Formula 3 hit the track on Friday to set up for the last race of the European triple header. In case you missed it, here is a recap of free practice and qualifying.
Free Practice: Câmara sets the early pace in Barcelona
Championship leader Rafael Câmara set the early pace in Barcelona, topping the Formula 3 Free Practice session with a commanding 1:29.024 for TRIDENT. Câmara wasted no time, setting the benchmark on his very first flying lap. No other driver managed to better his time throughout the session.
The closest challenger proved to be MP Motorsport’s Alessandro Giusti, who finished 0.322 seconds adrift of the Brazilian.
Home hero Mari Boya impressed during the session, ending third fastest. Returning to the scene of his maiden Formula 3 victory, the Spaniard aimed to provide another reason for his local fans to cheer.
Although it was only Free Practice, teams adopted a strategic approach. Many drivers waited in the pits during the early stages, choosing to set their best laps in the window of optimal track temperature. TRIDENT took a different approach, keeping all three of their cars out for longer. This paid dividends for Charlie Wurz, who climbed to fourth late in the session with a 1:29.615.
Due to rising track temperatures and limited tyre life, few drivers found improvements in the final minutes. The top ten was completed by Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak, Callum Voisin, Santiago Ramos, and Nikola Tsolov, each setting competitive early laps.
This intense and tactical session laid the groundwork for a fiercely contested qualifying battle.
Qualifying: Câmara takes fourth pole amid chaos in Catalunya
Rafael Câmara once again demonstrated his class in a dramatic Formula 3 Qualifying session at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, clinching pole position with a sensational 1:28.261. The Brazilian not only topped the timesheets but also set a new Formula 3 record for most career poles. Achieving this feat in his rookie season further underlined his status as a standout Ferrari Academy Driver.
The session opened in frantic fashion as drivers scrambled for clean air. At several moments, three or four cars attacked the same corner in a bid to secure a clean banker lap. However, many of these initial efforts were deleted due to track limits infringements.
TRIDENT endured a shaky start, with Câmara’s first attempt proving far from ideal and Charlie Wurz suffering an off-track excursion that ultimately compromised his qualifying. As the session settled and drivers returned to the pits, Tukka Taponen rose to the top, ahead of Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak and James Wharton.
Nikola Tsolov, whose opening time had been deleted, entered the second phase of qualifying under pressure. He briefly recovered to fourth, just four tenths off the leading time. All attention then returned to Câmara. On his second flying lap, he delivered a masterclass, lighting up the timing screens. He topped every sector and speed trap except the first, reclaiming provisional pole by more than three tenths from the ART trio behind him.
With this lap, Câmara reasserted himself as the clear title contender.
A frantic end to Qualifying
With six minutes remaining, ART and MP Motorsport held all three cars within the top ten. Both teams looked set for strong results, but qualifying remained far from over.
Câmara, confident in his pace, radioed his engineer to remain in the pits for longer, aiming to have a clear track. His decision proved sound. No other driver managed to get close to his pole time, and he retained the top spot without needing to set another lap.
As final flying laps unfolded, Tsolov recovered brilliantly to secure second, placing him alongside his championship rival for Sunday’s feature race. Mari Boya momentarily broke into the top ten but ultimately slipped to 14th after late improvements from Noel León and Tim Tramnitz.
Théophile Naël produced a standout lap in the closing stages, jumping to fourth and positioning himself as a podium threat for the weekend.
The drama did not end with the chequered flag. Several final laps were deleted for track limits violations, significantly altering the grid. Roman Bilinski suffered the biggest setback, dropping from reverse pole to 26th following the deletion of his best time. As a result, Australian James Wharton inherited his best-ever starting position in the series.
Unfotunately for Wharton and likely to Bilinski’s delight, the Polish driver’s time was reinstated after the Stewards reviewed video evidence sent by the Race Director. Wharton was thereby demoted to P13, as Bilinski reclaimed P12, and subsequently a start from pole position for Saturday’s F3 Sprint Race.
Full Qualifying classification for Formula 3.
- Rafael Câmara – 1:28.761
- Nikola Tsolov +0.216
- Laurens van Hoepen +0.345
- Théophile Naël +0.353
- Santiago Ramos +0.393
- Alessandro Giusti +0.434
- Ivan Domingues +0.514
- Nikita Strømsted +0.530
- Tuukka Taponen +0.534
- Tim Tramnitz +0.566
- Martinius Stenshorne +0.578
- Roman Bilinski +0.618
- James Wharton +0.622
- Noel León +0.629
- Mari Boya +0.671
- Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak +0.672
- Callum Voisin +0.681
- Liam Sharp +0.704
- Charlie Wurz +0.724
- Bruno Del Pino +0.754
- Brad Benavides +0.754
- Brando Badoer +0.790
- Christian Ho +0.866
- Ugo Ugochukwu +0.938
- Jose Garfias +1.015
- Nicola Lacorte +0.993
- Jesse Carrasquedo +1.214
- Nicola Marinangeli +1.265
- Matias Zagazeta +1.395
- Gerrard Xie +1.816
Inthraphuvasak and Lacorte penalised after Qualifying
Following the conclusion of the Formula 3 Qualifying, two drivers, Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak and Nicola Lacorte, were handed grid penalties for infringements committed during the session.
Inthraphuvasak received a three-place grid penalty for impeding Alessandro Giusti during qualifying. After reviewing video evidence and speaking to both teams, the Stewards found the Campos Racing driver unnecessarily blocked Giusti on a push lap. Inthraphuvasak will now start both the Sprint and Feature Races from P19.
Meanwhile, Lacorte was handed a 10-place grid penalty for causing a collision with Jose Garfias between Turns 9 and 10. The Stewards deemed Lacorte fully at fault after he misjudged the gap between the cars. The DAMS Lucas Oil driver will start both races from P30.
