The 2023 Eurocup-3 season was the inaugural season of the Eurocup-3 series. It was a multi-event motor racing championship for single-seater open wheel formula racing cars held across Europe. The championship was created as an alternative to the FIA-sanctioned Formula Regional European Championship and the Euroformula Open championship, after the latter series struggled to attract entries in late 2022.[1][2]
The series aimed to provide a level playing field for all drivers, with all partaking teams agreeing on a maximum budget of €400,000 per season.[3]
Esteban Masson, driving for Campos Racing, became the inaugural Drivers' Champion, while his team won the Teams' Championship. Bruno del Pino, driving for MP Motorsport, won the Rookies' Championship.
Teams utilized the same Tatuus F3 T-318 chassis used in the Formula Regional European Championship, but fitted with an updated body kit, a new intercooler and a battery kit.[4] It also was 25kg lighter than the FRECA car.[5] The car used a 270hp Alfa Romeo-Autotecnica engine, and Hankook tires. A push-to-pass system awarding an extra 25hp was also used.[2]
Eight destinations were announced when the series was revealed, with every round consisting of two practice sessions, two qualifyings and two races.[2] This calendar was finalized on 23 December 2022. As the series shared its promoter with the F4 Spanish Championship, six of the eight rounds were held together with that series.[34]
16 cars entered the inaugural round of the newly formed Eurocup-3 at Spa. The new series was greeted with wet weather, and MP's Mari Boya coped best to take two pole positions. The first race started on a damp track with the field on dry tyres. This saw some drivers really struggle, with others benefitting: Campos's Francesco Braschi rose from eighth to the lead in two laps and never looked back from there, while GRS's Cenyu Han and Campos's Suleiman Zanfari followed through behind him. The second race was more straightforward: Boya lost the lead to Palou's Javier Sagrera, but kept close to his compatriot to reclaim first place seven minutes before the end of the race. Braschi was then also able to get past Sagrera on the final lap to take second place, and with it the championship lead. Boya's win earned him second in the standings, four points behind.[35][36]
Boya withdrew from the second round at MotorLand Aragón due to a clashing F3 commitment. Campos's Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak took pole position for the first race, and kept it ahead of his teammate Esteban Masson and MP's Sebastian Øgaard, but his car suffered a mechanical issue that forced him to retire. Braschi was victorious in a battle for fourth that would then become third when the leader dropped out of the race. Masson continued his strong pace to take pole position for the second race. Braschi jumped MP's Bruno del Pino at the start to take second. The latter kept in contention, but a late safety car restart and the ensuing battle saw him go off. This elevated his teammate José Garfias onto the podium. Another double podium saw Braschi extend his points lead, while Masson's double win elevated him to second, ten points in the rear.[37][38]
The third round at Monza saw the returning Boya and leader Braschi share pole positions. The first half of the first race was filled with battles for the podium, but Boya was able to repel multiple attacks on his first place. Sagrera and Braschi both challenged him, but made mistakes and dropped back. In the end, Boya won ahead of Øgaard, while Masson came third. Braschi and Boya started race two alongside each other and fought throughout the first lap. This brought Masson into play and he took two laps to overtake both, with Boya then dropping to sixth. Sagrera was the next to take the lead on lap 11. By then, Boya was also back in contention, and he retook first on lap 14. He held on to take a second win, with Sagrera in second and Masson third. Braschi had another difficult race and dropped to third in the standings, with Masson the new leader, four points from Boya.[39][40]
Zandvoort was up next, and Masson was on pole position for the first race. Tricky wet conditions saw six drivers slide off into turn one. Masson was among them, dropping down the order and handing the lead to MP's Bruno del Pino. Masson climbed back up the order and was in third when a safety car was called. He took second at the restart and the lead two laps later to win ahead of Øgaard and Inthraphuvasak. Boya could only manage tenth, but bounced back a day later with race two pole position. That was short-lived, however, as Masson immediately took the lead at the start of the race. Boya kept close to him, but could not mount an attack, before the race was ended early when Palou's Jorge Campos crashed. Øgaard came third, closing up to nine points behind Boya in the standings. Masson's double-win handed him a 35-point cushion.[41]
Second half
The second half of the season began at Circuito de Jerez with GRS's debutant Nikola Tsolov taking pole position. He had a slow start for the first race, though, allowing Braschi into the lead and dropping down to fourth. Championship leader Masson was second until he made an error and crashed his car. This promoted Sagrera into second, but Tsolov was hot on his tail and took the place in the final part of the race. He continued his strong form to also take pole position for the second race, but was once again unable to nail his start. This time, Øgaard was the one to benefit and take first place. The pair held position through multiple safety car interruptions, while Inthraphuvasak climbed to third behind them. Masson was spun around into retirement by Garfias. His second non-finish coupled with Øgaard's win saw his lead reduced to seven points, with Boya now third.[42][43]
At Estoril, Masson was determined to regrow his lead and took pole position for the first race. He had a controlled, trouble-free race to take his fifth win of the season. Braschi came second after a similarly calm race. Third place was hotly contested between Boya and Øgaard, with the Spaniard eventually taking the place on lap eleven. Inthraphuvasak took pole position for the second race, but Masson and Boya behind him had better starts and both overtook him. Masson held the lead, but weaved too much on a safety car restart and was hit with a drive-through penalty. This dropped him out of the points and left Boya to head a MP Motorsport 1-2-3 ahead of Øgaard and Garfias. The championship tightened up once again, with Masson now only five points clear of Øgaard and Boya only a single point further behind.[44][45]
The penultimate round of the season at Circuit Ricardo Tormo once again began with Masson taking pole position for race one. Garfias in second was no match for him as he streaked away to take another lights-to-flag victory, with the Mexican having to fend off Boya. The Spaniard had considerably more pace all throughout the race but was unable to get past into second. Boya started the second race from first place and managed his gap to Øgaard, who himself had no pressure coming from Garfias in third. Del Pino in fourth completed a MP 1-2-3-4, with championship leader Masson in fifth not managing to get by. His win saw Boya jump Øgaard in the standings, with him and Masson only separated by a single point going into the season finale.[46][47]
The championship decider at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya started with Masson dealing the first blow by taking pole position for race one. He completely dominated the race ahead of Inthraphuvasak, while Boya had to fight his way through the race. Garfias in third posed a challenge: the pair collided, Garfias retired but Boya was unharmed and took third place. Masson continued his crushing pace through the second day. He took another pole position and continued on to take another controlled victory to become the inaugural Eurocup-3 champion. Inthraphuvasak ended his campaign with another second place, while Garfias had to fight off Drivex's Nick Gilkes for third before the latter made a mistake. Boya finished fourth, 30 points behind Masson after he could not compete with the Frenchman's pace over the weekend.[48][49]
The inaugural Eurocup-3 championship was a success in every sense. Only once did entry numbers drop below fifteen, with the season finale attracting 20 cars – a brilliant number for a debuting championship that showed that interest for an alternative to the all-conquering Formula Regional European Championship was still there. Masson, Boya and Øgaard produced a tight, tense championship battle, albeit largely controlled by Masson. His mistakes, like in Jerez and Estoril, made the title fight as close as it was, but when it came down to the last race, the rest of the field was no match for him.
Championship standings
Scoring system
Points were awarded to the top ten classified finishers. Additional points were awarded for setting the fastest lap during a race or qualifying on pole position.
^Pingasov is Russian, but he competes under a Spanish licence as Russian national emblems were banned by the FIA following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
^Mavlyutov is a Turkish-Russian racing driver competing under a British licence.
^ abMavlyutov was only considered a rookie in round 4.
^ abBennett was not considered a rookie in round 8.
^ abNogales was not considered a rookie in round 7.
