The MP team travelled to Bahrain for the first F3 race this year to kick off the season. It’s a debut season for the full MP grid this year. Tim Tramnitz came over after a successful season in FRECA, Kacper Sztuka is the reigning Formula Winter Series and Italian F4 champion, and our third driver is GB3 runner-up Alex Dunne. Both Tim and Kacper joined the team as Red Bull Junior and are driving with their livery, Tim in car number 7 and Kacper in 8. Alex is driving in the original orange MP livery with number 9.
Tim started the weekend by qualifying in P7, followed by Alex in P14. Kacper managed to qualify in P24.
During the sprint race, Tim managed to decrease his gap to P5 after losing two positions. After an exciting battle, he overtook his opponent and finished the sprint fifth. Alex gained two positions compared to where he started which meant a P12 for the Irishman. Kacper overtook three drivers in front of him and nearly broke into the top 20 but fell just short finishing at P21.
The big one of the weekend was ahead of our drivers, the feature race. And a big one it was, because Tim finished his first race in Formula 3 on the podium by making up four positions after starting 7th. A great performance by our number seven! Alex also managed to score his first points, finishing in the ninth position. Unfortunately, Kacper had to make a pitstop due to contact in the early stages and had damage to the nose. This led to him finishing at P29.
Overall, it was an exciting weekend and a lot to look forward to in the upcoming months. For the next round, our F3 team and drivers will head down under for the second round this season in Melbourne, Australia. This race weekend will happen from 22 till 24 March, which also means the Championship will run back to its original schedule Friday-Sunday.
Standings after the first round
P2 Tim – 21 points
P14 Alex – 2 points
P24 Kacper – 0 points
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