The Euroformula Open Championship (formerly the Spanish Formula Three Championship, European F3 Open Championship) is a junior formula racing series based in Spain. It was one of six national and international Formula Three championships in Europe that together used to form an important part of the established "career ladder" below Formula One. The championship's first season was held in 2001. In 2006, it was branded as the Spanish F3 Championship by Toyota, in deference to its sole engine supplier. In 2020, the championship ceased to be a F3-championship and will share its specifications with Japan's Super Formula Lights based on the previous-generation Formula Three standards, primarily with a choice of engines.
Category | Single seaters |
---|---|
Country | Europe |
Inaugural season | 2001 |
Drivers | 10 (2024) |
Teams | 4 (2024) |
Constructors | Dallara |
Engine suppliers | Mercedes Volkswagen |
Tyre suppliers | Pirelli[1] |
Drivers' champion | Brad Benavides |
Teams' champion | Team Motopark |
Official website | http://www.euroformulaopen.net/ |
Current season |
Profile
editThe Spanish Formula Three Championship was formed during Spain's recent growth period in motor racing that began with the Euro Open Movistar by Nissan, which eventually became the World Series by Renault when the two companies' motor racing programs were reorganised. The new championship replaced the previously existing Super Formula Toyota, a one-make series with performance similar to F3.
The European F3 Open championship has become successful by actively taking measures to control budget requirements. This provides a more achievable option for drivers who lack the major sponsorship portfolio that is required by leading Euroseries teams, and would otherwise have to look elsewhere for their next step up the career ladder.
With Renault's backing, the World Series has developed into a championship from which drivers can reach Formula One, and three major Spanish teams are established in GP2.[2] This has fostered new opportunities for the graduates of Spanish F3, which has, in turn, made the championship itself a success.[3]
In recent years the Championship has become much less centred in Spain, with races across Europe, and has successfully attracted famous non-Spanish teams to take part. The first was the British outfit Team West-Tec who went on to win two Driver's Championship titles in their first three seasons, and which were followed a year later by Italy's RP Motorsport who have won races each year since joining.
The championship was renamed to Euroformula Open Championship for 2014, after the FIA restricted the use of the Formula Three name to championships that do not follow the current engine regulations.[4]
Sub-divisions
editLike British Formula Three, the series incorporates a second championship class for chassis specifications from the previous generation. The Copa was created in 2005, and provides an opportunity for drivers without competitive budgets, who would otherwise be left unable to progress from cheaper formulae. The name is derived from the chassis specification that all Copa entrants must use: the Dallara F308.
Equipment
editThe Euroformula Open Championship has used chassis from Italian constructor Dallara. During the first seasons, the Dallara F300 was used. The Dallara F305 debuted in 2005, the Dallara F308 in 2008, and the Dallara F312 in 2012. The secondary class was dropped during the 2014 season due to lack of entries. The current chassis is the Dallara 320, which debuted in 2020.
Originally, the European F3 Open Championship had a single engine supplier. From 2010 to 2018, the series used Toyota's F3 engine upgraded by the Spanish tuner Piedrafita Sport. In 2019, the series also allowed Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen engines, and the Toyota engines were dropped after the first round of the season.
F1 tests
editThe exclusive use of the Toyota engine prompted Toyota to offer a Formula One test to each year's champion. The first driver to benefit from this was 2004 champion Borja García, who later graduated to GP2.[5]
Venues
editBetween 2001 and 2005, the Spanish F3 Championship had seven rounds, each with two races. Exceptions to this included the Valencia round in 2002 and the Jerez round in 2003, each of which had only one race, and Albacete, which held a single-race event in addition to its regular two-race event in 2005.
In every season from its inception until 2007, the championship made a regular visit to Estoril in Portugal. The 2006 season, which was expanded to eight rounds, included the championship's first visit to Magny-Cours in France.[6]
Since 2008 many circuits from further afield have been added to the schedule including visits to Magny Cours, Donington Park and Brands Hatch with major European motorsport venues including Spa, Monza, Silverstone and Hungaroring hosting rounds of the 2014 season as the series expands further into Europe.
From 2001, the circuits used in the Euroformula Open Championship are listed as:
- Bold denotes a circuit will be used in the 2024 season.
Number | Circuits | Rounds | Years |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya | 23 | 2001–present |
2 | Circuito de Jerez | 20[a] | 2002–2011, 2013–2018 |
3 | Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps | 16 | 2008–present |
4 | Autodromo Nazionale di Monza | 15 | 2009–present |
5 | Circuit Ricardo Tormo | 13[b] | 2001–2011 |
6 | Circuito do Estoril | 12 | 2001–2007, 2015–2018, 2022 |
7 | Circuito del Jarama | 11[c] | 2001–2010 |
Circuit Paul Ricard | 11 | 2012–2013, 2015–present | |
9 | Circuito de Albacete | 9[d] | 2001–2008 |
Hungaroring | 9 | 2012, 2014, 2017–present | |
11 | Silverstone Circuit | 7 | 2013–2019 |
Red Bull Ring | 7 | 2015–2016, 2019–present | |
13 | Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours | 6 | 2006–2011 |
Algarve International Circuit | 6 | 2011–2014, 2021, 2023–present | |
15 | Brands Hatch | 3 | 2010–2012 |
Nürburgring | 3 | 2012–2014 | |
17 | Valencia Street Circuit | 2[e] | 2008 |
Circuit de Pau-Ville | 2 | 2019, 2022 | |
Mugello Circuit | 2 | 2020, 2023 | |
Imola Circuit | 2 | 2021–2022 | |
21 | Donington Park | 1 | 2009 |
Hockenheimring | 1 | 2019, 2024 |
Points system
editSeasons | Race | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | PP | FL | PG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2001–2003 | Race | 20 | 18 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — |
2004 | Race | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | — | |||||
2005–2006 | Race | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | — | ||||||
2007–2008 | Race 1 | 13 | 11 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | — | ||||||
Race 2 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | |||||||||
2009–2011 | Race 1 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | — | |||||
Race 2 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | — | |||||||
2012–2020 | Race | 25 | 18 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | — | ||||
2021–present | Race | 25 | 18 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | 1 | 2* |
Champions
editSpanish Formula Three
editDrivers
editSeason | Driver | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Fastest laps | Points | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | Ander Vilariño | Racing Engineering | 7 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 196 | Race 12 of 14 | 39 |
2002 | Marcel Costa | E.V. Racing | 2 | 2 | 9 | 3 | 190 | Race 11 of 13 | 16 |
2003 | Ricardo Maurício | Racing Engineering | 4 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 190 | Race 11 of 13 | 6 |
2004 | Borja García | Racing Engineering | 8 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 149 | Race 14 of 14 | 18 |
2005 | Andy Soucek | Llusiá Racing | 2 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 112 | Race 13 of 13 | 3 |
2006 | Ricardo Risatti | TEC-Auto | 3 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 118 | Race 15 of 16 | 15 |
2007 | Máximo Cortés | Escuderia TEC-Auto | 4 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 117 | Race 16 of 16 | 4 |
2008 | Germán Sánchez | Campos F3 Racing | 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 88 | Race 17 of 17 | 4 |
Teams
editSeason | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Fastest laps | Points | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | Racing Engineering | 8 | 7 | 13 | 9 | 113 | Race 14 of 14 | 19 |
2002 | Racing Engineering | 2 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 108 | Race 12 of 13 | 19 |
2003 | Racing Engineering | 4 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 119 | Race 12 of 13 | 26 |
2004 | Racing Engineering | 9 | 10 | 21 | 10 | 179 | Race 10 of 14 | 18 |
2005 | Racing Engineering | 2 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 252 | Race 9 of 13 | 128 |
2006 | Racing Engineering | 1 | 4 | 14 | 1 | 155 | Race 16 of 16 | 9 |
2007 | Escuderia TEC-Auto | 4 | 7 | 17 | 9 | 197 | Race 16 of 16 | 30 |
2008 | Campos F3 Racing | 3 | 4 | 12 | 7 | 134 | Race 15 of 17 | 44 |
Junior Cup
editSeason | Driver | Team | Poles | Wins (Junior) | Podiums (Junior) | Fastest laps | Points (Junior) | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2001 | Juan Antonio del Pino | Meycom | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 73 | Race 13 of 14 | 23 |
2002 | Andy Soucek | Racing Engineering | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 113 | Race 7 of 13 | 16 |
2003 | Ricardo Risatti | EV Racing Elide Racing |
0 | 0 (8) | 1 (10) | 0 | 70 (96) | Race 12 of 13 | 28 |
2004 | Javier Villa | EV Racing Elide Racing |
0 | 0 (10) | 0 (11) | 0 | 29 (108) | Race 13 of 14 | 28 |
Trofeo Ibérico
editSeason | Driver | Team | Poles | Wins (Trofeo) | Podiums(Trofeo) | Fastest laps | Points (Trofeo) | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2003 | Borja García | GTA Motor Competición | 1 | 1 (0) | 7 (4) | 2 | 80 (182) | Race 5 of 5 | 4 |
2004 | Borja García | Racing Engineering | 7 | 9 (5) | 10 (5) | 8 | 149 (63) | Race 6 of 6 | 13 |
2005 | Andy Soucek | Llusiá Racing | 2 | 3 (2) | 7 (3) | 1 | 112 (77) | Race 5 of 6 | 19 |
2006 | Roldán Rodríguez | Campos Racing | 2 | 4 (3) | 5 (3) | 3 | 103 (65) | Race 6 of 6 | 6 |
Copa de España de F3
editSeason | Driver | Team | Poles | Wins (Copa) | Podiums(Copa) | Fastest laps | Points (Copa) | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2005 | Arturo Llobell | Campos Racing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 (86) | Race 15 of 15 | 4 |
2006 | German Sanchez | Escuela Profiltek | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 19 (108) | Race 15 of 16 | 15 |
2007 | Christian Ebbesvik | Team West-Tec | 0 | 0 (7) | 0 (13) | 0 | 7 (118) | Race 16 of 16 | 0 |
2008 | Natacha Gachnang | Team West-Tec | 1 | 0 (5) | 0 (12) | 2 | 76 (110) | Race 16 of 16 | 1 |
European F3 Open
editDrivers
editSeason | Driver | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Fastest laps | Points | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | Bruno Méndez | Campos Racing | 2 | 4 | 11 | 8 | 145 | Race 16 of 16 | 2 |
2010 | Marco Barba | Cedars Motorsport | 3 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 154 | Race 12 of 16 | 42 |
2011 | Alex Fontana | Corbetta Competizioni | 1 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 120 | Race 15 of 16 | 5 |
2012 | Niccolò Schirò | RP Motorsport | 3 | 4 | 11 | 7 | 272 | Race 16 of 16 | 5 |
2013 | Ed Jones | Team West-Tec F3 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 256 | Race 16 of 16 | 9 |
Teams
editSeason | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Fastest laps | Points | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | Campos Racing | 4 | 6 | 14 | 10 | 117 | Race 16 of 16 | 7 |
2010 | Cedars Motorsport | 3 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 116 | Race 15 of 16 | 24 |
2011 | Team West-Tec | 2 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 101 | Race 16 of 16 | 6 |
2012 | RP Motorsport | 8 | 8 | 23 | 10 | 138 | Race 14 of 16 | 41 |
2013 | RP Motorsport | 6 | 6 | 26 | 7 | 128 | Race 16 of 16 | 2 |
Copa F306/300
editSeason | Driver | Team | Poles | Wins (Copa) | Podiums (Copa) | Fastest laps | Points (Copa) | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | Callum MacLeod | Team West-Tec | 0 | 0 (7) | 1 (12) | 0 | 41 (106) | Race 14 of 16 | 27 |
2010 | Noel Jammal | Cedars Motorsport | 0 | 0 (5) | 0 (8) | 0 | 24 (89) | Race 16 of 16 | 5 |
2011 | Fabio Gamberini | Team West-Tec | 0 | 1 (10) | 3 (14) | 0 | 79 (130) | Race 14 of 16 | 12 |
2012 | Kevin Giovesi | DAV Racing | 0 | 0 (10) | 1 (11) | 0 | 93 (110) | Race 13 of 16 | 38 |
2013 | Richard Gonda | Drivex School | 0 | 0 (7) | 0 (10) | 0 | 10 (100) | Race 15 of 16 | 19 |
Euroformula Open
editDrivers
editSeason | Driver | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Fastest laps | Points | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2014 | Sandy Stuvik | RP Motorsport | 10 | 11 | 12 | 5 | 332 | Race 14 of 16 | 89 |
2015 | Vitor Baptista | RP Motorsport | 5 | 6 | 12 | 7 | 291 | Race 16 of 16 | 5 |
2016 | Leonardo Pulcini | Campos Racing | 3 | 7 | 15 | 8 | 303 | Race 12 of 16 | 56 |
2017 | Harrison Scott | RP Motorsport | 11 | 12 | 13 | 9 | 340 | Race 12 of 16 | 118 |
2018 | Felipe Drugovich | RP Motorsport | 10 | 14 | 16 | 10 | 405 | Race 12 of 16 | 159 |
2019 | Marino Sato | Team Motopark | 6 | 9 | 11 | 5 | 309 | Race 15 of 18 | 130 |
2020 | Yifei Ye | CryptoTower Racing | 12 | 11 | 16 | 12 | 369 | Race 16 of 18 | 121 |
2021 | Cameron Das | Team Motopark | 1 | 7 | 16 | 6 | 382 | Race 22 of 24 | 67 |
2022 | Oliver Goethe | Team Motopark | 7 | 11 | 18 | 12 | 473 | Race 24 of 26 | 57 |
2023 | Noel León | Team Motopark | 5 | 7 | 15 | 11 | 394 | Race 20 of 23 | 87 |
2024 | Brad Benavides | Team Motopark | 4 | 9 | 19 | 10 | 431 | Race 21 of 24 | 86 |
Teams
editSeason | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Fastest laps | Points | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2014 | RP Motorsport | 13 | 13 | 22 | 10 | 152 | Race 14 of 16 | 51 |
2015 | RP Motorsport | 5 | 7 | 13 | 8 | 121 | Race 15 of 16 | 10 |
2016 | Campos Racing | 3 | 7 | 17 | 9 | 120 | Race 14 of 16 | 18 |
2017 | RP Motorsport | 12 | 13 | 17 | 10 | 134 | Race 12 of 16 | 44 |
2018 | RP Motorsport | 10 | 14 | 16 | 11 | 180 | Race 11 of 16 | 78 |
2019 | Team Motopark | 11 | 15 | 33 | 11 | 262 | Race 12 of 18 | 168 |
2020 | CryptoTower Racing | 17 | 16 | 26 | 16 | 244 | Race 12 of 18 | 129 |
2021 | Team Motopark | 5 | 16 | 29 | 18 | 277 | Race 23 of 24 | 69 |
2022 | CryptoTower Racing | 3 | 12 | 41 | 8 | 358 | Race 23 of 24 | 78 |
2023 | Team Motopark | 5 | 15 | 36 | 15 | 325 | Race 15 of 23 | 124 |
2024 | Team Motopark | 6 | 19 | 46 | 19 | 402 | Race 12 of 24 | 279 |
Rookies
editSeason | Driver | Team | Poles | Wins (rookie) | Podiums (rookie) | Fastest laps | Points (rookie) | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | Ferdinand Habsburg | Drivex School | 4 | 2 (10) | 12 (15) | 1 | 247 (140) | Race 12 of 16 | 42 |
2017 | Nikita Troitskiy | Drivex School | 2 | 0 (7) | 9 (14) | 4 | 222 (124) | Race 14 of 16 | 29 |
2018 | Bent Viscaal | Teo Martín Motorsport | 4 | 1 (14) | 12 (15) | 2 | 246 (138) | Race 12 of 16 | 48 |
2019 | Liam Lawson | Team Motopark | 2 | 4 (6) | 7 (9) | 1 | 179 (92) | Race 18 of 18 | 9 |
2020 | Niklas Krütten | Team Motopark | 0 | 0 (9) | 5 (13) | 0 | 153 (140) | Race 16 of 18 | 28 |
2021 | Casper Stevenson | Van Amersfoort Racing | 0 | 2 (6) | 4 (20) | 0 | 217 (178) | Race 19 of 24 | 35 |
2022 | Vladislav Lomko | CryptoTower Racing | 2 | 6 (21) | 19 (25) | 5 | 416 (226) | Race 22 of 26 | 64 |
2023 | Jakob Bergmeister | Team Motopark | 0 | 0 (10) | 3 (16) | 0 | 150 (148) | Race 12 of 23 | 40 |
2024 | Fernando Barrichello | Team Motopark | 0 | 1 (20) | 5 (24) | 1 | 264 (210) | Race 13 of 24 | 176 |
Spanish F3 Drivers
editSeason | Driver | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Fastest laps | Points | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2014 | Sandy Stuvik | RP Motorsport | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 118 | Race 5 of 6 | 13 |
2015 | Konstantin Tereshchenko | Campos Racing | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 134 | Race 5 of 6 | 37 |
2016 | Leonardo Pulcini | Campos Racing | 1 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 105 | Race 6 of 6 | 11 |
2017 | Devlin DeFrancesco | Carlin Motorsport | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 119 | Race 5 of 6 | 22 |
2018 | Felipe Drugovich | RP Motorsport | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 157 | Race 5 of 6 | 53 |
Spanish F3 Teams
editSeason | Team | Poles | Wins | Podiums | Fastest laps | Points | Clinched | Margin |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2014 | RP Motorsport | 5 | 5 | 8 | 4 | 56 | Race 5 of 6 | 14 |
2015 | Campos Racing | 5 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 48 | Race 6 of 6 | 9 |
2016 | Campos Racing | 1 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 42 | Race 6 of 6 | 5 |
2017 | RP Motorsport | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 50 | Race 5 of 6 | 7 |
2018 | RP Motorsport | 3 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 72 | Race 4 of 6 | 28 |
Notes
editReferences
edit- ^ "GT Sport announces tyre supply partnership with Pirelli for the Euroformula Open, starting with immediate effect". www.euroformulaopen.net. Retrieved 2024-05-28.
- ^ Racing Engineering Season Preview F1prospects.com, April 8, 2006. Retrieved on February 2, 2007.
- ^ Over the Weekend – April 29–30, 2006 Archived 2007-03-01 at the Wayback Machine F1prospects.com, May 1, 2006. Retrieved on February 2, 2007.
- ^ "The Euroformula Open is born!". Euroformula Open Championship. GT Sport. 14 February 2014. Archived from the original on 23 February 2014. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
- ^ Toyota F1 test for Spanish champ Autosport-atlas.com, January 28, 2005. Retrieved on February 2, 2007.
- ^ 2006 Spanish F3 Calendar Archived 2007-03-24 at the Wayback Machine Formula3.cc, November 26, 2005. Retrieved on February 2, 2007.