The Formula 2 and Formula 3 championships are about to get very busy with five rounds coming up in the next six weeks, starting with the Barcelona event this weekend.
The FIA Formula 2 and Formula 3 championships resume after a three week break, with the Catalunya weekend kicking off the busiest part of the season with five rounds in the space of six weeks. No clear leader has emerged in either series, with everything still to play for in both classifications, as the competition seems very evenly matched. There have been ten Formula 2 races to date, but Oliver Bearman missed two of them when deputising for Carlos Sainz with Scuderia Ferrari in the Saudi Arabian Formula 1 Grand Prix. Bearman had actually taken the Formula 2 pole in Jeddah before switching to Sainz’s SF-24, but so far, his results have not quite lived up to his potential. At the last event in Monaco, Oliver staged an incredible climb up the order in the Feature Race to go from 12th to fourth, but currently he languishes in 13th place in the standings on 18 points. However, with the field so evenly matched a top three finish in the championship is still on the cards.
Formula 3. After eight races in Formula 3, Dino Beganovic is in a more comfortable fourth place on 58 points, 14 behind the leader. After some bad luck early on in the season, the Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy student is currently on a roll and heads into this busiest part of the season in optimistic mood. “We’ve just finished a training camp and so I’ve recharged the batteries ready for a very busy time,” said Beganovic. “We’ve got five rounds in six weeks, so we have to be on top form. It’s going to be a very important part of the season which should establish the hierarchy in the classification. I’ve worked hard with the team and we’re very motivated, all of us having just one goal in mind. I can’t wait to get out on track in Barcelona, as I’ve got good memories from racing there last year when I finished on the podium in the Feature Race and we also had an encouraging test session at the Catalunya circuit. But most of all it’s just great to go racing again and get stuck in to the main part of the season.”
Programme. The Formula 2 action starts on Friday with 45 minutes of free practice at 11.05, followed by qualifying at 15.55. The Sprint Race takes place on Saturday at 14.15 with the Feature Race of the weekend on Sunday at 11.35. As for Formula 3, free practice is on Friday at 9.55, with qualifying at 15. The Sprint Race is on Saturday at 10.40 with the Feature Race getting underway on Sunday at 10.05. All times CEST.