Round 3 Post Sprint Race Press Conference

FIA Formula 3: Hello and welcome to the Press Conference of the Top 3 finishes for the FIA Formula 3 Championship Sprint Race here in Imola. In third place we have Tim Tramnitz from MP Motorsport, in second we have Oliver Goethe for Campos Racing and completing the podium with his first win in Formula 3, Noel León from Van Amersfoort Racing. Noel congratulations you’re a race winner in your rookie season, but that didn’t look simple, do you think it slipped away at the end there?

Noel León: Yeah, it was really tricky, I didn’t know what happened at the end. I got the message really late, Ollie was a bit quicker on the reactions. Super happy with the first win and it feels amazing. The car was amazing as well.

FIA Formula 3: You made a great start to get into the lead early on in the race, how tough was it to handle all the restarts and the pressure of leading?

León: I knew from my experiences that it was going to be all about the starts and the restarts. The strategy for us was to have the new set of tyres, have a good launch off the start. The restarts were really tricky, it was only one start that was quite late and quite tricky. But we managed so I am happy.

FIA Formula 3: It’s big points for you today, just how much of a confidence boost is that for your season to get points on the board?

León: Definitely a lot, I have been so close to getting points before. I was wanting and waiting and didn’t get any so I am super happy to get my first points. We are making really good progress with the team, especially at the in-season testing in Barcelona. Now we have closed the gap to the leaders, now we just need to keep working on the car and we will be there.

FIA Formula 3: Congratulations, well done today. Ollie so nearly a victory for you at the end there but the penalty dropped you back to second place. What are your emotions after a race like that?

Oliver Goethe: I have mixed emotions, obviously winning on track and then getting a penalty is not the nicest feeling. At the end of the day the pace was strong, it has been strong all weekend. We will take the positives from that. I am looking forward to the race tomorrow.

FIA Formula 3: It was tight between all three of you for much of that race, just how hard was it to balance, certainly on the restarts, attacking and defending at the same time.

Goethe: When I was in third there wasn’t much of an attack from behind so I was just looking forward. The restarts were tricky to overtake but once we did a couple of laps and got DRS then it was possible to overtake. The pace was really strong, so I managed to make up one position from Tim and then at the end reacting quickly with the lights, I managed to pass Noel but unfortunately I got a penalty beforehand.

FIA Formula 3: You still scored points in every round this season, this is your biggest return of the year so far, do you feel like it could kick start your championship challenge?

Goethe: Yeah I think so. At the first couple of rounds I got points but it was quite average, it was at the lower end of the points. It is good to have the consistency but I believe the pace is stronger now. It all the tests and the European rounds we have been strong so I believe it can get better from here on.

FIA Formula 3: great stuff, well done. Tim a second podium of the season for you, happy with third place today or do you feel like there was a bit more in there for you?

Tim Tramnitz: When you start in the Top 3 you always try to get a win. My start was quite good, my first lap in general I was able to move up one spot. Then it was a bit tricker against Noel with the new tyres. I struggled a bit for pace mid race. I think the Safety Cars helped us a little bit in terms of tyre managements. In the ends, not quite the pace we wanted to have, not the pace to fight for the win anyway. It is good to be back on the podium and score some good points. Happy with that.

FIA Formula 3: You bounced back from a weekend in Melbourne where you didn’t score any points and with Luke Browning and Leonardo Fornaroli not finishing in the points today, does it feel like it could be an important result for you?

Tramnitz: Yeah every point is important. We are still early in the year, for sure it feels good to be back in Europe, racing on all the tracks that I know. This should be an advantage as well. Overall I am just happy to score good points and I think tomorrow will be important as well as the others will start a bit in front of me. Some catch up to do and then we will be fine.

FIA Formula 3: We had lots of incidents going on out there, four safety Cars and 1 Virtual Safety Car late on. How to you think tomorrow’s race is going to play out starting from further back in the pack.

Tramnitz: That’s a difficult one to answer. I think Imola is always open for some chaos. Let’s see I think it is important to have a good start and then stay out of trouble. That’s probably the best thing you can do. Then you need to see where you are in terms of pace and to be clever at managing the tyres. You have to have them in the right window. We will see where we finish, I am sure and confident that the team will provide me with a good car for tomorrow.

FIA Formula 3: Great stuff, thanks very much all.