Photo: Ferrari
ART Grand Prix has signed Ferrari junior Tuukka Taponen to its FIA Formula 3 line-up for 2025.
Taponen made his debut with the team this year at Spa-Francorchamps, qualifying 13th and finishing his first race in 14th.
He has primarily been racing in Formula Regional with R-ace GP in 2024, taking the Middle East title with five wins and winning four races (each from pole) in the European championship where he is currently third in the standings.
“I am really excited about the F3 contract with the ART GP team for the 2025 season,” said the 17-year-old Finn.
“They already showed interest in me in the summer, giving me the opportunity to participate in last season’s FIA F3 Spa competition. The team immediately impressed me both on and off the track and it felt like coming home.
“ART GP has a long and successful history and I want to be a part of it in the future. ART GP is a familiar team to us Finns. For example, Valtteri Bottas won the championship with ART GP team before moving up to the Formula 1 series.”
Taponen raced in Formula 4 from 2021 to ’23, initially in his home championship Formula Academy Finland and then across the world last year when he joined Prema. He was runner-up in the United Arab Emirates championship, and fifth in Euro 4 and Italian F4.
“We are very pleased to welcome Tuukka Taponen to the team for 2025,” ART GP’s team principal Sebastien Philippe said.
“He’s a young driver with great potential, and his performance with us at Spa showed that he has what it takes to succeed. We’re excited to see how he will develop in the new era of F3 and are confident that he will be a strong asset to the team.”