2016 EuroFormula Open – Spa-Francorchamps Preview

Spa-Francorchamps promises to add another exciting chapter to title race

The season’s new record entry includes 24 cars at Spa-Francorchamps. The Ardennes expect plenty of action with 16 different nationalities represented on the grid. China´s Alex Liang will make his debut in the series with Team West-Tec and DAV Racing will enter a third Dallara-built car at Spa.

The Euroformula Open had an exciting start to the season at Estoril last month. Action-packed races, closely-fought battles and a mix of young and experienced drivers and teams were the ingredients to bring excitement to motorsport fans. The Euroformula Open, which is consolidating itself as a key step in the single-seater formulae ladder, now prepares for the second round of the season at Spa-Francorchamps, the rollercoaster set in the Ardennes region of Belgium.

After the two-race event on Portuguese soil, Italy’s Leonardo Pulcini (Campos Racing) took the championship lead. Pulcini, on 45 points, claimed a win on Saturday and came second on Sunday, a fantastic season’s start in Portugal for the emerging new ace. Briton Jack Aitken (RP Motorsport), Italy’s Damiano Fioravanti (RP Motorsport), Mexico’s Diego Menchaca (Campos Racing) and Austria’s Ferdinand Habsburg (Drivex) also made it into the top five of the drivers’ standings after Estoril. Both the rookie and team classifications, led by Habsburg and Campos Racing respectively, promise thrilling battles.

Once again, RP Motorsport will have a five-car entry. Aitken and Fioravanti started the season with amazing performances and they will again be names to follow this weekend. Thai duo of Tanart Sathienthirakul and Kantadhee Kusiri and Pole Antoni Ptak will try to spice up the show at Spa with their RP Motorsport-entered cars as well.

Campos Racing, with a four-car armada, has always been a force in the Euroformula Open. 2016 is no exception. Pulcini and Menchaca stepped onto the Portuguese rostrum and with their teammates Ecuador’s Julio Moreno and Azerbaijan’s Gulhuseyn Abdullayev, the Spanish squad aims to continue their strong run.

Another team based in Spain, Teo Martin Motorsport, will take its four cars to Spa-Francorchamps. Colombia’s Tatiana Calderón, Russia’s Nikita Zlobin, Romania’s Petru Florescu and Mexico’s José Manuel Vilalta bring talent and speed to the team led by Teo Martín.

Carlin Motorsport made a positive debut in the Euroformula Open a few weeks ago. The USA’s Colton Herta and German-born racer Keyvan Andres scored valuable points at the season opener and, just like their teammate Indian Ameya Vaidyanathan, appeared quick to learn and adapt to Formula 3 racing.

DAV Racing will have a newcomer as the Italian outfit enters a third car for Spa. Chinese Kang Ling and Daniele Cazzaniga – who already made it into the top ten on his debut- will be joined by another young ace to be announced by Matteo Davenia´s team later this week.

Piangipane-based BVM Racing will field two Dallara F312 cars, one of them for Russian Daniil Pronenko who continues making solid, steady progress every time he hits the track in the Euroformula Open.

Drivex and Austrian Ferdinand Habsburg claimed excellent results in the Euroformula Open’s curtain raiser. Habsburg came second in race one and also showed quick pace in qualifying, so he should be pretty fast in Belgium again.

Fortec made its debut in the series at Estoril and its car, driven by Poland’s Igor Walilko, was immediately in podium contention. Walilko, who shone in the rain last year at Spa, might find success in the Ardennes again.

Team West-Tec returns to the series with Alex Liang. Liang made a first appearance in the Winter Series but the Belgian venue will be his official debut in the Euroformula Open. Team West-Tec, one of the most successful teams in Euroformula Open, will be an excellent partner for Liang.

The Spa-Francorchamps premium programme includes the Euroformula Open and its sister series, the International GT Open, the Formula V8 3.5, the TCR Benelux and the Radical European Masters, which provides racing fans with a diverse “menu” to choose from.