2011 Formula 3: Tomorrow´s stars "powered by Volkswagen"

After having clinched three champion’s titles in the previous season Volkswagen in 2011 will again attack in Formula 3 as an engine supplier.

As before, the car brand from Wolfsburg will contest the Formula 3 Euro Series, the British Formula 3 Championship and the ATS Formula 3 Cup with a strong driver line-up. The participation in the inaugural season of the FIA Formula 3 International Trophy will be a new commitment. The first race of the Euro Series at Le Castellet (01–03 April) will open the Formula 3 year.

"Three championship wins and a total of 54 race victories in 68 races have made 2010 the most successful year in our Formula 3 history,” says Volkswagen Motorsport Director Kris Nissen. "Although it won’t be an easy feat, we are set on continuing this string of successes. I’m convinced that we’ve got a good line-up again this season and have done a good job of preparing ourselves during the winter break. We’ve got strong drivers and teams, who will no doubt cause a sensation, in all the series we’re participating in.”

Formula 3 Euro Series: Who will succeed DTM driver Edoardo Mortara?

Eight drivers "powered by Volkswagen” will contest the season opener at Le Castellet (France) from 01 to 03 April with the aim of replacing Volkswagen driver Edoardo Mortara as the Formula 3 Euro Series champion. By clinching seven titles in the highly competitive junior series in 2010 the Italian prepared the ground for switching to an Audi DTM cockpit. Signature, last year’s championship-winning team, will compete with four drivers. After finishing the previous season as the overall runner-up the German Marco Wittmann is regarded as the favourite for the title. "Our tests went well,” says the driver from Markt Erlbach. "But I’m not going to put myself under pressure and will give my best. Then we’ll see how the situation looks in the fight for the title.” Another driver to contest his second season for the French squad is Laurens Vanthoor, who finished the 2010 Euro Series in sixth place. The Belgian managed setting a fastest time at the official tests at Valencia. "Naturally, it’s nice to achieve a first place but we shouldn’t forget that this was just a test. The competition will only start in earnest at Le Castellet,” says the 19-year-old. Newcomers to Philippe Sinault’s team are Carlos Muñoz (Columbia) and the German Daniel Abt. The 18-year-old from the famous motorsport family from Kempten (Germany) finished last year’s German Formula 3 Cup as the runner-up.

Motopark Academy is putting four drivers on the grid as well. For Jimmy Eriksson (Sweden), Kimiya Sato (Japan), Gianmarco Raimondo (Canada) and Kuba Giermaziak (Poland) the Euro Series is new territory. Whereas Eriksson, Sato and Raimondo have previous Formula 3 experience under their belt in Germany, Japan and Italy, respectively, Giermaziak contested the Porsche Supercup and the ADAC GT Masters in 2010.

British Formula 3 Championship: Carlin Motorsport as the title defender

In 2010 Volkswagen racer Jean-Eric Vergne was the measure of all things by clinching 13 victories in 30 races of the British Formula 3 Championship and has since climbed up to Formula 1 as a test driver. His championship-winning team, Carlin Motorsport, will contest this season with six vehicles "powered by Volkswagen”. The line-up of the successful British squad includes Felipe Nasr (Brazil), Carlos Huertas (Columbia), Jazeman Jafaar (Malaysia), Rupert Svendsen-Cook (Great Britain) and Kevin Magnussen (Denmark). All of them have prior Formula 3 experience. The Briton Jack Harvey, the "vice champion” in Formula BMW Europe, completes the line-up. Other teams banking on Volkswagen engines are T-Sport and Hitech Racing. T-Sport is putting Menasheh Idafar from Bahrain and the Brazilian Yann Cunha on the grid, while Cunha’s compatriot Pietro Fahin has been confirmed as a Hitech driver.

German ATS Formula 3 Cup: Five teams rely on Volkswagen

The ATS Formula 3 Cup is another series in which Volkswagen pursues the big aim of defending the title. HS Technik that won the 2010 Cup with Tom Dillmann will contest Germany’s top-class formula racing series with Patrick Schranner from Ingolstadt and Alon Day from Israel. Whereas Day has previous Cup experience, Schranner finished last year’s ADAC Formula Masters, which uses Volkswagen engines as well, as the runner-up. Van Ammersfoort Racing is putting as many as three rookies on the grid. Richie Stanaway from New Zealand dominated the ADAC Formula Masters last year while the Dutchmen Jeroen Mul and Hannes van Asseldonk contested Formula BMW and Formula Renault in 2010. The Swedish Performance Racing team in 2011 is banking on Riccardo Brutschin, last year’s winner of the Cup’s Trophy classification, and the Swede Tom Blomqvist. The son of former World Rally Champion Stig Blomqvist won the British Formula Renault in 2010. Motopark Academy is fielding four Dallara F307 Volkswagen cars and has confirmed two drivers so far, the Germans Markus Pommer and Tony Halbig. Max Travin Racing Team that has signed the Russian driver Nikolay Martsenko is using the 210-hp two-litre engines from Wolfsburg for the first time.

FIA Formula 3 International Trophy: the unofficial Formula 3 world championship

2011 marks the inaugural season of the FIA Formula 3 International Trophy, the first Formula 3 championship to stage classification races in both Europe and Asia. The six race weekends will include one round of the Euro Series and the British Championship, respectively, plus the Formula 3 Masters at Zandvoort and Macau Grand Prix. The three first-placed finishers of the Trophy will receive the super licence that allows the holder to compete in Formula 1. Three Volkswagen teams are planning to participate in the new series: Signature will compete with Laurens Vanthoor, Daniel Abt, Carlos Muñoz plus another driver yet to be confirmed. Tom Blomqvist will compete for Performance Racing, and HS Technik has not selected a driver yet.