Tramnitz leaving Barcelona satisfied after positive test with MP Motorsport

21 February 2025

After three days of testing around the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Tim Tramnitz says he and his MP Motorsport team are in a good place heading into Round 1.

The Red Bull Junior Team driver finished second on the final day of running in mixed conditions, bolting on a set of Hard tyres late on to move his way up the order on a challenging final day.

Reflecting on the three days overall, Tramnitz believes he and MP accomplished what they’d set out to do despite the wet weather that greeted teams on the day three.

“It was a lot of fun, to be fair, because we went on slicks and the track was so damp. So that was nice, requiring a bit of car control and sliding around, but also good for learning on the other hand, with the wet conditions today, it was a bit more difficult for us.

“I think we are confident in the dry for Melbourne. Still, there’s a few things we need to sort out in the wet and we need to analyse now in the meantime, but so far so good. I think everything went well. We collected a lot of data for the team, which is very important for the engineers.”

Tramnitz is gearing up for his second FIA Formula 3 campaign after completing his rookie season last year with MP. He says that sticking with the Dutch squad for the follow-up is a big advantage for both team and driver, cutting down on any adaptation.

Tramnitz finished the final day of testing second overall after a late switch to slicks

He added that they were able to instead immediately start their focus on learning about the new F3 car, building up as much data as possible.

“It gives me a lot of confidence that’s for sure. The guys know me very well, I know the guys very well, so they know which direction I want the car in, and I know what they need from me for feedback as well. That’s very helpful and very important, so it gives me a lot of confidence.

“As a driver, you always look at the times a little bit, but it was very important for the team to get through the programme. We did some aerial tests on the first morning, simply collecting a lot of data trying a lot of different things.

“Some things worked, some things didn't go to plan, but that’s just part of it, and normal. But looking at the times, I also think day one was good.

“The afternoon session on day two was not bad as well, which can give you at least a direction of where you are. But you will see the full potential of everyone in the first Qualifying.”

Delving further into the differences between the old and new generation of F3 car, Tramnitz said he was impressed with the 2025 iteration, adding that along with the larger 16-inch tyres, the handling felt positive on first impressions.

The MP driver says the team were able to learn a lot about the new 2025 F3 car

“Honestly, it's a very big difference. I think a lot is coming from the tyres as well, because it seems like there's a lot of grip in the corners.

“Everyone expected to be a bit slower compared with the old car, simply because it's a bit heavier and the aero is different, but in the end, it turns out we are even quicker. So that's positive and nice for us drivers as well.”

With testing done and dusted, Tramnitz says he will return to Red Bull for preparations for the upcoming campaign before re to MP and visiting the team at their workshop.

From there, he’ll fly to Australia early in order to acclimatise to the time difference ahead of the opening race weekend of the 2025 campaign.

“I'll be at Red Bull again, preparing for Melbourne, also with the team afterwards so a lot of prep and then we arrive a bit earlier at Melbourne to deal with a jet lag. So, excited to get going. and very much looking forward to Melbourne.”