Race Report
2023 Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix
FIA F3 CHAMPIONSHIP
Circuit: Spa-Francorchamps (B), Length 7,003 km, 28th - 30th July 2023, Rounds 15 + 16
www.spa-francorchamps.be
JENZER MOTORSPORT 2023:
Nikita Bedrin (ITA), Taylor Barnard (GB), Alejandro Garcia (MEX)
© Jenzer Motorsport
Barnard wins at Spa, Bedrin with podium and Garcia with 4th place in the feature race
The 2023 FIA F3 met up for their nineth race event of a total of ten as part of the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix 2023 program on the legendary Spa-Francorchamps (B) circuit. One of the oldest and longest tracks on the calendar, it is often one of the fans and drivers’ favorite track as it usually deliver some of the best racing. Spa is also known for the unpredictable weather conditions, giving an extra challenge to the drivers.
Qualifying
Friday, 28/07/23, 15.00 – 15.30, Weather: Overcast, 17°C
Back to back from Hungary, the FIA F3 drivers met on a rainy and cool Friday morning for the practice session. Immediately out when the lights went green, our drivers went on track to get the most out of practice and to get confident in wet conditions. Taylor finished the session in 9th position, followed by Nikita in 10th and Alejandro in 25th place.
A few hours later, the rain stopped just in time before the F3 cars made their way to the pitlane. Wet tyres were still necessary, although the track then started to dry out towards the end of the session. By then it was then too late to fit the slick tyres. After the first run, Taylor was 14th, with Nikita in 19th and Alejandro in 24th. As the drivers headed out for the last 10 minutes of the session, Taylor improved his lap time and managed to secure 10th position and the 3rd spot on the grid for the Sprint Race! Nikita had a difficult time and finished in 18th, while Alejandro achieved his best qualifying result of the season with 22nd position.
| Race One Grid | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Hugh Barter (AUS) | Campos | |
| 2nd | Paul Aron (EST) | Prema | |
| 3rd | Taylor Barnard (GB) | Jenzer Motorsport | |
| 4th | Caio Collet (BRA) | Van Amersfoort Racing | |
| 5th | Jonny Edgar (GB) | MP | |
| 6th | Dino Beganovic (S) | Prema | |
| 18th | Nikita Bedrin (I) | Jenzer Motorsport | |
| 22nd | Alejandro Garcia (MEX) | Jenzer Motorsport | |
| Race Two Grid | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Josep María Martí (E) | Campos | 2:22.160 |
| 2nd | Leonardo Fornaroli (I) | Trident | 2:22.176 |
| 3rd | Gabriele Mini (I) | Hitech | 2:22.254 |
| 10th | Taylor Barnard (GB) | Jenzer Motorsport | 2:22.816 |
| 18th | Nikita Bedrin (I) | Jenzer Motorsport | 2:23.914 |
| 22nd | Alejandro Garcia (MEX) | Jenzer Motorsport | 2:24.276 |
FIA F3 Championship
Race One (Sprint-Race, 40 Minutes)
Saturday, 29/07/23, 10.00, Weather: Overcast, 16°C
On Saturday morning it was drizzling when the cars were making their way to the pitlane for the Sprint Race. It seemed like it was going to be a wet race, but then the rain stopped. When the cars were on the grid, slick tyres were fitted but conditions were very challenging. From third place on the grid, Taylor started well and kept a better line at Turn 1 to immediately file into second position. Going three cars wide down at the Kemmel straight, Taylor was the one who came out first and took the lead of the race. Behind him though, Collet didn’t waste time and made a good move at Blanchimont to take the first position back. As a Safety Car got deployed by the end of the lap, Taylor had to settle for second place. Behind him, Alejandro delivered a brilliant start and quickly moved up to 15th place, while Nikita had to avoid an incident, went wide and even a bit through the gravel and found himself back in 24th position. From that point on, it was a matter of staying in the race. Three more safety cars had to be deployed, with accidents happening at each restart. Our drivers kept out of trouble and Nikita and Alejandro were able to take advantage of the chaos to move up the order. When the race reached the final stages, it started raining again and the Safety Car was taking the field right to the end. Taylor had managed all restarts well and finished in brilliant second place. He was rewarded with his first appearance on the F3 podium!! Nikita crossed the finish line in 13th position, while Alejandro took 19th place. With some penalties handed out after the race, Nikita moved up to 11th place in the results, and Alejandro was promoted to 18th.
| Results Race One | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Caio Collet (BRA) | Van Amersfoort | 36:16.106 | |
| 2nd | Taylor Barnard (GB) | Jenzer Motorsport | Gap | 0.559 |
| 3rd | Paul Aron (EST) | Prema | Gap | 0.998 |
| 11th | Nikita Bedrin (I) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| 18th | Alejandro Garcia (MEX) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| Fastest lap: Caio Collet (BRA) in 2:14.585 | ||||
FIA F3 Championship
Race Two (Feature Race, 45 Minutes)
Sunday, 30/07/23, 08.30, Weather: Overcast, 16°C
As the Feature Race was approaching early on Sunday morning, rain started to fall over the circuit of Spa-Francorchamps. It stopped in time for the start of the race, but a decision had to be made: slick or wet tyres. With a last minute decision we opted for the wet tyres for all our drivers, while most of the grid went for slicks. The formation lap started behind safety car and then we proceeded with a rolling start. The wet tyres seemed to be the good choice for the start, with Taylor storming in second place followed by Nikita in 4th place and Alejandro in 6th position. With no rain in sight, everyone was wondering whether the wet tyres would last until the end of the race or not. A Safety car got deployed and the leader of the race Paul Aron pitted for slick tyres, while Taylor was the new leader of the race. Behind him, Nikita jumped up to 3rd place and Alejandro was 4th. With 7 laps to go, the race resumed and the battle for the victory began. Chased down by Christian Mansell, Taylor kept his cool and held Mansell off well. The intense battle continued until the end of the race when Taylor crossed the line in a magnificent 1st place, with Nikita completing the podium in 3rd position! Alejandro was right behind in 4th place, giving the team a 1-3-4 finish and 52 points collected! What an amazing performance from the drivers and the team this weekend!!!
| Results Race Two | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Taylor Barnard (GB) | Jenzer Motorsport | 39:50.104 | |
| 2nd | Christian Mansell (GB) | Campos | Gap | 1.529 |
| 3rd | Nikita Bedrin (I) | Jenzer Motorsport | Gap | 7.703 |
| 4th | Alejandro Garcia (MEX) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| Fastest lap: Josep Maria Marti (E) in 2:19.784 | ||||
We are looking forward to the next race meeting which will aready be the last one in this years FIA F3 championship program and will be held in on the weekend of the 30th August 2023 at Monza (I).
© Jenzer Motorsport
Championship standings after 16 out of 18 races:
1st Gabriel Bortoleto, (BRA), 144 points; 2nd Paul Aron (EST), 105 points; 3rd Josep Maria Marti (E), 105 points; 4th Zak O’Sullivan (GB), 101 points; 5th Franco Colapinto (ARG), 100 points; 6th Dino Beganovic (S), 94 points; 13th Taylor Barnard (GB), 50 points; 17th Nikita Bedrin (I), 24 points; 20th Alejandro Garcia (MEX, 12 points
Nikita Bedrin (ITA)
Taylor Barnard (GB)
Alejandro Garcia (MEX)
2023 FIA F3 Championship
| 3-5 March | 2023 Formula 1 Bahrain Grand Prix | Sakhir (BHR) |
| 31 March - 2. April | 2023 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix | Melbourne (AUS) |
| 19-21 May | 2023 Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix1) | Imola (I) |
| 26-28 May | 2023 Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix | Monte Carlo (MC) |
| 2-4 June | 2023 Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix | Barcelona (E) |
| 30 June - 2 July | 2023 Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix | RedBull Ring (A) |
| 7-9 July | 2023 Formula 1 British Grand Prix | Silverstone (GB) |
| 21-23 July | 2023 Formula 1 Hungarian Grand Prix | Hungaroring (HU) |
| 28-30 July | 2023 Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix | Spa-Francorchamps (B) |
| 1-3 September | 2023 Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix | Monza (I) |
1) Cancelled after heavy flooding in the region
For more information:
