Pietro Fittipaldi wins opening Formula V8 3.5 race in Mexico
Pietro Fittipaldi reclaimed the Formula V8 3.5 championship lead with a lights-to-flag victory at Mexico City ahead of Matevos Isaakyan and Alex Palou

Starting from pole position, the Lotus driver was almost eliminated at the first corner as Egor Orudzhev missed his braking point and shot across Fittipaldi's nose.
The Brazilian avoided the SMP Racing driver, but Orudzhev couldn't stop on the wet grass and clipped the wall at the exit of Turn 1.
After a brief safety car period, Fittipaldi looked untroubled as he pulled away from a three-car battle squabbling for second place.
The battle, between Teo Martin team-mates Palou, Konstantin Tereschenko and Isaakyan, allowed the leader to build up a two second lead with only 10 minutes of the 40-minute race completed.
Isaakyan made short work of Tereschenko, slip-streaming past the Russian on the main-straight, before getting onto the back of Palou.
Palou, who was struggling with the balance of the car in the two qualifying sessions, fought off the Nurburgring race winner for a number of laps.
However, with 10 minutes to go Isaakyan got past at Turn 5 after forcing the Spaniard onto the run-off.
Isaakyan was unable to catch Fittipaldi in the closing stages, so had to settle for second. Palou, who was a late replacement for Nelson Mason, finished a distant third with Tereschenko finishing fourth.
Alfonso Celis tried to excite the home crowd but after passing Rene Binder for fifth at the halfway stage of the race, he couldn't make up any ground on the top four.
Binder stayed in sixth place, with Yu Kanamaru seventh, and Diego Menchaca claimed eighth place on the last lap with a robust move on RP Motorsport driver Roy Nissany in the stadium section that caused both of them to make use of the run-off.
Giuseppe Cipriani rounded out the field.
Race one result
Pos | Driver | Team | Laps | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Pietro Fittipaldi | Lotus | 27 | 43m03.238s |
2 | Matevos Isaakyan | SMP Racing by AVF | 27 | 3.227s |
3 | Alex Palou | Teo Martin Motorsport | 27 | 5.912s |
4 | Konstantin Tereschenko | Teo Martin Motorsport | 27 | 8.253s |
5 | Alfonso Celis | Fortec Motorsports | 27 | 10.437s |
6 | Rene Binder | Lotus | 27 | 15.517s |
7 | Yu Kanamaru | RP Motorsport | 27 | 24.577s |
8 | Diego Menchaca | Fortec Motorsports | 27 | 40.922s |
9 | Roy Nissany | RP Motorsport | 27 | 41.594s |
10 | Giuseppe Cipriani | Il Barone Rampante | 27 | 1m07.042s |
- | Egor Orudzhev | SMP Racing by AVF | 0 | Retirement |

FV8 3.5 Mexico: Pietro Fittipaldi doubles up with pole for race two
Pietro Fittipaldi completes Mexico City double in

Latest news
FV8 3.5 Bahrain: Binder beats Fittipaldi to win last ever race
Rene Binder claimed a lights-to-flag victory in the last ever Formula V8 3.5 race as he led team-mate Pietro Fittipaldi across the line in Bahrain
Pietro Fittipaldi becomes final Formula V8 3.5 champion
Pietro Fittipaldi won the final Formula V8 3.5 title with a race to spare after a second-place finish in Bahrain, combined with engine troubles for Matevos Isaakyan, was enough to claim the crown
Binder claims pole for last ever Formula V8 3.5 race in Bahrain
Rene Binder claimed the last ever pole position in the Formula V8 3.5 Championship as he dominated the second qualifying session in Bahrain
Bahrain Formula V8 3.5: Isaakyan on pole, Fittipaldi demoted
Matevos Isaakyan took his first pole of the World Series Formula V8 3.5 season in race one qualifying in Bahrain, as title rival Pietro Fittipaldi ended up only fourth
How the post-Renault 3.5 series is shaping up
When Renault ended its support of its 3.5 Formula, there were fears about the category's future. But as PETER MILLS explains, the rebadged FV8 3.5 series has retained an appeal to drivers
An era ended in 2015 as Renault withdrew its backing of Formula Renault 3.5. GLENN FREEMAN and PETER MILLS pick the 10 best drivers from the World Series by Renault years
The top 10 FR3.5 drivers of 2015
The 2015 Formula Renault 3.5 season will be notable for being the last with the French company's backing but also produced a worthy champion in Oliver Rowland. PETER MILLS evaluates this year's crop of drivers
Since 2005 the World Series by Renault package has launched a host of young stars on the path to Formula 1. But there's much more to the events, both on and off the track
The top 10 FR3.5 drivers of 2014
The field was perhaps not as strong as in the previous season, but Carlos Sainz Jr emerged as a worthy Formula Renault 3.5 champion. GLENN FREEMAN rates the top 2014 drivers
The top 10 FR3.5 drivers of 2013
There were some standout performances in the Formula Renault 3.5 title race this year, but one racer stood above all the others. GLENN FREEMAN looks back and picks out his top 10 drivers
The 2013 Formula Renault 3.5 grid guide
Last year's field was extraordinary and hard to match, but the Formula Renault 3.5 grid will still have plenty of talent this season. Glenn Freeman runs through the field ahead of this weekend's season opener
Vandoorne: future McLaren F1 star?
Landing the Fortec seat that took rising star Robin Frijns to the 2012 FR3.5 title was already a good sign for Stoffel Vandoorne. Then McLaren took him under its wing. Peter Mills tells Vandoorne's story so far