F3 Euro Series: sneaky debut

First Tuesday in Valencia, Laurens Vanthoor made a strong impression in Spain. The Belgian, winner in F3 German last year, showed all its consistency, finishing third in the standings on Wednesday, during the last day of pre-season testing. Two weeks before the start of the season, scheduled for Le Castellet, the Signature driver seems ready.

On Wednesday, he was beaten by two other rookies, who fought to finish with the best time. Ultimately, it was Carlos Munoz (Mücke Motorsport, 1:28:101) who finished first, ahead of Daniel Juncadella (Prema Powerteam, 1:28:106). Volkswagen is therefore progressing a little further, since the first and third ranks are occupied by single-seaters powered by VW engines.

We then find regulars of the discipline: Alexander Sims (ART Grand Prix) is fourth, ahead Valtteri Bottas (ART GP) and Marco Wittmann (Signature). Antonio Felix da Costa (Motopark), from Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 is seventh, ahead of Edoardo Mortara, winner of the last Macau Grand Prix.

In ninth place, we find the Frenchman Nicolas Marroc (Prema Powerteam) and, in eleventh, his compatriot Jim Pla (ART GP). Roberto Merhi (Mücke) is tenth, Adrian Quaife-Hobbs twelfth (Motopark), Matias Laine (Motopark).

Only thirteen cars ran, a worrying number two weeks before the start of the season. The explosion in the number of single-seater championships has diversified the supply but the demand is not scalable. Thirteen drivers were at the Valencia meeting, a field almost halved compared to the 2009 season.

The Manor Motorsport, SG Formula and Carlin Motorsport teams have announced for several weeks their intention to concentrate on the other series they compete in. A serious blow for the F3 Euro Series, which will offer a very small field this season.