Formula 2 and Formula 3 kickstarted the feeder series action in Melbourne, Australia for 2025. With a number of returning familiar faces alongside a wave of rookies on both grids, combined with some very contrasting weather, we were in for a quite a ride for the first weekend of racing. Here are the main highlights.
Ramos Took First Blood
Mexico’s Santiago Ramos became the first driver from his country to win a Formula 3 race. Starting the Sprint Race from Reverse Pole, Ramos resisted the pressure placed on him from drivers behind for the duration, claiming his place in the history books as a result.
This is Ramos’ second season in Formula 3. Last year, he accumulated 44 points over the course of the campaign but after this weekend, he already has ten. With half of the grid having at least one Championship point to their name following the first round, it’s guaranteed to be another ferociously competitive season in 2025—and every point will count.
F3 Sprint Race | 2025 Australian Grand Prix | Ramos takes the win
Billinski Puts Poland on the Map
Formula 3 highlighted the talents of another country in its Sprint Race—Poland. In his debut race in the series for Rodin Motorsport, Roman Billinski kept a cool head and was duly rewarded for his efforts.
“It’s a good start for sure. It could have been better. I made a couple of mistakes, but for the first race in Formula 3 to be on the podium, I think is all that my team and I could ask for.” – Roman Billinski
Martinius Stenshorne split the two drivers by finishing in second place.
Elsewhere, Nicola Lacorte went from P30 to P17 in under five laps at the start
of the race, and Tasanapol Inthrpuvasak made some very nice moves around the outside of turn nine to overtake those ahead of him. Both deserve shoutouts.
Dürksen: A Championship Contender?
Starting in second place for the Sprint Race, Joshua Dürksen snatched the lead from Fornaroli almost immediately as the lights went out. From there, he didn’t relinquish his position and simply dominated until the chequered flag was waived. By seeing off all of his competitors and managing the Safety Car restarts to perfection, he achieved his first back-to-back win in Formula 2—having won the last race of 2024 in Abu Dhabi.
Could the AIX Racing driver be a dark horse in the championship, or is it too soon to tell?
“I knew I would be in the front; I would be on a good pace, but I didn’t; I don’t know why it didn’t come into my mind that I would win the first race.” – Joshua Dürksen
Fornaroli finished in second place, with Browning close behind in third.
Further down the grid, Dino Beganovic deserves a mention. The Swedish driver made neat save at turn nine in the Sprint Race, spinning around
at speed on the racing line but kept his foot in and managed to keep going without sustaining any damage.
Trident continued to have an abysmal day. Both of their drivers didn’t make it to the end of the Sprint Race, something they also failed to achieve in Formula 3. Fortunately, the team was able to turn things around rather well on Sunday.
Finally, Victor Martins inherited Pole Position from Gabriele Mini after teh Italian driver was penalized for obstructing Jak Crawford during qualifying.
| Driver Standings | Points | Team Standings | Points |
| J. Dürksen | 10 | Invicta Racing | 12 |
| L. Fornaroli | 8 | AIX Racing | 10 |
| L. Browning | 6 | Hitech TGR | 6 |
| R. Verschoor | 5 | PREMA Racing | 5 |
| R. Stanek | 4 | MP Motorsport | 5 |
F2 Sprint Race | 2025 Australian Grand Prix | Dürksen is victorious
Cãmara Leads Resurgent Charge for Trident
Câmara led the Feature Race from lights to flag, opening up impressive gaps to those behind him when he needed to. Stomstead finished in P2, making it back-to-back Feature Race wins for Trident across two different seasons. Now there’s a fun achievement to unlock.
Théo Naël finished in third, with Bedrin in fourth and Tramnitz in fifth.
In a race that was the first wet one for many of the drivers, the initial laps behind the safety car to get the race underway were crucial for them to learn as much as possible about these new and tricky conditions. Clearly all are capable of learning quickly, as when the rolling start got underway, all thirty cars made it through the first lap unscathed—an unusual site at the best of times in Formula 3. With venues such as Silverstone and Spa on the calendar, it will be fascinating to see who applies this knowledge best later in the season.
Australia’s James Wharton didn’t have as good a weekend at his home race as he might have liked. Qualifying in 22nd, he DNFd in the Sprint Race before finishing in P21 in the Feature Race. The 2023 Formula 4 UAE Champion will be looking to learn as much as he can from his baptism of fire and bounce back stronger in Bahrain.
| Driver Standings | Points | Team Standings | Points |
| R. Câmara | 28 | Trident | 54 |
| T. Naël | 19 | VAR | 29 |
| N. Strømsted | 18 | AIX Racing | 17 |
| N. Bedrin | 17 | Campos Racing | 16 |
| M. Stenshorne | 14 | Hitech TGR | 14 |
2025 Australian Grand Prix | F3 Feature Race | Câmara keeps cool
Australian Woodland Ducks
The Formula 2 Feature Race was ultimately cancelled as race control deemed the conditions too treacherous for the drivers to be able to race safely. However, those who tuned in to watch the race were rewarded instead with plenty of duck content as the animals roamed around Albert Park, complimented by some amusing commentary and educational insight provided by Chris McCarthy and Alex Brundle.
What’s Next for the Feeder Series?
Fans of Formula 2 and Formula 3 are in for a bit of a wait before they get their next fix. Both Feeder Series won’t be competing again until the weekend of the Bahrain Grand Prix starting on April 11th. Before then, both series will have another round of testing, also in Bahrain, from the 26th-28th March.
If that is still too long for you to wait, there is another way to get your Feeder Series fix. F1 Academy returns alongside Formula 1 at the Chinese Grand Prix this weekend from March 21st-23rd. With another mix of old and new faces against the backdrop of the Shanghai International Circuit and the return of reverse grids, there’s going to be plenty of action to satisfy all of your Feeder Series needs.
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Feature Image: Dutch Photo Agency
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