Promising Speed for the Remainder of the F2 and F3 Season After Testing in Bahrain
After a successful weekend in Australia, our F2 and F3 team headed to Bahrain for the second collective test of the 2025 season. With plenty of laps completed and more experience under their belts, the team saw promising speed and results ahead of the second round of the championships.
From March 26 to March 28, the teams were in Bahrain for the three-day test. F3 had track time from 9:30–12:00 and 15:15–17:45 local time, while the F2 team tested from 12:30–15:00 and 18:30–21:00. This schedule applied to all three days.
The first day of testing kicked off with F3’s morning session. Our drivers got up to speed and worked through the team’s run plan. Santiago Ramos finished both the morning and afternoon sessions in P13. During the afternoon session, the Mexican driver topped the time sheets for some time. Ivan Domingues finished both sessions in P21. Théophile Naël showed great progress, securing P30 in the morning and improving to P9 in the afternoon. The only red flag of the F3 test was waved during the afternoon session.
Later in the day, it was time for F2 to hit the track. On the first day, both drivers showed good progress. Rafael Villagómez ended the morning session in P19 and improved to P12 in the afternoon. John Bennett followed a similar pattern, finishing P21 in the morning and moving up to P14 in the afternoon.
The second day once again began with F3. Santiago was the fastest driver for a while in the morning, setting a 1:48.843. In the afternoon, he also posted the fastest lap at one point, recording a 1:49.768. He finished the day in P4 and P17. Ivan moved closer to the top ten with a P13 and P19, while Théophile also showed improvement, finishing P16 and P11.
The F2 morning session on the second day was all about long runs on soft tyres. Rafael finished just outside the top ten in P12, while John impressed with a P4 finish. In the afternoon, the team worked through their test plan, with Rafael finishing P14 and John P18.
The final day was all about long runs for F3. The morning session started with some qualifying simulations before shifting focus to long runs for the remainder of the day. The long runs showed strong potential in race pace for the team. Théophile finished P10 in the morning and P12 in the afternoon. Santiago improved his long-run pace throughout the day, finishing P19 and P14. Ivan faced more challenges after an intense three days of testing, ending in P27 and P26.
The F2 team also had one last opportunity to test before the second round of the season. During the morning session, our drivers topped the time sheets, with John setting the fastest lap and Rafael close behind in P2. In the afternoon session, the first and only red flag of the F2 test was waved. Rafael finished P10, while John secured P11.
After a few days in Bahrain, the team headed back to the factory to debrief and prepare for the second round of the FIA F2 and FIA F3 Championships. This round will also take place at the Bahrain International Circuit from April 11 to April 13.
Rafael Villagómez - Formula 2 driver, Van Amersfoort Racing:
“Overall a positive test. A very busy but productive 3 days of testing, doing over 220 laps across the 3 days . Happy with the pace on the performance runs but also long runs.”
John Bennett - Formula 2 driver, Van Amersfoort Racing:
“Really good 3 days of testing in Bahrain. Made some solid improvements all round and looking forward to the upcoming race weekends!”
Santiago Ramos - Formula 3 driver, Van Amersfoort Racing:
“I’m really happy with the information we gathered over these three days of testing in Bahrain. We made good progress, and I feel more prepared for the race weekend. Looking forward to getting back on track and putting everything together!”
Ivan Domingues - Formula 3 driver, Van Amersfoort Racing:
“Very important 3 days of testing in Bahrain. Did as many laps as we could to get us better prepared for the second Round and definitely feel more prepared and more confident going into it!”
Théophile Naël - Formula 3 driver, Van Amersfoort Racing:
“Very good tests, good basis for the race next week, and good data collected for the rest of the season. Can't wait to race and to push the limits!”