2016 FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship calendar announced.

In 2016, the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship young guns once again will contest their races at the most important circuits of the continent. In ten race meetings held in seven different countries, the young drivers will battle for the title and the succession of this year’s champion, Felix Rosenqvist (Prema Powerteam).

The season will be kicked off in early April at Le Castellet. At the Southern French venue, the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship will race in a package with the FIA World Touring Car Championship, WTCC, and the same applies to the following race meeting, held three weeks later at the Hungaroring, not far from Budapest. In mid-May, the calendar features a true season highlight and the second race meeting in France: the GP de Pau. With Austria’s Red Bull Ring, Nuremberg’s Norisring, Zandvoort in the Netherlands, Spa-Francorchamps and the Nürburgring, the calendar features a number of challenging circuits where the young drivers on the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship grid already had to prove their skills in 2015. In early October, Imola is going to make its comeback on the calendar of the planet’s most competitive young-driver series and afterwards, the series will travel to Hockenheim, the traditional venue of the season finale. In addition to the two race weekends in the package with the WTCC, the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship will contest five race meetings in the support programme of its long-term partner DTM. At Imola, the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers will share the paddock with the FIA ETCC and at Spa-Francorchamps they will join the Blancpain GT Series.

“We once again succeeded in creating an attractive calendar with many former and current Formula One World Championship venues,” Walter Mertes, CEO ‘Formel 3 Vermarktungs GmbH’, said delighted. “I think we once again found a well-balanced mix of most different circuit characteristics, thus offering the young drivers contesting the 2016 season a perfect platform to demonstrate their skills”.

The 2016 Fórmula 3 European Championship calendar at a glance:

03/04 – Paul Ricard (WTCC) / FRA

24/04 – Hungaroring (WTCC) / HUN

15/05 – Pau (F3 GP) / FRA

22/05 – Red Bull Ring – Spielberg (DTM) / AUT

26/06 – Norisring (DTM) / DEU

17/07 – Zandvoort (DTM) / NLD

30/07 – Spa-Francorchamps (Blancpain GT Series) / BEL

11/09 – Nürburgring (DTM) / DEU

02/10 – Imola (ETCC) / ITA

16/10 – Hockenheim (DTM) / DEU

Photo: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Fifth season pole for stalwart Felix Rosenqvist.

In summerly conditions at Monza, Felix Rosenqvist (Prema Powerteam, 1:43s766) claimed his fifth pole position of the 2015 FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship season. At the 5.793 kilometres long circuit in the royal park of Monza with its long history, the Swede was 0s183 seconds faster than his team-mate Jake Dennis (Prema Powerteam, 1:43s949). Santino Ferrucci (Mücke Motorsport, 1:43s970) and Alexander Albon (Signature, 1:44s027) as the best-placed rookie were classified third and fourth respectively, while Raoul Hyman (Team West-Tec F3, 1:44s052) and Lance Stroll (Prema Powerteam, 1:44s174) ended up in fifth and sixth place.

While 23-year-old Felix Rosenqvist already moved up into the lead around the halfway point, Jake Dennis, by four years his junior, only improved from fifth to second in the final minute of the session. Thus, the Brit toppled Santino Ferrucci, who eventually had to make do with third place. Still, this was the best qualifying result of the season to date for the 16-year-old American.

The same can be said for Raoul Hyman, while Alexander Albon, who was classified ahead of him, was already fourth in a qualifying session for the third time this season. For South-African Hyman, fifth place at the high-speed track of Monza was his best result to date. Behind 16-year-old rookie driver Lance Stroll, 20-year-old Mikkel Jensen (Mücke Motorsport, 1:44s201) was the next rookie on the starting grid.

FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship points’ leader Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 1:44s204) only qualified eighth. Just like British driver George Russell (Carlin, 1:44s259), who was ninth, the 21-year-old south-Italian only made it into the top ten in the final moments of the session. Charles Leclerc (Van Amersfoort Racing, 1:44s269), currently the best-placed rookie in the championship standings, completed the top ten.

Felix Rosenqvist (Prema Powerteam): “It wasn’t easy, because everyone out there was looking for slipstream. I think that I finally found a good position on the track and didn’t have a lot of traffic getting in my way. After doing two or three laps without slipstream, I tried to find a quick guy to follow. Too bad that it didn’t quite work out as I wanted. Fortunately, the fast lap times I had set before were enough to claim pole position”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Charles Leclerc opens his winning account at Silverstone.

Charles Leclerc (Van Amersfoort Racing) is the winner of the third FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship season race. Thus, the 17-year-old Monegasque became the second rookie driver to win a race at the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit this weekend, with George Russell (Carlin) having won the second race the day before. Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) came second to score his third podium finish from as many races over the weekend and starts his homeward journey to Italy as points’ leader in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers’ standings. The best-placed driver on home soil in the only British round of this year’s FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship, Jake Dennis (Prema Powerteam) finished third.

At the start, Charles Leclerc converted his first place on the grid into the race lead and led the field into the first corner. Antonio Giovinazzi and Gustavo Menezes (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) followed behind him. An error by Lance Stroll (Prema Powerteam) saw the safety car deployed for the first time. After the restart, the order at the front of the field remained unchanged. Initially, Leclerc was about one second clear of his rivals, while Menezes had to let the duo in front pull away. Even though Giovinazzi managed to reduce the gap a little bit later on, he wasn’t able to challenge Leclerc. Eventually, the Van Amersfoort Racing rookie driver won with a margin of 0.44 seconds.

For a long time, Menezes drove an untroubled race in third place in front of Jake Dennis, Alexander Albon (Signature) and George Russell. After the second safety car intervention, the result of a spin by Pietro Fittipaldi (Fortec Motorsports), Dennis got a chance to attack the American with Brazilian roots and went past to take third place. George Russell, Alexander Albon, Markus Pommer (Motopark), Brandon Maïsano (Prema Powerteam), Callum Ilott (Carlin) and Mikkel Jensen (Mücke Motorsport) completed the top ten.

Charles Leclerc (Van Amersfoort Racing): “My start wasn’t the best, but at least I was able to keep my position. After that, I managed to open a slight gap until I got a warning for high oil temperature in my cockpit and for a while, I didn’t know what to do. Antonio closed up, but he couldn’t overtake me. Of course, I didn’t really expect to win a race on my first weekend of racing straight away, but things were already going quite well in pre-season testing”.

Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin): “I am really happy with my score of three podium finishes this weekend. During the race, I tried to put Charles under pressure to force him into a mistake, but he drove really well and didn’t give me any opportunity to overtake”.

Jake Dennis (Prema Powerteam): “I was in fourth place for a long time, but then Gustavo Menezes suddenly slowed down in front of me. I had to do my utmost to avoid him, but managed. I am really happy with two podium finishes from the first race weekend of the season. For me, this was a considerably better start of the season than last year”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Rookie driver George Russell claims maiden Fórmula 3 race win.

Having only just missed out on a podium finish by finishing fourth in the first FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race of the season, George Russell (Carlin) made it onto the top step of the podium a few hours later. At the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit, he overtook pole setter Charles Leclerc (Van Amersfoort Racing) at the start and went on to score his maiden FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race win. In second and third place respectively, Leclerc and Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) completed the podium. Rookie driver Lance Stroll (Prema Powerteam) finished fourth. After his second podium finish in as many races, Giovinazzi is the new FIA Fórmula 3 European Drivers’ Championship leader.

On the first few metres, Charles Leclerc, who had started from pole position, already had to surrender his leading position to George Russell after a successful attack by the Brit. A few metres later, Tatiana Calderón (Carlin), Michele Beretta (Mücke Motorsport) Sérgio Sette Câmara (Motopark) and Sam MacLeod (Motopark) retired after a collision that caused the only safety car intervention of the race. Racing resumed on the start of lap four and Russell was able to hold on to his lead from Leclerc and Giovinazzi.

On lap eight, Felix Rosenqvist (Prema Powerteam), who was relegated to 35th place on the grid as a penalty, showed up in the top ten for the first time. The Swede, the winner of the first race of the weekend on Saturday morning, found himself in the middle of a group of drivers, led by Fabian Schiller (Team West-Tec F3) and Pietro Fittipaldi (Fortec Motorsports), battling for seventh place. Three laps later, Rosenqvist had left the entire group behind him. Almost at the same time, Fittipaldi came out on top in the battle against Schiller. In the closing stages of the race, the German collided with Jake Dennis (Prema Powerteam) and dropped back to eleventh behind Santino Ferrucci (Mücke Motorsport) and Mikkel Jensen (Mücke Motorsport).

Meanwhile, out in front, George Russell scored his maiden FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship victory. The British rookie crossed the finish line 1.723 seconds ahead of rookie Charles Leclerc and 5.412 seconds clear of Italian Antonio Giovinazzi. Lance Stroll, Brandon Maïsano (Prema Powerteam) and Alexander Albon (Signature) followed behind the top three.

George Russell (Carlin): “Even though pre-season testing went pretty well for me, I didn’t expect this victory. My start into the race was good and I was able to take first place. The restart after the safety car went well, too. After that, I tried to manage my tyres throughout the race, in which I succeeded”.

Charles Leclerc (Van Amersfoort Racing): “Unfortunately, my start wasn’t good, but then, initially, I was able to keep up with George. Later on, my tyres degraded and I had to let him pull away. For me, on the last couple of laps, it was only about bringing second place home”.

Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin): “I had a really good start into this race, but I made slight contact with George’s car. After that, I was having minor problems in fast corners, but generally, my speed was good. Two podium finishes in the first two races are a decent result”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Felix Rosenqvist three times on pole position.

Also in second qualifying of the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship at the 5.901 kilometres long Silverstone Grand Prix circuit, nobody was faster than Felix Rosenqvist (Prema Powerteam). The Swede, who had already set the fastest time in first qualifying, was 0.061 seconds faster than the best-placed rookie, Charles Leclerc (Van Amersfoort Racing). George Russell (Carlin) and Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) ended up third and fourth and will be starting from the second row on the grid for the second race at Silverstone. In the ranking of the second-fastest laps, used to determine the starting grid positions for the third race of the weekend, Rosenqvist also secured first place from Leclerc, Giovinazzi and Russell.

Starting grid race 2

The second half of the qualifying session saw a duel between Felix Rosenqvist (1:51s087) and Charles Leclerc (1:51s148) for pole position for the second race of the weekend. Initially, the Swede was in front, but then, the Monegasque rookie outpaced him, only to be toppled by Rosenqvist again soon after that. Behind rookie driver George Russell (1:51s448) and seasoned Antonio Giovinazzi (1:51s458), rookie driver Alexander Albon (Signature, 1:51s550) claimed fifth place from Brandon Maïsano (Prema Powerteam, 1:51s755). The duo of Prema drivers Jake Dennis (Prema Powerteam, 1:51s781) and Lance Stroll (Prema Powerteam, 1:51s808) will be on the fourth row from Gustavo Menezes (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 1:51s982) and Ryan Tveter (Carlin, 1:52s042).

Starting grid race 3

Rosenqvist (1:51s198) again showed that he is doing well at the British Fórmula 1 track in the ranking of the second-fastest laps, in which he was 0.291 seconds clear of Leclerc (1:51s489). Giovinazzi (1:51s537), Russell (1:51s543), Albon (1:51s688), Maïsano (1:51s877), Dennis (1:51s924), Stroll (1:51s953), Menezes (1:52s006) and Callum Ilott (Carlin, 1:52s081) rounded out the top ten.

Felix Rosenqvist (Prema Powerteam): “I am really glad that I have also managed to claim pole position for the second and the third race of the weekend. I have never been this good in qualifying for the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship before. Initially, I concentrated on finding a clear lap and then I did my utmost. After all, I knew that my car was good enough for a good position and the only thing I had to do is make it happen. And fortunately, that is what I did”.

F3 Euro Series: Felix Rosenqvist claims first pole position of the year.

Swede Felix Rosenqvist (Prema Powerteam, 1:51s007) claimed the first pole position of the new FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship season. At the 5.901 kilometres long Silverstone Grand Prix circuit, the 23-year-old stalwart ended up ahead of Italian Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 1:51s274), who was second. Jake Dennis (Prema Powerteam, 1:51s332) was the best-placed British driver in third place in front of his compatriot George Russell (Carlin, 1:51s652), who emerged as the fastest rookie driver in first qualifying.

Felix Rosenqvist moved up to the top of the time sheets with eight minutes remaining, claiming first place from Charles Leclerc (Van Amersfoort Racing, 1:51s685) who was leading the Qualifying until then. In Rosenqvist’s slipstream, the Swede’s team-mate Jake Dennis also came to the fore and was second for a while. Later on, the Brit lost that position again two Antonio Giovinazzi. After that, the order in front remained unchanged until the end of the session. Thus, Rosenqvist claimed his first pole position in the 2015 FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship.

Behind the two best-placed rookie drivers George Russell and Charles Leclerc, Brandon Maïsano (Prema Powerteam, 1:51s768) was classified sixth. The Frenchman, who is contesting his maiden FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship season, had topped the time sheets in free practice on Friday morning. Lotus Fórmula 1 junior driver Alexander Albon (Signature, 1:51s792) from Thailand, Canadian Lance Stroll (Prema Powerteam, 1:52s066) and German Markus Pommer (Motopark, 1:52s113) ended up in seventh to ninth place respectively. Thus, Pommer scored the first top ten result in the first-ever FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship qualifying session for his team Motopark. Brit Callum Ilott (Carlin, 1:52s113), a member of the Red Bull junior team, was classified tenth behind Pommer.

Felix Rosenqvist (Prema Powerteam): “For our team, things were already going quite well in free practice, because all the Prema Powerteam drivers were within the top six. Our performance was already pretty good. In qualifying, the main thing was to find a lap without too much traffic and then push it to the limit on this lap, in which I succeeded. Surprisingly, my first lap was also the fastest. Starting off the season with a pole position is always nice”.

F3 Euro Series: Ready for the pre-season testing.

In four weeks, the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship will kick off its new season but the twelve teams already are working flat out on preparing for the first races at Silverstone. In the coming week, a total of 36 drivers will travel to Spain for the traditional pre-season tests at Valencia’s Circuit Ricardo Tormo.

On 16th March, the programme features photo shoots and preparations but on 17th and 18th, the greedy young-guns will go out onto the track to prepare themselves and work on their cars, at the 4.005 kilometre circuit. The pre-season tests is the first official clash of the rivals in the 2015 season.

Also involved will be Indonesian Sean Gelael who plans to make several F3 guest appearances, this year and will be testing at Valencia in the cockpit of one of the Jagonya Ayam with Carlin single-seaters.

The two Fortec drivers Hongwei Cao and Zhi Cong Li will alternate at the wheel of one vehicle, at Valencia, with Cao testing on Tuesday and Li on Wednesday.

Photo: FIA F3 European Championship

F3 Euro Series: Pietro Fittipaldi: A Famous name to race for Fortec Motorsport.

Pietro Fittipaldi, grandson of two-time Fórmula 1 World Champion Emerson Fittipaldi, is going to contest the 2015 FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship season. The 18-year old Brazilian is going to race a Dallara-Mercedes for Team Fortec Motorsport. By doing so, he follows the footsteps of his grandfather and his uncle Christian Fittipaldi, thus representing the third generation of his family to contest Fórmula 3 races in Europe.

Pietro Fittipaldi was born in Miami and made his first steps on the motor-racing ladder in karting in North America. In 2011, he demonstrated his skills in the NASCAR Whelen All American Series by winning the Limited Late Models category at the age of just 15. Following another season in the Late Models category, the young gun switched to European single-seater racing and raced in both the British Fórmula 4 and the British Fórmula Renault. And in the following year, he secured the Fórmula Renault title in superior style by winning 10 of the 15 races contested over the course of the season.

His convincing performances also attracted the attention of the British Fortec Motorsport squad. Therefore, they invited him to execute some off-season tests for them. Fittipaldi, who has set himself the goal to make it to Fórmula 1, delivered in fine style right away and now he secured one of the sought-after FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race seats”. “It’s great that I’ve made it to the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship”, the South American said. “I’m truly looking forward to the season kick-off at Silverstone”.

But before the young talents will battle it out for the first points and trophies of the 2015 FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship season at Silverstone they will meet at Valencia in mid-March for the official pre-season tests.

Photo: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Motopark-Cockpit for Sérgio Sette Câmara.

Having already signed Scotland’s Sam MacLeod, the German Markus Pommer and India’s Mahaveer Raghunathan, FIA Formula 3 European Championship newcomers Motopark now announced that Brazilian Sérgio Sette Câmara also is going to contest the 2015 season for the German squad. For the Brazilian, it will be the first full season on the FIA Formula 3 European Championship grid.

“I’m really delighted with having the chance of contesting my first FIA Formula 3 European Championship season for Motopark,” said the 16-yeasr old Brazilian from Belo Horizonte. “It already feels great to be a part of this team – they are like a big family. I’m ready for the biggest challenge in my career to date. I set myself the goal to learn as much as possible and demonstrate my potential step by step. I want to find my position among the greats of this sport”.

Sérgio Sette Câmara made his FIA Formula 3 European Championship debut last year at Imola and in addition, he contested several rounds of the Brazilian F3 Championship. In the finale of that series, he secured his first car-racing pole and celebrated his first podium by finishing second in the race. The steep learning curve of the young Brazilian who also continued his karting career, in 2014, also was realised by his new Team Principal, Timo Rumpfkeil. “You already could see that he has got the potential. Yes, he still lacks the experience. After all, he contested just a few car races, to date. Therefore, 2015 certainly will be a learning year, for him. But for us as team it will be a great task to help this young talent on his way to honing his skills and becoming a great racing driver”.

Photo: Motorpark.com

Toro Rosso faz o lançamento do STR10.

Neste domingo (1º) de fevereiro, as equipes da Fórmula 1 irão começar os testes coletivos para a temporada 2015, o palco será o tradicional circuito de Jerez de la Frontera, na Espanha. A escuderia Toro Rosso apresentou neste sábado (31), o “STR10”, o novo carro do time de Faenza apresenta novidades no bico, a peça é mais larga e longa que o modelo anterior, porém, tem uma forma achatada.

As cores da máquina continuam sendo o azul e vermelho, com o touro vermelho do patrocinador Red Bull estampado na lateral. Outra novidade foi a nova dupla de pilotos, os mais jovens da história da categoria, formada pelo holandês Max Verstappen, de 17 anos, sensação da temporada 2014 da F3 Euro Series e pelo espanhol Carlos Sainz Jr, de 20 anos.

O chefe da equipe Franz Tost, garantiu total confiança em seus novos pupilos. Segundo ele: “A temporada de 2015 é um novo desafio para todos nós. Nós trabalhamos muito na construção do “STR10” e estamos convencidos de que teremos um ano de sucesso. Nosso objetivo é terminar no quinto lugar do Mundial de Construtores e estamos prontos para fazer o melhor para conseguir. Nosso fornecedor de motores, a Renault, também trabalhou bastante para apresentar novas modificações, e eu estou certo que nosso trabalho nos dará um conjunto que vai certamente ser muito competitivo”.

- Todos por todos, nós temos uma equipe mais forte, um “STR10” competitivo e pilotos rápidos. É uma ótima combinação, outro ponto que me deixa contente é que temos pilotos qualificados, o que torna esta temporada ainda mais animada. Os dois mostraram performances fantásticas ao longo das carreiras deles, ganhando corridas e campeonatos, e é por causa das habilidades deles que chegaram à STR. Eu acredito, realmente, que eles estão preparados para este desafio, igual ao resto do time. Estamos prontos” - concluiu.

A temporada 2015 da Fórmula 1 começa com o Grande Prêmio da Austrália, no dia 15 de março, em Melbourne. A categoria realizará três sessões de testes coletivos antes da abertura do campeonato, uma em Jerez e duas em Barcelona.

Fotos: Scuderia Toro Rosso - divulgação

DTM: Lucas Auer graduates into the DTM 2015

For two years, Lucas Auer shone in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship. Now, the 20-year-old is rewarded for his performance: he graduates into the DTM and will become a member of the Mercedes-Benz line-up for the upcoming season. In 2013, the Austrian ended up fourth in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers’ standings behind the wheel of a Dallara-Mercedes run by the Prema Powerteam. One year later, he repeated this achievement with the Mücke Motorsport team, once again using Mercedes-Benz engines.

“Joining the DTM is an important step in my career,” says Auer, who already completed an initial test with the Mercedes-AMG C63 AMG in December last year. “This test in Jerez de la Frontera was a fantastic experience. I can’t wait to get back in the car and continue preparations for my DTM debut. I realise that it won’t be an easy task. The DTM is a top-class racing series with formidable opponents, but I’m willing to learn and ready to embark on this adventure. I intend to grab this chance at Mercedes Benz with both hands”.

Auer, who has racked up a total of four FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race wins and finished second in the prestigious Macau Grand Prix in 2014, fits perfectly into the concept followed by Toto Wolff, head of motorsport at Mercedes-Benz: “It is our philosophy to giving young racing talents a chance to move up to the DTM. Lucas is young and has earned this opportunity with his performance in recent years in Formula 3,” he praises his new protégé.

The first DTM race meeting in 2015 will be held on the Hockenheimring in early May.

F3 Euro Series: Signature to run Lotus F1 Junior drivers Boccolacci and Albon.

Alexander Albon from Thailand and Frenchman Dorian Boccolacci, by two years his junior, will be making their debut in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship behind the wheel of a Dallara-Volkswagen of the Signature team at Silverstone in April. Thus, French team Signature will be running two junior drivers of the Lotus F1 team in the 2015 Fórmula 3 European Championship.

“I am happy and I feel honoured by the trust that Lotus has placed in me to run two of its junior drivers to make their first steps in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship within my team,” Signature team principal Philippe Sinault said. “Both have already found their way into the team very well and have shown a good performance during the test sessions we have had so far. Now, it has to be our goal to follow the tracks of Esteban Ocon, who managed to win last year’s FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship as a Lotus Fórmula 1 junior driver as well”.

Alexander Albon, a Thai born in London, is advancing to the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship with three years in Fórmula Renault 2.0 under his belt and he is looking forward to the new challenge: “I am happy to be a part of the Signature team now, which I rate as one of the best teams based on its achievements. I am still in the process of getting to know the Fórmula 3 car and my new team, but I have also been able to successfully work on my own performance during the first test sessions we have had”.

His new team-mate, Dorian Boccolacci, who steps up into the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship as the runner-up from French Fórmula 4, has a similar view: “Like Alexander, I mainly used the first days of testing to get to know everything and I am feeling really well. However, for me, the step from Fórmula 4 to Fórmula 3 was a very big one, especially as I only have one year of experience in car racing. Now, I can hardly wait for the season to start”.

The first official pre-season test days are scheduled to take place at Valência on 17 and 18 March. On the second weekend of April, the young drivers have their first race meeting at the Fórmula 1 circuit of Silverstone in the UK.

F3 Euro Series: Definido o calendário da temporada 2015.

De 15 de janeiro à 27 de fevereiro, abre-se a fase de inscrições de equipes e pilotos para a temporada 2015 do campeonato FIA de Fórmula 3 Euro Series, a competição vêm revelando jovens pilotos a cada ano e passou a ser uma das principais portas de entrada para a Fórmula 1. Este ano a categoria máxima do automobilismo mundial terá a estreia de Max Verstappen, pela Toro Rosso, o holandês é considerado um dos fenômenos das pistas.

A temporada 2015 terá início com os testes coletivos em Valência, na Espanha, entre os dias 17 e 18 de março, a categoria fará ainda mais duas sessões de testes uma em Silverstone, na Inglaterra, em 7 de abril e a última acontecerá em Monza, na Itália, no dia 28 de maio. A primeira corrida tradicionalmente acontece em Hockenheim, mesmo palco da grande final. 15 pilotos já estão pré-inscritos, a Carlin dará a chance ao britânico George Russel de apenas 16 anos, ele será companheiro de Gustavo Menezes. Assim que as equipes definirem seus pilotos, faremos uma matéria completa a respeito.

Calendário 2015 da F3 Euro Series:

Silverstone (GBR) de 10 à 12 de abril.

Hockenheim (GER) de 1º à 3 de maio.

Pau (FRA) de 15 à 17 de maio.

Monza (ITA) de 29 à 31 de maio.

Spa-Francorchamps (BEL) de 19 à 21 junho.

Norisring (GER) de 26 à 28 de junho.

Zandvoort (NED) de 10 à 12 de julho.

Spielberg (AUT) de 31 de julho à 2 de agosto.

Moscow (RUS) de 28 à 30 de agosto.

Nurburgring (GER) de 25 à 27 de setembro.

Hockenheim (GER) de 16 à 18 de outubro.

Abu Dhabi: Three Fórmula 3 young-guns test Fórmula 1 cars.

The 2014 Fórmula 1 season ended this Sunday but for the teams, the work continued straight away. Following the season finale in Abu Dhabi they tested for two days at the same venue and invited three Fórmula 3 European Championship young-guns to the tests. In addition to Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing) and Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam) who already had covered their first kilometres at the wheel of F1 single-seaters, Richard Goddard (ThreeBond with T-Sport) also made the trip to Abu Dhabi to make his debut in a Fórmula 1 car.

On day one, only Max Verstappen was involved in the testing work. The Dutchman completed 55 laps at the wheel of a Toro Rosso vehicle to finish ninth on the time sheets. On day two, the 17-year old who already has been signed as GP driver for the 2015 season by the Scuderia Toro Rosso was even busier and completed a total of 78 laps. “Sitting behind the wheel for a total of four hours felt just great,” he beamed. “In the morning session we succeeded in completing our scheduled programme and could test several things for the 2015 season. In the afternoon, we were hampered by some technical problems but the team solved these problems before the session was over”. On the second day of testing, Verstappen crossed the line in 1:43s763, thus securing the third position on the time sheets.

Reigning FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion Esteban Ocon joined the test action only on day two. The long-term Lotus Fórmula 1 Junior contested the morning session for Team Lotus F1 and completed 34 laps. With his personal fastest lap time of 1:47s013, the Frenchman was the 10th-fastest on day two. “The tests ran really well,” he revealed before hitting the road back to France. “We completed the scheduled programme and didn’t focus on setting fast lap times. At the same time, I used the opportunity to keep on familiarising myself even with the E22 and I’m understanding the car better and better. Meanwhile, the team also supported me with a great feedback and that’s something I was particularly delighted with”.

In addition to Esteban Ocon and Max Verstappen who both have had bonds with Fórmula 1 teams for quite a while, Richard Goddard also was offered the chance of demonstrating his skills in a Fórmula 1 cockpit, at Abu Dhabi. The Australian covered his first Fórmula kilometres for Force Índia and did a great job. At the end of the day he had completed 89 laps and set a personal fastest lap time of 1:44s944, thus making it to sixth position on the time sheets. With this time, he out-paced - inter alia - his compatriot Daniel Ricciardo who was the fastest of the drivers not racing for the Mercedes-Benz works team, in the 2014 Fórmula 1 season, and finished third in the World Championship. “First of all I had to familiarise myself with the F1 car,” admitted Goddard, “But afterwards, I succeeded in improving consistently. I’m really delighted with my personal fastest lap time and I think that 89 laps represent a solid distance for the beginning. I’m rather happy about the day and the way the team worked with me. Now I would love to keep the bond with Force Índia alive”.

Also involved in the testing work on day two was Raffaele Marciello. At the wheel of a Ferrari, the 2013 FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion finished second behind Mercedes test driver Pascal Wehrlein.

ROC 2015: Esteban Ocon to compete in the Race of Champions.

Having contested his two tests at the pinnacle of motor racing for the Lotus F1 Team and the Scuderia Ferrari, Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam) now may look forward to the next highlight on his calendar: the reigning FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion was invited by the Race of Champions (ROC) organisers to participate in this year’s edition of the tradition-rich event and accepted the invitation. Consequently, he will travel to Barbados to battle it out with champions and top stars of other motor-racing categories in mid-December.

“The invitation to the Race of Champions represents a dream come true,” said Ocon. “When I was a child, I was in the Stade de France to witness the ROC action - and now I’m one of the selected drivers. I generally like tracks with a lot of corners. For me, the biggest challenge at Barbados will be to race a tin-top racer as I have driven only single-seaters, in my career to date. I have not even got a driving license. But I think that I will be able to cope with this challenge, too”.

In the ROC, held on 13th and 14th December, Ocon will have to compete with the likes of nine-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen, reining Indy 500 champ Ryan Hunter-Reay, multi-time V8 Supercars Champion Jamie Whincup, reigning FIA World Rally-Cross Champion Petter Solberg, reigning World Touring Car Champion José-Maria Lopez and other motor-racing greats. In addition to fighting for the drivers’ title on Sunday, he also will contest the Nations Cup together with his compatriot Romain Grosjean who won the 2013 Race of Champions. “I have known Romain for several years and it’s just great to be teamed up with him. I hope that we will be able to jointly secure a good result for France, on Saturday. But it goes without saying that I would love to beat him in the battle for the drivers’ title on Sunday”.

ROC organiser Fredrik Johansson was delighted about the acceptance of the successful Lotus F1 junior. “Esteban currently is one of the best up-and-coming drivers. In addition, the ROC history featured numerous promising young guns that gave the established drivers a very hard time and partly also secured very good results. And Esteban could add a new chapter to this streak of successes”.

Photo: FIA F3 Euro Series

61° Macau Gran Prix Fórmula 3, Felix Rosenqvist wins Macau Grand Prix.

His year in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship may not have brought entirely what he had hoped for, but Felix Rosenqvist (Kashbet.com by Mücke Motorsport) still concluded the season in style by winning the 61th running of the prestigious Suncity Group Fórmula 3 Macau Grand Prix. In a 15-lap race that was interrupted following a pile-up on the opening lap, Rosenqvist made most of his pole position, steered clear of any problems and led all the way from lights to flag. With victory in his fifth attempt in Macau, he became only the second Swede to win the classic race on the challenging Guia street circuit after Rickard Rydell in 1992. After a thrilling battle in the closing stages of the race, Rosenqvist’s Austrian team-mate Lucas Auer (kfzteile24 Mücke Motorsport) managed to overtake New Zealand’s Nick Cassidy (ThreeBond with T-Sport) and thus completed the 1-2 for Mücke Motorsport. Cassidy came home third from Spanish F3 returnee Roberto Merhi (W66.com Double R Racing) and Canadian Nicholas Latifi (SJM Theodore Racing by Prema).

Only one week after his 23rd birthday, November 7, Felix Rosenqvist gave himself probably the best present with an excellent performance in the Macau Grand Prix. His weekend of racing on the streets in the former Portuguese colony was almost perfect: he topped the time sheets in second free practice and in the combined qualifying result, he won the qualifying race on Saturday and finally took the spoils in the main event on Sunday. For the Swede, it was his second win of the year in a Fórmula 3 classic after his success in the Pau Grand Prix last May. “This is the most important one of them, the Fórmula 3 race with the longest history and the most international recognition,” the buoyant winner commented. “I have been on the podium here, I have led the race here, but I had never won so far. Now, I finally managed and that is a great feeling! To be honest, for the first time in my life, I am lost for words. For me, this season was the most difficult since I started in motor racing, but I have managed to end it on a high!” Rosenqvist’s victory also marked the maiden success in Macau for his team Mücke Motorsport and the sixth win for the Mercedes-Benz Fórmula 3 engine in the classic Fórmula 3 race.

In typical Macau style, the race had plenty of action. It already stared as FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion Esteban Ocon (SJM Theodore by Prema) and Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) tangled while battling for the lead in the first part of the opening lap, which eventually triggered a multi-car pile-up that also caught out Martin Cao (Fortec Motorsports), Yu Kanamaru (Carlin) and Richard Goddard (ThreeBond with T-Sport). The cars of some other drivers were also damaged, but could be repaired during the interruption that followed after the race was red-flagged immediately after the incident. At the re-start after one lap behind the safety car, Mücke Motorsport duo Felix Rosenqvist and Lucas Auer ran in first and second place respectively, but Auer missed his braking point into Lisboa and dropped back to third behind Cassidy. While Rosenqvist gradually built up a comfortable advantage of over four seconds, Auer and Cassidy were battling for second place. On lap 13, Cassidy clipped a wall with the left rear tyre of his car, which allowed Auer to get through. Two laps later, Rosenqvist took the chequered flag as the winner, with Auer completing the 1-2 for Mücke Motorsport. “I had noticed that Nick was going a bit slower and then he hit the wall, which allowed me to get past. Of course, I would have loved to win here, but at the end of the day, I am also happy with second place,” Auer commented.

On his Macau debut, Nick Cassidy was classified third as the best-placed rookie in the field. “Being on the podium here first time out is a pretty cool feeling,” the New Zealander said. “Of course, the aim always is to win, but a podium finish is quite good, too. I am also well pleased with the performance of our NBE-engine.” After a nice late-race battle, Roberto Merhi beat Nicholas Latifi to fourth place while another returnee, Stefano Coletti (Eurointernational) finished sixth. Seventh place went to Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing), who also managed to set the fastest lap time in the race. The Dutchman, who emerged as the best-placed driver to use a Volkswagen engine in his car, made good progress after starting from the back of the grid following his crash in yesterday’s qualifying race. American Santino Ferrucci (Fortec Motorsport), Japanese Kenta Yamashita (TOM’s) and American Gustavo Menezes (Van Amersfoort Racing) rounded out the top ten.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series/CGPM

61° Macau Gran Prix Fórmula 3, Felix Rosenqvist wins Macau Grand Prix qualifying race.

Felix Rosenqvist (Kashbet.com by Mücke Motorsport) made the best of his pole position by winning the ten-lap qualifying race for the Suncity Group Macau Grand Prix. In a race that ran behind the safety car for three laps, the 23-year-old Swede won from his Austrian team-mate Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport). Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) finished third with the reigning FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion, Esteban Ocon (SJM Theodore Racing by Prema) rounding out the top four.

Having started from second on the grid, Lucas Auer overtook his Swedish team-mate, benefitting from the slipstream in the run to the first corner and led the field into the notorious Lisboa right-hander. Some drivers had more problems dealing with the first corner, including Spaniard Alex Palou (Fortec Motorsports) who crashed into the tyre stacks. Auer built up a two seconds’ advantage on the first three laps while Rosenqvist lost second place on lap two to Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing), the Dutchman having made good progress from fifth on the grid in the opening stages of the race.

However, all Verstappen’s efforts proved to be in vain. On lap four, Verstappen lost control of his car after locking up under braking in the Solitude-Esses and hit the tyre stacks. Thus, the Fórmula 1-bound Dutchman saw all his high hopes of bowing out of Fórmula 3 with success in Macau blown. Because Brit Sam MacLeod (Tom’s) also crashed on the same lap, the safety car was deployed. At that time, Auer was leading from Rosenqvist, Blomqvist, Ocon, Roberto Merhi (W66.com Double R Racing), Nick Cassidy (ThreeBond with T-Sport) and Jordan King (GR Asia with Carlin). Racing resumed on lap eight and, as it happens so often in Macau, the driver who led across the line lost the lead on the following straight: Rosenqvist benefited from the slipstream and took first place under braking for Lisboa. Cassidy overtook Merhi for fifth. Once in the lead, Rosenqvist quickly built up a comfortable lead and crossed the finish line as the race winner after ten laps with Auer completing the 1-2 for Mücke Motorsport. Blomqvist took the final podium slot from Ocon, Cassidy, Merhi, Nicholas Latifi (SJM Theodore Racing by Prema), King, Felix Serralles (Team West-Tec F3) and Stefano Coletti (Eurointernational).

“Of course, losing the lead after the start was exactly what I didn’t want to happen, but starting from pole and then losing first place on the long straight is a usual thing here in Macau,” race winner Felix Rosenqvist commented. “Then, fortunately, it worked the other way round after the restart. Once I was back in the lead, I was determined to pull a gap as quickly as possible to prevent Lucas from doing the same on the next lap. In the opening stages, I had a nice battle with Max Verstappen. Then, he made life a little bit easier for me after he crashed. It is a thing that can always happen here in Macau. Victory today makes me quite happy, but generally, any place in the top three is good for tomorrow”. Second-placed Lucas Auer said: “This was another good result for our team. We have an incredible pace. It is always difficult to defend first place into the first corner when starting from pole here, so for me, everything is perfect. I am very confident for tomorrow, we are well prepared”. Tom Blomqvist had the same view: “Tomorrow is the main race, the one we all want to win. Third place is a good position to start from in Macau and I am happy and confident”. The 15-lap Fórmula 3 race in Macau starts on Sunday at 15.30 hrs local time (8.30 hrs CET).

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series/CGPM

61° Macau Gran Prix Fórmula 3, Felix Rosenqvist claims pole position for Macau qualifying.

Felix Rosenqvist (Kashbet.com by Mücke Motorsport, 2:11s506) will be starting from pole position for tomorrow’s ten lap qualifying race for the 61st running of the Macau Grand Prix. In second qualifying, in which 17 of the first 20 drivers managed to set faster lap times than in yesterday’s first qualifying session, Rosenqvist moved up from his ninth place after yesterday’s session to the top of the time sheets and thus claimed pole position for the Macau qualifying race. “Early in the session, I did two laps, then came in to have four new tyres on the car, and I did my fast lap all on my own,” Rosenqvist reported. “In fact, I was quite surprised that the gap was so big. Indeed, the Swede was no less than 0s236 faster than Esteban Ocon (SJM Theodore Racing by Prema, 2:11s742), the reigning FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion. Just with Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing, 2:11s747), who was classified third after qualifying, Ocon will be dropped two places on the grid for tomorrow’s qualifying race for having failed to come in to have his car weighed in free practice yesterday.

As a result, Ocon and Verstappen will be starting from fourth and fifth place respectively. That promoted Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport, 2:11s838) to second on the grid alongside Rosenqvist to lock out the front row for the Mücke Motorsport team. Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 2:11s922), who was fastest in yesterday’s first qualifying and failed to post a faster time today, will be starting from third place.

Competing in the prestigious event in Macau for the fifth time, Rosenqvist clearly was the fastest driver at the 6.12 kilometres long Guia circuit on Friday. In the morning, he was first in free practice with 2:11s743, making him the only driver to post a sub-2:12 lap time. In second qualifying, the Swede doubled up by claiming pole position. The only blot on his copybook was a crash at Maternity in free practice in the lap after the one in which he set his fastest time. “That was quite stupid, also because I lost two tyres there, which is not very good for the weekend,” Rosenqvist admitted. “But being on pole position makes me quite confident for tomorrow and Sunday. We know that the speed is there”.

Second-fastest qualifyer Esteban Ocon commented: “Today, things were going much better than yesterday. We finally found the speed. Of course, it is a pity that I will be dropped two places, but I am still starting from the second row and we all know that you can overtake in Macau”. Ocon, who made an impressive Fórmula 3 debut with a top ten finish at Macau last year, is well aware of the significance of the event. “This is the one everybody wants to win, and the race so many great drivers have won in the past. It is the best race in the world”.

Third in qualifying and fifth on the grid, Max Verstappen is the best-placed Macau rookie. “The circuit is really cool,” the Dutchman commented. “Yesterday, I had some problems as the tyres started overheating, but today, I was a able to run faster and faster and I am quite pleased with the result”. Austrian Lucas Auer wasn’t too happy with his fourth fastest time: “I could have gone faster, but starting from the front row obviously is a good position and the performance of Felix and myself shows how strong we are as a team. Now, hopefully, we can convert that into good race results tomorrow and Sunday”. The qualifying race starts tomorrow at 13:45 hrs local time (6:45 hrs CET) and will determine the starting grid positions for the Sunday’s main race, the Suncity Group Fórmula 3 Macau Grand Prix.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

61° Macau Gran Prix Fórmula 3.

Year by year, the tradition-rich Macau GP is the final Fórmula 3 race of the year, representing the unofficial world finale. And the grid for this year’s edition of the prestigious event that was won by future Fórmula 1 aces such as Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher, in the past, once again will feature numerous FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers.

It goes without saying that the new European Champion Esteban Ocon (SJM Theodore Racing by Prema) will be the spearhead of the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship fraction on the grid. Last year, the Frenchman made his Fórmula 3 debut, at Macau’s demanding street circuit. And already then, the now 18-year old Frenchman delivered in fine style and convinced by setting fast lap times and finishing 10th. Just like Ocon, his toughest rivals in the championship also will travel to the South China Sea: Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin), vice-champion behind Ocon, as well as Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing) and Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport) also want to battle it out for the win, in Macau.

Altogether, 12 of the 15 best young FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers will race in the former Portuguese colony, among them Tatiana Calderón (JZR/Mücke Motorsport). The 21-year old Colombian will be the first woman to contest the Macau GP since Cathy Muller back in 1983. Meanwhile, three FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship teams succeeded in signing prominent drivers, for the prestigious event: W66.com Double R Racing will be represented by Spain’s Fórmula Renault 3.5 frontrunner Roberto Merhi, Eurointernational relies on the services of Monaco’s GP2 driver Stefano Coletti and Signature will contest the race - as they did at Imola - with William Buller. Just as Merhi, the Briton also contested the 2014 Fórmula Renault 3.5 season.

Photo: GCS

F3 Euro Series: Auer wins final race of 2014, Blomqvist runner-up in drivers’ standings.

Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport) concluded his second year in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship with his third victory of the season. British drivers Jordan King (Carlin) and Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) followed behind the 20-year-old Austrian. With this third place, Blomqvist also secured himself second place in the final drivers’ standings of the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship. Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing), who will be racing in Fórmula 1 for Toro Rosso next year, finished sixth in his final race in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship ahead of Ocon. Thus, the 17-year-old Dutchman ends up third in the final drivers’ standings behind Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam), who was already crowned as the European Champion in Imola, and Blomqvist.

Initially, Tom Blomqvist took the lead, but after a few kilometres only, Lucas Auer already demoted him to second. Felix Rosenqvist (Mücke Motorsport) lost his third place to Jordan King on the opening lap. On the same lap, the safety car was deployed after Tatiana Calderón (Jo Zeller Racing) had missed her braking point before the hairpin and collected Felix Serralles (Team West-Tec F3) and Jules Szymkowiak (Van Amersfoort Racing). Calderón and Serrallés retired, Szymkowiak continued after a pit stop.

Auer remained in the lead from Blomqvist and King at the restart. After only one lap, he was already 1.5 seconds clear of his first rival Blomqvist. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen tried to claim sixth place from Esteban Ocon. After a fierce battle, he eventually overtook the Frenchman on lap eleven and moved up to sixth.

In the closing stages, Jordan King found a way past Tom Blomqvist and took over second place from his fellow-Brit. Ahead of King, a buoyant Lucas Auer took the chequered flag as the winner of the race. Felix Rosenqvist and Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) safely brought their fourth and fifth place home while Max Verstappen crossed the finish line in sixth place from European Champion Esteban Ocon. Sean Galeal (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin), Edward Jones (Carlin) and Dennis van de Laar (Prema Powerteam) rounded out the top ten in the final race of the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship season.

Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport): “This was a beautiful race. I wanted first place at all cost and I managed to get it. The overtaking move on Tom Blomqvist wasn’t so difficult, but I also had the impression that he wasn’t too aggressive because he had the drivers’ standings in mind, too. Soon after I had overtaken Tom, my car got stuck in third gear once again, but this time, it wasn’t a big problem. Concluding the season with a victory and thus showing our potential is great”.

Jordan King (Carlin): “My start was good and the first lap was very positive, too, because I was able to overtake Felix Rosenqvist. At the end of the race, I was also able to benefit from a mistake by Tom Blomqvist and take second place. I am happy with this end to my season”.

Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin): “Lucas Auer managed to overtake me on the opening lap with a good move. Generally, our pace wasn’t as good as yesterday and therefore, there was nothing I could do against Lucas’s attack. On the penultimate lap, I made a mistake and Jordan benefited from it. I am very happy with my second place in the drivers’ standings and second place for my team Jagonya Ayam with Carlin in the teams’ championship”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series