Photo: Van Amersfoort Racing
Anthoine Hubert has secured a place on the FIA Formula 3 European Championship grid for 2016, taking the fourth and final seat at Van Amersfoort Racing.
The French driver steps up after two seasons in Formula Renault 2.0, where he finished fifth in the 2015 Eurocup with two victories and also won four times from six starts in the Alps series.
Previously a Formula 4 champion in his home country in 2013, Hubert tested over the winter in Formula V8 3.5 with his FR2.0 team Tech 1 Racing as well as in sportscars. He has also sampled F3 with Signature, but the French team looks unlikely to make an entry for 2016.
Hubert joins Pedro Piquet, Callum Ilott and Harrison Newey at VAR, which has expanded to four cars for this season and switched from Volkswagen to Mercedes power.
?We were following the progress of Anthoine for quite some time,” said team boss Frits van Amersfoort.
?We became more and more impressed by his skills and results. Especially after his clean sweep with two pole positions and two victories in the challenging streets of Pau during a guest appearance in Formula Renault Alps.
“We decided to invite Anthoine for a test in our simulator and he did a very solid job. We are very happy to add him to our 2016 F3 squad. Anthoine is the sort of driver who could become one of the big surprises.?
Hubert added: “I am obviously very motivated and excited to join this legendary team of F3 and I want to thank all the staff for giving me confidence.”
He becomes the 21st driver confirmed with a team for the 2016 European F3 season.
The entry deadline had been pushed back by a fortnight to today, ahead of the first official pre-season test at Vallelunga on Thursday and Friday this week.
2016 FIA F3 European Championship line-up so far
| Team | Drivers |
| Prema | Lance Stroll, Ralf Aron, Maximilian Gunther, Nick Cassidy |
| Carlin | Ryan Tveter, Alessio Lorandi, Li Zhi Cong |
| Van Amersfoort | Pedro Piquet, Callum Ilott, Harrison Newey, Anthoine Hubert |
| Mucke | David Beckmann, Mikkel Jensen |
| Motopark | Sergio Sette Camara, Niko Kari, Joel Eriksson, Guan Yu Zhou |
| Hitech | George Russell, Nikita Mazepin, Ben Barnicoat |
| T-Sport | Arjun Maini |