Peroni ends F3 pre-season testing on top

Alex Peroni
Alex Peroni

Alexander Peroni was in excellent shape ahead of the 2020 FIA Formula 3 campaign, scoring the fastest time overall in pre-season testing on the final day. The Campos racer’s time of 1:46.173 could not be matched across the three days, and he finished above Jake Hughes and Jack Doohan.

The Bahrain International Circuit was much clearer on the final day of testing, as the cars returned in warm, sunny conditions – a stark comparisons to the dust and wind experienced on Day 2. Hughes wasted no time in getting a fast lap under his belt, touring at 1:47.312 inside of the first 15 minutes. The Briton was backed up by Enzo Fittipaldi and Day 2’s quickest man, Liam Lawson.

The Kiwi was sent on another push and fired around to take the times below 1m 47s for the lead, before Finnish ace Niko Kari went four-hundredths quicker. Peroni clocked up 30 laps as focus shifted to long-runs and race simulations, with Kari continuing on top.

The Charouz racer wouldn’t be shifted in the morning session, finishing ahead of the continually impressive Lawson, as well as Logan Sargeant, Dennis Hauger and Hughes.

The teams returned for the final session and Carlin Buzz got the running underway with the first quick times of the afternoon, as their trio of Clement Novalak, Cameron Das and Enaam Ahmed took the top three spots in the table.

Long-runs again remained the focal point of the session as preparations for the first race of the season, here in Bahrain, ramped up. 573 laps were completed before the rhythm was broken by a red flag, due to Calan Williams stopping on track. When things got back underway, Kari was able to muscle his way into the top two, nestling in behind Novalak.

With 45 minutes to go, the faster laps began to fly in. The PREMA machine of Frederik Vesti went top, with the day’s first time of under 1m 47s, ahead of David Schumacher and Hughes.

The times took a further tumble as focus shifted from race runs to qualifying simulations for sections of the grid. Doohan, Hughes and Peroni all took turns at the top, with the laps creeping towards 1m 46s.

They didn’t quite break that marker in the final moments, but that won’t matter much to Peroni, who sets himself up nicely for his second season in F3, with the fastest lap

overall. The Campos racer finished ahead of Hughes and Doohan, with Sargeant and Richard Verschoor completing the top five. Sebastian Fernandez, Vesti, Alexander Smolyar, Novalak and Kari completed the top 10.

Next stop, Round 1! F3 will make its long-awaited racing return back in Bahrain in just over two weeks’ time. With pre-season testing completed and plenty of food for thought, all eyes will be on the 30-strong field to see who may be fighting for the Championship in 2020.

AM Times

POS DRIVER TEAM TIME LAPS
1 Niko Kari Charouz Racing System 1:46.606 36
2 Liam Lawson Hitech Grand Prix 1:46.654 37
3 Logan Sargeant PREMA Racing 1:46.786 33
4 Dennis Hauger Hitech Grand Prix 1:46.820 37
5 Jake Hughes HWA RACELAB 1:46.861 37
6 Enzo Fittipaldi HWA RACELAB 1:46.877 36
7 Sebastian Fernandez ART Grand Prix 1:46.945 26
8 Clement Novalak Carlin Buzz Racing 1:46.987 33
9 Max Fewtrell Hitech Grand Prix 1:47.028 38
10 Lirim Zendeli Trident 1:47.038 22
11 Igor Fraga Charouz Racing System 1:47.118 37
12 Richard Verschoor MP Motorsport 1:47.216 24
13 Jack Doohan HWA RACELAB 1:47.224 36
14 Devlin DeFrancesco Trident 1:47.227 39
15 David Schumacher Charouz Racing System 1:47.296 38
16 Federico Malvestiti Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.310 30
17 Alexander Smolyar ART Grand Prix 1:47.320 35
18 Olli Caldwell Trident 1:47.354 32
19 Oscar Piastri PREMA Racing 1:47.441 31
20 Theo Pourchaire ART Grand Prix 1:47.456 27
21 Matteo Nannini Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.493 17
22 Sophia Floersch Campos Racing 1:47.504 19
23 Calan Williams Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.534 25
24 Bent Viscaal MP Motorsport 1:47.552 26
25 Frederik Vesti PREMA Racing 1:47.573 32
26 Cameron Das Carlin Buzz Racing 1:47.671 28
27 Lukas Dunner MP Motorsport 1:47.678 20
28 Enaam Ahmed Carlin Buzz Racing 1:47.801 29
29 Alessio Deledda Campos Racing 1:48.313 22
30 Alexander Peroni Campos Racing 1:50.674 38

PM Times

POS DRIVER TEAM TIME LAPS
1 Alexander Peroni Campos Racing 1:46.173 16
2 Jake Hughes HWA RACELAB 1:46.200 33
3 Jack Doohan HWA RACELAB 1:46.324 33
4 Logan Sargeant PREMA Racing 1:46.522 31
5 Richard Verschoor MP Motorsport 1:46.590 27
6 Sebastian Fernandez ART Grand Prix 1:46.686 31
7 Frederik Vesti PREMA Racing 1:46.734 20
8 Alexander Smolyar ART Grand Prix 1:46.744 29
9 Clement Novalak Carlin Buzz Racing 1:46.751 30
10 Niko Kari Charouz Racing System 1:46.854 18
11 Enzo Fittipaldi HWA RACELAB 1:46.884 34
12 Oscar Piastri PREMA Racing 1:47.020 31
13 David Schumacher Charouz Racing System 1:47.030 27
14 Federico Malvestiti Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.249 19
15 Theo Pourchaire ART Grand Prix 1:47.327 30
16 Calan Williams Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.520 29
17 Cameron Das Carlin Buzz Racing 1:47.525 24
18 Lirim Zendeli Trident 1:47.525 30
19 Lukas Dunner MP Motorsport 1:47.545 26
20 Sophia Floersch Campos Racing 1:47.547 30
21 Matteo Nannini Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.659 38
22 Alessio Deledda Campos Racing 1:47.712 29
23 Enaam Ahmed Carlin Buzz Racing 1:47.837 32