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2024 Formula 3 Season Review Part One: The title contenders make themselves known
The 2024 Formula 3 season was one to remember and while the ending will live long in the memory, the first five rounds of the year, where we had multiple first-time winners and Championship contenders making themselves know, set up an incredible campaign.
So, before we get going again in 2025 let us look back on the first half of the season…
SAKHIR
After three days of pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit, Formula 3 kicked off its sixth campaign on a competitive note at the opening round in Sakhir.
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Having finished sixth in the 2023 Drivers' Championship, Dino Beganovic was the highest placed 2024 returnee and he immediately got off to a fine start with Pole Position in Bahrain ahead of Hitech Pulse-Eight’s Luke Browning.
The Sprint Race though saw Beganovic’s PREMA Racing teammate Arvid Lindblad win on debut. The rookie put in starring performance to come home over five seconds ahead of fellow newcomer Laurens van Hoepen for ART Grand Prix, with Leonardo Fornaroli in third.
On to the Feature Race and PREMA’s hopes of making it two from two took a huge hit when Beganovic’s slow start dropped him right to the back of the field.
This gave Browning the lead off the line which he would hold on to for all 22 laps on his way to claiming his first Formula 3 victory.
ART’s strong weekend continued as Christian Mansell went from P8 on the grid to second, while there was another rookie on the podium this time in the form of MP Motorsport’s Tim Tramnitz.
MELBOURNE
Browning headed to Albert Park top the Standings but qualified fifth on Friday as Fornaroli took his second F3 Pole Position, 0.019s ahead of PREMA’s Gabriele Minì with Beganovic in third.
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The Sprint Race followed, and it was a second win of the season for Hitech and a rookie, as Martinius Stenshorne held off Lindblad and van Hoepen to take his first victory.
There was also a maiden F3 victory on Sunday as Beganovic’s excellent pace in the Feature saw him overtake both Minì and Fornaroli on his way to winning in dominant fashion.
By finishing fourth, Browning stayed top of the Championship but was now tied on 37 points with Fornaroli following his two points for pole and his second place in the Feature.
IMOLA
After three days of in-season testing in Barcelona, Formula 3’s return to Europe kicked off at Imola for Round 3.
It was an epic homecoming for Trident who scored a 1-2-3 in Qualifying led by rookie Santiago Ramos ahead of Sami Meguetounif and Fornaroli.
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In the Sprint Race though, we got our fifth winner of the season as Oliver Goethe took advantage of the late Virtual Safety Car restart to claim victory with Tramnitz in second and Noel León in third.
Goethe made it two podiums in a row in the Feature, finishing second behind Meguetounif who became the newest member of the Formula 3 winner’s circle.
Fornaroli was now the new leader in the Drivers’ Championship however, after finishing third in the Feature, leading Browning by three points heading to Monaco.
MONTE CARLO
After a rain-affected Practice the drivers returned for Qualifying having not done many laps, but for the second consecutive year it was Minì who took Pole Position.
ART’s good start to the season continued as Mansell qualified on the front row before the French outfit claimed their first victory of the year in the Sprint Race through Nikola Tsolov, while van Hoepen finished third.
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It was the Dutchman’s third podium of the season, as it was for Tramnitz who took second place for MP behind Tsolov.
On to the Feature and for second year in a row Minì converted pole into victory around the Principality as Mansell followed him across the line in second.
Browning returned to the podium for the first time since Bahrain by finishing third and while he jumped ahead of Fornaroli in the Standings, Minì’s victory meant he was the new leader in the Drivers’ Championship.
BARCELONA
Mansell’s strong form continued at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya as he took a maiden Formula 3 Pole Position. It was a tight affair as just 0.039s covered the top three with Lindblad in second and Tsolov in third.
The Sprint Race though was won by one of Spain’s own as Campos’ Mari Boya came out on top on home soil ahead of MP’s Alexander Dunne, with Goethe rounding the top three.
On to the Feature and we got our first repeat winner of the season as Lindblad won Formula 3’s 100th race in exceptional style, finishing over four seconds ahead of Mansell.
Fornaroli left it till the final lap before overtaking Browning to finish third, putting him back at the top of the Championship ahead of the Hitech driver and Minì as we reached the halfway stage.