Roundup of the penultimate round of the 2023 F3 season in Belgium, as the title fight threw plenty of curveballs.
Trident’s Gabriel Bortoleto arrived at Spa Francorchamps with a 43-point lead over PREMA’s Zak O’Sullivan, which meant that the Brazilian could become the first driver to seal the title before the season finale since the series was rebranded from GP3 to F3 in 2019.
Weather, incidents and steward decisions however played pivotal roles across the entire weekend, as Bortoleto’s title rivals looked to delay his title celebrations.
Now, here is a full roundup of all the action across the penultimate round of the 2023 season at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.
Practice
ART GP’s Gregoire Saucy, Nikola Tsolov and Kaylen Frederick were first out onto a wet track, with Saucy posting a benchmark lap time of 2m 24.900 in the sixth minute, which he lowered by 0.684 seconds just five minutes later.
Nobody could better Saucy’s time until O’Sullivan delivered 2m 23.862 in the 23rd minute to go fastest from Aron, with the Brit still sat top at the halfway point of the session.
With nine minutes left on the clock, O’Sullivan lowered his benchmark time by 0.168s but times soon tumbled, as Luke Browning, Frederick, Saucy, Marti, Caio Collet and Gabriele Mini all went faster in the closing minutes.
Browning though saved his best for the checkered flag as he delivered a super-late 2m 23.055 to top Practice from Frederick and Saucy.
| Position | Driver | Team | Time |
| 1 | Luke Browning | Hitech GP | 2m 23.055 |
| 2 | Kaylen Frederick | ART GP | + 0.224 |
| 3 | Gregoire Saucy | ART GP | + 0.333 |
| 4 | Pepe Marti | Campos | + 0.365 |
| 5 | Caio Collet | VAR | + 0.398 |
| 6 | Gabriele Mini | Hitech GP | + 0.526 |
| 7 | Zak O’Sullivan | PREMA | + 0.639 |
| 8 | Oliver Goethe | Trident | + 0.741 |
| 9 | Taylor Barnard | Jenzer | + 0.822 |
| 10 | Nikita Bedrin | Jenzer | + 0.831 |
| 11 | Hugh Barter | Campos | + 1.000 |
| 12 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Trident | + 1.067 |
| 13 | Paul Aron | PREMA | + 1.114 |
| 14 | Nikola Tsolov | ART GP | + 1.148 |
| 15 | Oliver Gray | Carlin | + 1.347 |
| 16 | Franco Colapinto | MP Motorsport | + 1.441 |
| 17 | Dino Beganovic | PREMA | + 1.671 |
| 18 | Jonny Edgar | MP Motorsport | + 1.825 |
| 19 | Christian Mansell | Campos | + 1.981 |
| 20 | Rafael Villagomez | VAR | + 2.057 |
| 21 | Leonardo Fornaroli | Trident | + 2.118 |
| 22 | Sebastian Montoya | Hitech GP | + 2.502 |
| 23 | Mari Boya | MP Motorsport | + 2.504 |
| 24 | Ido Cohen | Carlin | + 2.876 |
| 25 | Alejandro Garcia | Jenzer | + 3.644 |
| 26 | Roberto Faria | PHM Racing | + 3.670 |
| 27 | Tommy Smith | VAR | + 3.753 |
| 28 | Woohyun Shin | PHM Racing | + 3.992 |
| 29 | Francesco Simonazzi | Carlin | + 4.091 |
| 30 | Sophia Floersch | PHM Racing | + 4.255 |
Qualifying
Like in Practice, Saucy led his ART GP teammates out onto the wet track following further spells of rain in-between sessions and laid down the benchmark time of 2m 26.165, which Frederick beat in the ninth minute on his second attempt to go top by 0.088s in the ninth minute.
Saucy however responded two minutes later to go top, only to be displaced by Tsolov then Aron who posted 2m 25.699 to go quickest, after Marti saw a 2m 25.604 lap time deleted after he exceeded track limits.
Collet however produced 2m 25.697 in the 13th minute to go quickest by 0.002s from Aron at the halfway mark of the session, with everyone except Goethe eventually doing a final run after the Trident driver suffered an engine issue.
Track conditions however had began to ramp up as a dry line emerged during the gap between runs, and Saucy quickly lowered the benchmark time to 2m 23.345 with five minutes left on the clock.
The track evolution on a drying track ultimately meant that the entire session boiled down to the final laps with Aron, O’Sullivan, and Mini all briefly going fastest, until Marti snatched pole at the checkered flag with 2m 22.160 to take his second pole position of the season.
Fornaroli snuck into second ahead of Mini as Colapinto qualified fourth ahead of Tsolov, O’Sullivan, Beganovic, Edgar, Collet, Barnard and Aron, whilst Barter took reverse-pole for the Sprint.
Marti’s pole position also saw him take the two bonus points which lifted him to second in the championship, and cut Bortoleto’s lead slightly to 42 points.
| Position | Driver | Team | Time |
| 1 | Pepe Marti | Campos | 2m 22.160 |
| 2 | Leonardo Fornaroli | Trident | + 0.016 |
| 3 | Gabriele Mini | Hitech GP | + 0.094 |
| 4 | Franco Colapinto | MP Motorsport | + 0.242 |
| 5 | Nikola Tsolov | ART GP | + 0.357 |
| 6 | Zak O’Sullivan | PREMA | + 0.391 |
| 7 | Dino Beganovic | PREMA | + 0.562 |
| 8 | Jonny Edgar | MP Motorsport | + 0.579 |
| 9 | Caio Collet | VAR | + 0.632 |
| 10 | Taylor Barnard | Jenzer | + 0.656 |
| 11 | Paul Aron | PREMA | + 0.782 |
| 12 | Hugh Barter | Campos | + 0.944 |
| 13 | Luke Browning | Hitech GP | + 0.983 |
| 14 | Mari Boya | MP Motorsport | + 1.015 |
| 15 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Trident | + 1.091 |
| 16 | Gregoire Saucy | ART GP | + 1.185 |
| 17 | Kaylen Frederick | ART GP | + 1.275 |
| 18 | Nikita Bedrin | Jenzer | + 1.754 |
| 19 | Rafael Villagomez | VAR | + 1.785 |
| 20 | Tommy Smith | VAR | + 1.815 |
| 21 | Sebastian Montoya | Hitech GP | + 1.846 |
| 22 | Alejandro Garcia | Jenzer | + 2.116 |
| 23 | Christian Mansell | Campos | + 2.174 |
| 24 | Sophia Floersch | PHM Racing | + 2.792 |
| 25 | Oliver Gray | Carlin | + 2.859 |
| 26 | Ido Cohen | Carlin | + 3.572 |
| 27 | Oliver Goethe | Trident | + 3,978 |
| 28 | Woohyun Shin | PHM Racing | + 4.169 |
| 29 | Francesco Simonazzi | Carlin | + 4.207 |
| 30 | Roberto Faria | PHM Racing | + 4.650 |
Sprint Race
At lights out, Barter got a clean start to lead Barnard who jumped Aron out of La Source to take second with Collet following through from fourth on the grid, although Barnard and Collet quickly cleared Barter on the Kemmel Straight with Aron further demoting the Campos driver at Campus corner.
Collet however had the better pace up front as he launched a sweeping outside move on Barnard through Blanchimont to snatch the lead, just as the Safety Car was deployed after Montoya collided with Villagomez which earned the latter a ten-second time penalty to leave him last in the classification.
Racing resumed at the end of Lap 3 with O’Sullivan quickly clearing Beganovic and Barter on the restart as his fellow Williams F1 junior, Colapinto followed him through.
Further back, Marti launched a bold outside move on Mini into Pouhon which backfired as the pair tangled into a spin, which sent Mini into the gravel whilst Marti recovered the engine but collided with Cohen upon rejoining the track to eliminate both drivers and bring the Safety Car back out.
Collet eventually led the field back racing at the end of Lap 7 with O’Sullivan clearing Edgar for fourth at La Source at the start of the next lap, whilst Bortoleto recovered from 15th on the grid to ninth with a pass on Beganovic but Beganovic rear-ended Bortoleto into La Source on the next lap.
Bortoleto consequently retired from the race with a left-rear puncture upon exiting the top of Raidillon, which brought the Safety Car out until the checkered flag as heavy rain began to fall.
Collet consequently took victory from Barnard, Aron, O’Sullivan, Edgar, Colapinto, Barter, Tsolov, Beganovic and Browning.
In the drivers’ standings, Bortoleto’s failure to finish meant that his title lead was reduced to 36 points initially as O’Sullivan leapfrogged Marti into second, until stewards rescinded the points aspect of the race due to less than two laps of green flag racing being completed.
Post-race, Stewards reversed their decision to not award points but in the process dished out several penalties to various drivers.
O’Sullivan received a harsh five-second time penalty for gaining an advantage by running wide at Raidillon en-route to passing Barter who had also ran wide at that same corner seconds earlier, which dropped the Brit from fourth to 15th in the classification.
O’Sullivan’s penalty consequently meant that Bortoleto’s title lead was only reduced by one point to 42 points as Marti stayed second, albeit level on points with third-placed Aron – by virtue of one more win – as O’Sullivan slipped to fourth.
Beganovic was handed a ten-second time penalty for his collision with Bortoleto, which dropped him from ninth to 22nd in the classification, which meant that Fornaroli and Saucy inherited ninth and tenth due to O’Sullivan and Beganovic’s penalties.
Smith meanwhile was dropped to plum last in the classification after he too received a ten-second time penalty, after he had collided with Goethe on the second Safety Car restart, which elimated the German from the race.
Mini was handed a five-place grid penalty for the Feature Race after stewards adjudged him responsible for the collision with Marti, meaning that the Italian started the Feature Race from eighth on the grid with Colapinto, Tsolov, O’Sullivan, Beganovic and Edgar moved up a grid slot.
| Position | Driver | Team | Laps | Time |
| 1 | Caio Collet | VAR | 12 | 36m 16.106 |
| 2 | Taylor Barnard | Jenzer | 12 | + 0.559 |
| 3 | Paul Aron | PREMA | 12 | + 0.998 |
| 4 | Jonny Edgar | MP Motorsport | 12 | + 1.536 |
| 5 | Franco Colapinto | MP Motorsport | 12 | + 1.689 |
| 6 | Hugh Barter | Campos | 12 | + 2.206 |
| 7 | Nikola Tsolov | ART GP | 12 | + 2.512 |
| 8 | Luke Browning | Hitech GP GP | 12 | + 3.382 |
| 9 | Leonardo Fornaroli | Trident | 12 | + 3.538 |
| 10 | Gregoire Saucy | ART GP | 12 | + 4.446 |
| 11 | Nikita Bedrin | Jenzer | 12 | + 4.728 |
| 12 | Sophia Floersch | PHM Racing | 12 | + 5.352 |
| 13 | Kaylen Frederick | ART GP | 12 | + 5.642 |
| 14 | Francesco Simonazzi | Carlin | 12 | + 6.206 |
| 15 | Zak O’Sullivan | PREMA | 12 | + 6.316 |
| 16 | Mari Boya | MP Motorsport | 12 | + 6528 |
| 17 | Roberto Faria | PHM Racing | 12 | + 7.623 |
| 18 | Alejandro Garcia | Jenzer | 12 | + 10.371 |
| 19 | Christian Mansell | Campos | 12 | + 11.889 |
| 20 | Oliver Gray | Carlin | 12 | + 12.672 |
| 21 | Woohyun Shin | PHM Racing | 12 | + 13.135 |
| 22 | Dino Beganovic | PREMA | 12 | + 13.242 |
| 23 | Rafael Villagomez | VAR | 12 | + 18.848 |
| 24 | Tommy Smith | VAR | 12 | + 20.833 |
| RET | Gabriel Bortoleto | Trident | 9 | Suspension |
| RET | Gabriele Mini | Hitech GP | 3 | Collision |
| RET | Pepe Marti | Campos | 3 | Collision |
| RET | Oliver Goethe | Trident | 3 | Collision |
| RET | Ido Cohen | Carlin | 3 | Collision |
| RET | Sebastian Montoya | Hitech GP | 0 | Collision |
Feature Race
The start of the race was delayed five minutes after Mini crashed on his way to the grid in wet conditions following overnight rainfall, which meant that the Italian wouldn’t participate in the race with his eighth-placed grid slot left vacant.
Stewards consequently opted to start the formation lap behind the Safety Car for safety reasons, before Marti led the field away on a rolling start due to the weather conditions, albeit on slick tyres as the fast chargers led by Aron and Barnard charged through the order to take the lead.
Marti meanwhile slid down to 12th position by the end of Lap 3 after Collet had switched his slick tyres on quickly to make up positions.
Up front, Mansell continued his charge from 23rd on the grid as he took Boya on the exit of Bruxelles for third on Lap 4.
The Safety Car however was deployed on that same lap after Goethe crashed mid-corner through Eau Rouge, although Faria would spin out at Les Combes on the next lap which further extended the Safety Car period until the end of Lap 7.
Aron meanwhile boldly pitted from the lead at the end of Lap 4 as did Boya and Gray, which promoted Barnard into the lead and upon the restart at the end of Lap 7, Barnard calmly controlled the restart ahead of Mansell and Bedrin as Aron’s slick tyre gamble backfired with the track still damp.
Aron subsequently set about holding position in seventh in hope of the track rapidly drying which failed to materialise, although conditions began to swing toward slick tyres runners in the closing stages.
Up front, Barnard survived intense pressure from Mansell to snatch his maiden F3 victory – despite nudging Mansell wide at Les Combes on Lap 11, only for the Campos to maintain excessive speed which forced him to hand the lead and eventual win back to Barnard.
Bedrin fought off Garcia for fourth as Collet fought his way through to fifth ahead of wet tyre runners, Montoya and Floersch, whilst Aron, Marti and Colapinto rounded out the top ten ahead of Bortoleto who drove from 21st on the restart to finish 11th on the road.
Post-race, Browning received a ten-second time penalty for giving Cohen a puncture as the latter rejoined the track after running wide at Bruxelles on lap 9, although the Brit remains 23rd in the classification.
Gray meanwhile received a ten-second time penalty for colliding with Barter at the Bus Stop chicane on Lap 13 to end their races, although his failure to finish meant that the penalty was converted into a ten-place penalty for the Italian Sprint.
Goethe likewise has had a ten-second time penalty converted into a ten-place grid penalty following his retirement on Lap 4, as Trident personnel had remained on the grid after the 15-second signal prior to the formation lap.
In the drivers’ standings, Bortoleto’s title lead was reduced to 38 points as Aron leapfrogged Marti into second, with O’Sullivan still sat fourth but mathematically out of contention for the title.
F3 now takes a month’s break before the final round of the season at Monza, Italy across weekend of 1-3 September.
| Position | Driver | Team | Laps | Time |
| 1 | Taylor Barnard | Jenzer | 15 | 39m 50.104 |
| 2 | Christian Mansell | Campos | 15 | + 1.529 |
| 3 | Nikita Bedrin | Jenzer | 15 | + 7.703 |
| 4 | Alejandro Garcia | Jenzer | 15 | + 8.915 |
| 5 | Caio Collet | VAR | 15 | + 20.053 |
| 6 | Sebastian Montoya | Hitech GP | 15 | + 20.172 |
| 7 | Sophia Floersch | PHM Racing | 15 | + 20.533 |
| 8 | Paul Aron | PREMA | 15 | + 28.760 |
| 9 | Pepe Marti | Campos | 15 | + 30.172 |
| 10 | Franco Colapinto | MP Motorsport | 15 | + 31.547 |
| 11 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Trident | 15 | + 32.595 |
| 12 | Zak O’Sullivan | PREMA | 15 | + 33.068 |
| 13 | Mari Boya | MP Motorsport | 15 | + 34.910 |
| 14 | Leonardo Fornaroli | Trident | 15 | + 35.731 |
| 15 | Kaylen Frederick | ART GP | 15 | + 35.959 |
| 16 | Dino Beganovic | PREMA | 15 | + 37.752 |
| 17 | Nikola Tsolov | ART GP | 15 | + 40.127 |
| 18 | Tommy Smith | VAT | 15 | + 43.351 |
| 19 | Jonny Edgar | MP Motorsport | 15 | + 45.093 |
| 20 | Gregoire Saucy | ART GP | 15 | + 45.875 |
| 21 | Rafael Villagomez | VAR | 15 | + 51.388 |
| 22 | Hugh Barter | Campos | 15 | + 69.043 |
| 23 | Luke Browning | Hitech GP | 15 | + 108.817 |
| 24 | Francesco Simonazzi | Carlin | 15 | + 137.172 |
| 25 | Woohyun Shin | PHM Racing | 15 | + 1 Lap |
| RET | Oliver Gray | Carlin | 12 | Collision |
| RET | Ido Cohen | Carlin | 9 | Collision |
| RET | Roberto Faria | PHM Racing | 4 | Spin |
| RET | Oliver Goethe | Trident | 3 | Spin |
| DNS | Gabriele Mini | Hitech GP | 0 | Crash |
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