Road to 100: PREMA regain title as Martins wins epic Drivers’ Championship

As we continue the countdown to the Barcelona Feature Race, the 100th race in FIA Formula 3 history, we are reviewing each season from the inaugural campaign back in 2019.

This time around we are looking at the 2022 campaign, where both Victor Martins and PREMA Racing were forced to wait until the very last moments of the year to confirm their titles.

So, let us look at how it all unfolded…

A BUSY START TO THE SEASON

Round 1 in Sakhir got off to an epic start, as rookie Franco Colapinto took pole position for the new team on the grid Van Amersfoort Racing.

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The Sprint Race would see PREMA Racing’s Oliver Bearman cross the line first, before a five-second penalty for exceeding track limits too many times dropped him to second, promoting Hitech’s Isack Hadjar to the top spot.

On to the Feature Race and Martins claimed his first victory of the year ahead of PREMA’s Arthur Leclerc. Colapinto took the chequered flag in third, but he also had a five-second penalty for track limits, putting ART’s Grégoire Saucy on to the podium.

Colapinto and VAR would not have to wait long for that first victory though as the Argentine took to the top step at the Imola Sprint Race in Round 2. Martins and PREMA’s Jak Crawford joined him on the podium but only after Hadjar and MP Motorsport’s Caio Collet collided late on.

There was more drama in Sunday’s 24-lap event as Trident’s pole-sitter Zane Maloney spun out from the lead at a Safety Car restart. He dropped to the back while his teammate Roman Stanek capitalised to take the win.

Bearman had briefly overtaken Stanek for P1 but fell to third late on before colliding with Saucy at the penultimate corner on the final lap as he battled to keep the position. Crawford finished second while Hadjar benefited to finish P3.

Stanek continued his fine form at Round 3 in Barcelona taking Pole Position. It was then a sweet homecoming for Campos Racing and their Spanish driver David Vidales as they won the Sprint Race.

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Stanek though would finish second behind Martins in the Feature Race, as Hadjar took his third podium of the year.

Martins’ start to the season gave him the early lead in the Drivers’ Championship ahead of Stanek and Crawford, while PREMA’s 120 points put them on top of the Teams’ Standings ahead of ART.

MID-SEASON ACTION

To the delight of the Silverstone home crowd Carlin’s Zak O’Sullivan took pole position in Round 4. He finished second after holding off Bearman across the line in the Feature Race, with Leclerc taking the victory.

The day prior Hadjar continued his fine form by overtaking Martins on the penultimate lap of the Sprint Race to take the win, giving him his second victory of the year.

Hadjar then achieved his first F3 pole position in Austria a round later, but before the Feature took place, Crawford secured his maiden F3 victory in the Sprint Race.

Hadjar claimed Feature honours over Martins and Bearman, putting him one point behind the ART driver in the Championship.

He took over the lead at the following round at the Hungaroring after finishing fourth in the Sprint Race ahead of Martins in P6, with Collet taking the victory.

Maloney finished second ahead of Bearman in the Feature Race, while Martins ended in P10 ahead of Hadjar in P18, leaving them tied on 104 points, with Leclerc, third on 95.

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In the Teams’ Standings PREMA were over 100 points clear of ART in second, while reigning Champions Trident were in fifth.

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The Championship headed to Spa-Francorchamps with Oliver Bearman taking his first victory of the season in the Sprint Race ahead of Stanek.

Maloney took his first of what would be three consecutive Feature Race victories a day later, as Stanek and Bearman once again took their spot on the rostrum.

Martins went without scoring in Spa while Hadjar got two points in the Sprint, leaving the Hitech driver on top ahead of Bearman and his compatriot.

Maloney then took pole in Zandvoort in Round 8 before Collet took his second Sprint Race victory of the year. The Bajan driver lost the lead to Martins at the start but regained it later and taking the win, as Colapinto finished in third.

With this result, Martins, now on 126 points, went back to the top of the Championship, five clear of Hadjar in second, with Stanek in third.

Bearman’s point-less weekend left him fourth, ahead of a resurgent Maloney, as well as his teammates Leclerc, and Crawford. All seven drivers were in with a chance of winning the title heading to Monza.

AN EPIC MONZA FINALE

An action-packed Sprint Race started with Martins and Leclerc colliding, but the ART driver continued on, while Hadjar pitted after damaging his front wing.

Championship rival Bearman was the highest-placed finisher of the contenders in second behind Colapinto, while Maloney also made gains in P4.

An even more dramatic Feature Race would follow, as Stanek and Leclerc suffered contact, dropping them down the order.

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The race was then Red Flagged after a late-race collision between Carlin’s Brad Benavides and MP’s Kush Maini, with Maloney in the lead ahead of Bearman and Martins.

With the cars parked up in the pit lane, the decision was made not to restart the race, while Martins was given a five-second penalty for exceeding track limits one too many times.

This dropped him down to fourth, while promoting Crawford up to third, but the ART driver had done enough to win the Championship by five points ahead of Maloney.

Bearman, Leclerc and Crawford also gave PREMA the title ahead of Trident, bringing a close to an eventful 2022 season.