerc. “I think we did a good job last year, and 2022 will be a good opportunity to put together everything we have learned so far. I cannot wait for the season to start.”
PREMA Team Principal Rene Rosin added: “It is great to continue our collaboration with Arthur. I am sure that he will carry on the progress we saw in 2021 when he showed he had the potential to be a frontrunner.
“Last year’s experience with the challenging three-race weekends will definitely help him navigate the events with a great focus, which will surely benefit the whole team.“
My Opinion-
I didn’t think he would move up to Formula 2 this year, based on last years result, but its a good signing for himself and Prema. Hopefully we will see him be more consistent this year like in other series’ and then he can make that step up to F2 soon.
Jordan's Track Talk 