Nurburgring European F3: Felix Rosenqvist wins and closes on title
Felix Rosenqvist took a giant stride towards the Formula 3 European Championship title with a lights-to-flag win in the first race of the weekend at the Nurburgring


The Swede got a good launch in his Prema Powerteam Dallara-Mercedes to lead team-mate and fellow front-row man Nick Cassidy into the first corner, and controlled the race all the way.
Rosenqvist was a second to the good after two laps and gradually extended the advantage to win by 6.5s.
"I was just focusing on the start, because that's 90 per cent of the race here," said Rosenqvist.
"My start was really perfect - I think it was one of my best. I just had a feel for the car, tried to get a gap and then just maintained it."
Far from thinking of mounting an attack on Rosenqvist, Cassidy instead had to keep a wary eye on Callum Ilott, the 16-year-old Brit taking his first F3 podium in his Red Bull-backed Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen.
Ilott appeared to be gaining with a few laps to go, but New Zealander Cassidy was able to keep him at arm's length for the remainder of the race.
Ilott had staved off an attack from Charles Leclerc over the opening corners, but from then on Leclerc seriously lacked pace due to a damaged front wing on his Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara-VW.
A train of cars built up behind the Monegasque, as this group left a yawning chasm of half a minute to the leading trio by the finish.
But, other than a couple of wide moments at Turn 1, Leclerc rarely looked under serious threat of losing the position, with a strong defensive drive.
Mikkel Jensen (Mucke Motorsport) was the man boxed up behind Leclerc, with Motopark runner Markus Pommer in turn on his tail.
Behind them, Santino Ferrucci - thanks to a great first lap from the seventh row - was able to fend off an attack from Arjun Maini for seventh, while Lance Stroll and Antonio Giovinazzi completed the top 10.
Giovinazzi and Jake Dennis both lost out in the scramble to the first corner - Dennis clipped Ilott, damaging his front wing and forcing him into the pits, while Giovinazzi ran wide as a result of the bunching to his inside to fall initially down to 12th.
The upshot is that Rosenqvist now holds a 58.5-point lead over Giovinazzi, with 125 left on the table; Leclerc is 66.5 behind and Dennis 94 adrift.
Grid-penalised George Russell's bid to scramble into the points was hampered by a determined defensive drive from Gustavo Menezes, which in turn led to an attack from Raoul Hyman.
Alexander Albon managed to vault ahead of all of them to scythe the gap to 11th-placed Sergio Sette Camara, with Russell in his wheeltracks at the flag.
RESULTS - 25 LAPS:
Pos | Driver | Team | Car | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Felix Rosenqvist | Prema Powerteam | Dallara/Mercedes | 34m07.623s |
2 | Nick Cassidy | Prema Powerteam | Dallara/Mercedes | 6.491s |
3 | Callum Ilott | Carlin | Dallara/Volkswagen | 7.764s |
4 | Charles Leclerc | Van Amersfoort Racing | Dallara/Volkswagen | 36.405s |
5 | Mikkel Jensen | KFZTeile24 Mucke Motorsport | Dallara/Mercedes | 36.525s |
6 | Markus Pommer | Motopark | Dallara/Volkswagen | 36.992s |
7 | Santino Ferrucci | KFZTeile24 Mucke Motorsport | Dallara/Mercedes | 37.860s |
8 | Arjun Maini | Van Amersfoort Racing | Dallara/Volkswagen | 38.337s |
9 | Lance Stroll | Prema Powerteam | Dallara/Mercedes | 38.878s |
10 | Antonio Giovinazzi | Jagonya Ayam with Carlin | Dallara/Volkswagen | 39.326s |
11 | Sergio Sette Camara | Motopark | Dallara/Volkswagen | 42.423s |
12 | Alexander Albon | Signature | Dallara/Volkswagen | 43.019s |
13 | George Russell | Carlin | Dallara/Volkswagen | 43.391s |
14 | Gustavo Menezes | Jagonya Ayam with Carlin | Dallara/Volkswagen | 48.009s |
15 | Pietro Fittipaldi | Fortec Motorsports | Dallara/Mercedes | 48.650s |
16 | Raoul Hyman | Team West-Tec F3 | Dallara/Mercedes | 50.497s |
17 | Nabil Jeffri | Motopark | Dallara/Volkswagen | 51.408s |
18 | Felix Serralles | KFZTeile24 Mucke Motorsport | Dallara/Mercedes | 52.835s |
19 | Alessio Lorandi | Van Amersfoort Racing | Dallara/Volkswagen | 53.331s |
20 | Tatiana Calderon | Carlin | Dallara/Volkswagen | 55.800s |
21 | Dorian Boccolacci | Signature | Dallara/Volkswagen | 56.324s |
22 | Matt Rao | Fortec Motorsports | Dallara/Mercedes | 1m00.815s |
23 | Sam MacLeod | Motopark | Dallara/Volkswagen | 1m02.272s |
24 | Ryan Tveter | Jagonya Ayam with Carlin | Dallara/Volkswagen | 1m02.638s |
25 | Michele Beretta | KFZTeile24 Mucke Motorsport | Dallara/Mercedes | 1m03.046s |
26 | Andy Chang | Fortec Motorsports | Dallara/Mercedes | 1m03.739s |
27 | Zhi Cong Li | Fortec Motorsports | Dallara/Mercedes | 1m05.029s |
28 | Matt Solomon | Double R Racing | Dallara/Mercedes | 1m05.895s |
29 | Julio Moreno | ThreeBond with T-Sport | Dallara/NBE | 1m06.825s |
30 | Mahaveer Raghunathan | Motopark | Dallara/Volkswagen | 1m16.701s |
31 | Nicolas Pohler | Double R Racing | Dallara/Mercedes | 1m19.712s |
32 | Harald Schlegelmilch | ArtLine Engineering | ARTTech/NBE | 1 Lap |
- | Jake Dennis | Prema Powerteam | Dallara/Mercedes | Retirement |

European F3 Nurburgring: George Russell gets engine-change penalties
Nurburgring F3: Felix Rosenqvist wins again in race two

Latest news
Horner admits Red Bull’s real RB19 will be ‘somewhat different’
Red Bull boss Christian Horner says the real RB19 that will appear in Formula 1 testing in Bahrain later this month will be ‘somewhat different'.
Horner hints at closer links between Mercedes and Williams F1 teams
Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner has hinted that there could be a closer relationship between the Mercedes and Williams Formula 1 teams in the wake of James Vowles’s move.
Ford remains committed to WRC amid F1 return
Ford has stated that it remains committed to its programme in the World Rally Championship following confirmation of its return to Formula 1 as an engine supplier from 2026.
Dixon: Ganassi found two "big things" to improve IndyCar form
Six-time IndyCar champion Scott Dixon says Chip Ganassi Racing has focused on improving its road course form after inconsistencies last season, and believes there has been breakthroughs for 2023.
Ranking the 10 best drivers from F1's junior series in 2022
The ladder to F1 never gets any less slippery. But a strong cast of Formula 3 and Formula 2 aces proved sure of foot as they continued their climbs in 2022
What racing in Australia means for the future of F1's junior series
The announcement that FIA Formula 2 and 3 would race alongside the Australian Grand Prix from 2023 came as a surprise, not only to fans but to the series’ teams too. But with Formula 1’s boom in popularity bringing more fans to the championships, team principals are relishing the opportunity
Why the Formula 3 benchmark's 2022 season hinges on qualifying
Prema Racing has long dominated FIA Formula 3, taking the teams’ title in two of the past three seasons. But its start to 2022 has been trickier than usual, and the answers lie in its qualifying performance
How the ultra-tight F3 title fight is taking shape
With just five points separating the top five after two rounds, FIA Formula 3 looks set for another thrilling season in 2022. But who stands the best chance of pulling away from that pack, and who are the contenders bubbling under?
The F3 newcomer making good on his unusual career path
Joining the FIA Formula 3 grid as a rookie with a team new to the series could prove daunting for most, but then there aren't many drivers who have the extensive experience Franco Colapinto brings from his time racing sportscars. The Argentinian explains how his LMP2 experience is already helping him in 2022
The British trio hunting for F3 title glory
The 2022 FIA Formula 3 season kicks off this weekend in Bahrain. British trio Zak O’Sullivan, Ollie Bearman and Jonny Edgar have all become proteges of Formula 1 teams, and are talents to watch this year
How an outsider demolished a rank of F1 juniors
His career has been a slowburner but Gregoire Saucy trounced a collection of F1 juniors in Formula Regional by Alpine last year, and now he’s preparing to do it again in FIA F3. Here’s how the Swiss caught the world by surprise in 2021 and how he plans to do it all over again
Ranking the top 10 F2 and F3 drivers of 2021
With a veritable feast of feeder series talent in 2021, FIA Formula 2 and Formula 3 produced some of its most exciting racing yet. Although Prema Racing drivers once again dominated the respective series, drivers from other teams also stole the limelight to mark themselves out as stars of the future, or validate their highly-regarded standing
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.