The 2024 Sakhir FIA Formula 3 round was a motor racing event held between 29 February and 2 March 2024 at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain. It was the first race of the 2024 FIA Formula 3 Championship and was being held in support of the 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix.
| Round details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Round 1 of 10 in the 2024 FIA Formula 3 Championship. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Layout of the Bahrain International Circuit | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Bahrain International Circuit Sakhir, Bahrain | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Course | Permanent racing facility 5.412 km (3.363 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sprint Race | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Feature Race | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Background
editTeam changes
editNew Zealand automotive manufacturer Rodin Cars took over Carlin and renamed the team Rodin Motorsport, after previously becoming majority shareholder in 2023.[1]
Driver changes
editThe previous season's top five drivers - reigning champion Gabriel Bortoleto, runner-up Zak O'Sullivan, Paul Aron, Franco Colapinto, and Pepe Martí - all left the series and graduated to the FIA Formula 2 Championship. Italian F4 Championship champion and Kacper Sztuka and third-placed Arvid Lindblad debuted in the series with MP Motorsport and Prema Racing, respectively, both as Red Bull Junior Team members, and Formula Regional European Championship runner-up Martinius Stenshorne joined Hitech Pulse-Eight.[2][3][4] Thai Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak, Peruvian Matías Zagazeta, and Alex Dunne of Ireland became the first drivers to represent their respective nations in series history.
Classification
editSummary
editDino Beganovic set the fastest qualifying time for the opening round at Bahrain International Circuit to claim feature race pole position, followed by Luke Browning and Gabriele Minì. Laurens van Hoepen qualified twelfth and thus started the reverse-grid sprint race from first place. His ART Grand Prix teammate Nikola Tsolov took the lead at the first corner, and the two drivers continued competing for first position for much of the race. Arvid Lindblad, who started fourth, took advantage of the battle in front and overtook both drivers to claim the lead, and later the race win, on his FIA Formula 3 debut. He was joined on the podium by Van Hoepen, also on his debut race, and Leonardo Fornaroli, who had passed Tsolov in the closing laps.
Pole-sitter Beganovic encountered an issue off the start line in the feature race and was overtaken by the entire field before the first corner. The lead therefore passed to Browning, with Sami Meguetounif and Tim Tramnitz improving to the podium positions. Eighth-place starter Christian Mansell made overtakes at the start and had claimed second place by lap five. Mansell ran close behind Browning for most of the race but was unable to pass, and Browning took his first FIA Formula 3 victory, with Tramnitz completing the podium on his debut weekend. At the conclusion of the round, Browning led the Drivers' Championship by four points over Tramnitz.
Qualifying
editQualifying was held on 29 February 2024, at 16:00 local time (UTC+3).
Notes:
- ^1 – Matías Zagazeta received a five-place grid penalty for the Feature Race for causing a collision with Tommy Smith in the Sprint Race. [8]
Sprint race
editThe sprint race was held on 1 March 2024, at 13:15 local time (UTC+3).
Feature race
editThe feature race was held on 2 March 2024, at 12:00 local time (UTC+3).
Notes:
- ^1 – Nikita Bedrin originally finished eighteenth, but was later given a five-second time penalty for exceeding track limits multiple times, dropping him down to 20th place in the final classification.[11]
- ^2 – Sophia Flörsch retired on the final lap, but was classified as she completed over 90% of the race distance.
Standings after the event
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- Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.
See also
editNotes
editReferences
edit- ^ "Leading junior motorsport team Rodin Carlin to rebrand as Rodin Motorsport". Rodin Motorsport. 9 January 2024. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
- ^ "Sztuka makes the jump up to FIA Formula 3 with MP Motorsport". MP Motorsport. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
- ^ "Martinius Stenshorne joins Hitech Pulse-Eight in the 2024 FIA Formula 3 Championship". Hitech Pulse-Eight. 11 December 2023. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
- ^ Wood, Ida (2023-10-31). "Arvid Lindblad to step up to FIA F3 with Prema in 2024". Formula Scout. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
- ^ "Nikita Bedrin". fiaformula3.com. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
- ^ a b c "FIA Formula 3 2024 Result for Round 1 : Sakhir, Bahrain 29 February–2 March 2024". FIA F3® - The Official FIA F3® Website. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
- ^ "QUALIFYING: Beganovic takes first pole of 2024 season for PREMA Racing". FIAFormula3® - The Official F3® Website. 29 February 2024. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
- ^ "Zagazeta handed grid penalty following Sakhir Sprint Race". FIAFormula3® - The Official F3® Website. 1 March 2024. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
- ^ "SPRINT RACE: Lindblad battles through for first win of 2024". FIAFormula3® - The Official F3® Website. 1 March 2024. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
- ^ "FEATURE RACE: Browning holds off Mansell for maiden F3 victory". FIAFormula3® - The Official F3® Website. 2 March 2024. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
- ^ "Bedrin handed time penalty following Sakhir Feature Race". FIAFormula3® - The Official F3® Website. 2 March 2024. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
External links
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