Photo: Formula Motorport Ltd
Campos Racing’s drivers want more after scoring consistently in the first two FIA Formula 3 rounds but getting no podiums.
Five of the championship’s 10 teams have taken trophies from the first four races, but none have had their cars finish races in the points as frequently as Campos. Those nine instances have resulted in 39 points, while Prema has had its drivers finish in the top 10 eight times but tops the teams’ standings with 83 points.
Having already shown strong race pace, Campos used the recent test at Barcelona to work on qualifying improvements. Its drivers topped half of the sessions, and were first, fourth and 10th fastest overall.
“We have to improve a bit qualifying on the race weekend. I have had some issues. Then [when] starting a bit in a position that not ours, we have to overtake many cars and take some risk,” said Mari Boya, who is ninth in the standings with 17 points and topped the Barcelona test.
Boya knows “the potential is there”, so is “super confident” podiums will come.
“I feel super strong when I’m starting [towards] the back,” he said to Formula Scout on what has changed since his 2023 season.
“I’m patient and I know I have more pace than the people around. So I just wait for the opportunity and then I commit to the overtake. But more or less, I’m doing the same strategy. Just I’m stronger this year.”
Oliver Goethe has scored “points in every race, but not as much as I wanted” as he sits 11th in the standings with 11 points.
“We want to fight more towards the good end of the top 10. Points-wise, we’re not exactly where we wanted. But we’ve been making steps with the car, and I feel like we’re getting in the right direction. We’ve been strong at all the tests and all the European tracks, so I’m really confident for the next few rounds. Hopefully we can fight for podiums and wins.
“In this championship, qualifying is what matters the most. And in the first two rounds, we’ve been missing a little bit there. But in the test, we’ve been strong in the performance runs as well as the long runs. So I feel like we can get back in the good window and qualify more towards the top.”
Sebastian Montoya reckons he and his Campos team-mates having similar pace “really helps the team to understand what they need to improve in their car, where the development in the car can be”.
“At the same time, it really helps us [each] to maximise our speed. Mari has been really quick on one lap. My race pace has been really strong the whole year. So we kind of bounce off each other to see what one of us is doing better than the other and then try to learn and try to go faster.”
The trio drove for other teams in F3 last year, which Goethe sees as a benefit. He also finds motivation in his team-mates’ pace.