The current FIA Formula 3 regulation era is from 1 January 2012 to 31 December 2019. Championshipįormula Regional Americas certified by FIAįormula Regional Japanese certified by FIA
The following series provide points towards a drivers 'FIA Super License'. The Formula 3 rules themselves go back decades in motor racing history and the many series under these rules have produced almost every Formula 1 World Champion ever since. Thanks to that, a grand prix debut for the grandson of two-times world champion Emerson Fittipaldi beckons in just four days’ time.◄ Back to Index | Back to F1 Feeder Series ►įormula 3 is a long established formula racing specification. More points fourth fourth and 10th in the final rounds meant he moved past Defrancesco and Fernandez, though W Series champion Jamie Chadwick relegated him back to fifth.Įven so, that meant six superlicence points, putting him on a total of 41, finally moving him past the threshold necessary to complete in F1. However after a fourth and two fifths in the penultimate round, Sepang, he remained sixth behind the absent Defrancesco and Fernandez.Īt the finale in Buriram he finally scored his first podium finish of the season with third place. Sebastian Fernandez, who was also ahead of Fittipaldi, dropped out too.įittipaldi therefore had an open goal in front of him heading into the final two triple-headers. At the next triple-header in Yas Marina, Fittipaldi mustered a fourth place and a pair of fifths.ĭevlin Defrancesco, who was leading Fittipaldi in the points standings, stood down from the series, citing concerns over exposure to Covid-19. He managed a pair of seventh places in Dubai, and one non-score after breaking his front wing in a collision with Ukyo Sasahara. Technical problems contributed to a point-less weekend at Sepang. In slower cars than those he had won the V8 3.5 title with in 2017, Fittipaldi needed only to finish the season in the top five to reach the superlicence points threshold. The Asian F3 series, which ran through the 2019-20 off-season, provided a useful opportunity. That extended the window of opportunity for him to score the necessary points to make his F1 debut. They approved a request for Fittipaldi transfer the points he scored in 2017 to 2018, the year of his crash. He managed just six points finishes and ended the year 15th, having failed to add to his superlicence total for the second year running.īut a vital ruling went his way in a meeting of the FIA World Motor Sport Council in December. The following November he was confirmed as one of their test drivers for 2019.Ī year in the DTM added nothing to his superlicence haulThat year he moved into the DTM with Audi, where the competition was tough. That cost him any chance of adding further superlicence points to his tally that year.Īdvert | Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-freeīefore the crash Fittipaldi was already in discussions with Haas over a role at the team. However he started just one Ind圜ar race, finishing 23rd on the Phoenix oval, before suffering a leg-breaking crash during practice for the Six Hours of Spa. In 2018 he embarked on dual campaigns in Ind圜ar and the World Endurance Championship. But the series collapsed before then, and Fittipaldi became its final champion, banking a valuable 35 superlicence points.
Only eight drivers contested every round.ĭuring the season the FIA announced the superlicence points awarded for winning the series would be slashed to 20 points for the following year.
This had previously been known as Formula Renault 3.5, until the French manufacturer pulled its backing two years earlier.įittipaldi won the championship against a weakened grid. However he did compete in the Asian F3 series earlier this year, where he collected the final superlicence points he needed in order to qualify to race in F1.įittipaldi won the final Formula V8 3.5 title in 2017He took his first and biggest step towards earning his superlicence by winning the World Series Formula V8 3.5 championship in 2017. The other, Louis Deletraz, has Formula 2 commitments this weekend.įittipaldi hasn’t raced (aside from virtual competitions) for much of 2020. The 24-year-old has served as one of Haas’s two official test and reserve drivers during this year. Given that, how has he managed to accumulate the 40 superlicence points necessary to be allowed to race in Formula 1?
But a glance at Fittipaldi’s record reveals a surprising detail for a driver who is about to make his debut in the sport’s top flight: He hasn’t won a single race in his last three years of competition.