Why the Formula 3 benchmark's 2022 season hinges on qualifying

Prema Racing has long dominated FIA Formula 3, taking the teams’ title in two of the past three seasons. But its start to 2022 has been trickier than usual, and the answers lie in its qualifying performance

Prema Racing has a long history of success. Since 2001, it has taken 26 single-seater titles, including in GP2, Formula Regional and various Formula 4 championships. The Italian outfit works closely with Ferrari and has been a hotbed of young talent, taking drivers such as Esteban Ocon, Lance Stroll and Mick Schumacher all the way to Formula 1.

In the FIA European Formula 3 championship, which was merged with the GP3 Series to form F3 in 2019, the team won every teams title from 2013 to 2018, taking five drivers’ championships in the process. Once the new championship was formed, it did the double in the first two years with Robert Shwartzman and Oscar Piastri. It missed out on the 2021 teams’ title by four points to Trident, but Dennis Hauger claimed the drivers’ championship.

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Author Megan White

Megan White is Autosport’s News Editor and Formula 2 and 3 reporter.

She began her career in national news after graduating from Kingston University, working at SWNS and the Evening Standard, with a stint working in communications in the music industry.

Megan made the switch to motorsport in 2021, swapping covering COVID and Brexit as a Digital News Editor at LBC for F2, F3 and W Series. Her love of cars began as a child, but her passion for motorsport was ignited after watching the Senna documentary. She has since also developed a fondness for MotoGP.

Away from motorsport, Megan enjoys collecting records, seeing live music and ice hockey.