Over 20 years of different iterations of the Euroformula Open Championship have seen big names pass through. Recently Yuki Tsunoda, Colton Herta and Felipe Drugovich have raced in the series, and even Sebastian Vettel and Carlos Sainz made guest appearances back in the day. Find out who can follow in their footsteps in Feeder Series’ guide to the 2023 Euroformula Open Championship.

By Jan Husmann

Twelve months ago, Oliver Goethe was a name that few people had on their radar after he scored only three points in the 2021 FRECA season. But a dominant title-winning campaign in Euroformula Open improved his standing in the world of feeder series and led to an FIA Formula 3 drive with Trident in 2023. 

For this season, ten drivers have signed up to replicate what Goethe achieved over the last calendar year and challenge for the Euroformula Open title in 2023. It will be intriguing to see who comes out on top.

The calendar

Euroformula Open delivers on the promise of its name and will stay on the European continent through its eight-round season. Amongst a mix of current and former Formula 1 tracks, the Pau Grand Prix will be the highlight of the season for many drivers and fans.

• Round 1: Algarve International Circuit (28–30 April)
• Round 2: Circuit de Pau-Ville (12–14 May)
• Round 3: Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps (26–28 May)
• Round 4: Hungaroring (16–18 June)
• Round 5: Circuit Paul Ricard (21–23 July) 
• Round 6: Red Bull Ring (8–10 September)
• Round 7: Autodromo Nazionale di Monza (22–24 September)
• Round 8: Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya (20–22 October) 

The format

For seven of the eight rounds, Euroformula Open’s standard weekend format will be in place, with three races taking place per round. The starting grid for Race 1 will be determined by the sole qualifying session. In Race 2, the starting grid is determined by the Race 1 results, with the top-six reversed. In Race 3, the qualifying results will determine the starting grid but with the top-six reversed. 

For the weekend of the Pau Grand Prix, only two races will take place. There will be two qualifying sessions with Qualifying 1 determining the grid for Race 1 and Qualifying 2 setting the grid for Race 2. 

For each race on a given weekend, full points are given out with the winner receiving 25 points and one point for tenth place, analogous to Formula 1. Additionally, one point will be awarded for the fastest lap in qualifying and in each of the races, respectively. Two more points are awarded in each race to the driver that gains the most positions. 

Teams and drivers

Team Motopark

Going into the season, Team Motopark is clearly at the top of the series. After winning the drivers’ championship in the past two seasons, the German outfit is not only fielding four cars of their own, but is also running two cars under the Crypto Tower Racing Team name. 

Noel Leon (#19) comes off a disappointing FRECA season in 2022 and will try to replicate the success of Goethe last year. He recently lost the support of the Red Bull Junior Team and will look to revitalise his career. 

Alongside Leon, American Bryce Aron (#23) and Briton Cian Shields (#73) make their move from GB3 with Hitech GP to Euroformula Open with Team Motopark. They finished twelfth and thirteenth respectively, with one race win each. 

Lastly, Jakob Bergmeister (#26) will make his debut in Formula 3 machinery with Team Motopark. The German has a storied career in German karting behind him and started racing formula cars earlier this year, when he competed in F4 UAE with PHM Racing. 

Crypto Tower Racing Team

The Euroformula Open regulations allow one team to enter a maximum of four cars into the championship. To give all of their six drivers the opportunity to compete, Team Motopark has teamed up with Japanese team Crypto Tower to enter another two cars. 

For fans of feeder series, Crypto Tower Racing Team will field two better-known names in Euroformula Open this year. Tim Tramnitz (#28) joins the team to compete in Euroformula Open alongside his FRECA drive with R-ace GP. He was runner-up to Ollie Bearman in Italian and ADAC F4 in 2021 and scored four rookie wins in FRECA in 2022. 

On the other side of the garage, Enzo Trulli (#15) will control the car in Portimao. The Italian is currently preparing for his first season in Super Formula Lights after failing to score during his FIA F3 campaign in 2022. He is returning to Euroformula Open after finishing seventh in 2021 driving for Drivex School and Carlin.

BVM Racing

After announcing to add a second car to their line-up for this season, BVM Racing has so far only entered one car into the first race weekend. 

As in 2022, Francesco Simonazzi (#84) will pilot the BVM Racing car. The Italian won once last year at the Red Bull Ring and will look to return to the top-step in his second full season with the team. 

Effective Racing

Effective Racing is another single-car entry that returns to the championship. Team owner/CEO/driver Vladimír Netušil (#7) will aim to reach the podium in his second season after failing to do so as a rookie in 2022. 

Effective Racing is also the only team powered by a V8 Mercedes engine by HWA, while all other cars are powered by a V8 Volkswagen engine by Spiess.

Noda Racing

The next private entry comes from the Noda family, where Juju Noda (#10) will pilot the Dallara 320 of her father Hideki’s team. 

Noda has gathered Formula 3 level experience in the last year, driving in W Series and the Drexler Cup, where she recently won at Mugello in preparation for the Euroformula Open season.

NV Racing

The latest team to announce its participation in the Euroformula Open championship this year was NV Racing. The Serbian team will field one car, driven by Paolo Brajnik (#212). 

Brajnik recently was runner-up in the Drexler Formula 3 Open 2022 season. Before racing in formula cars, he raced Superbikes, becoming the 2014 European SBK champion.

Where to watch

All qualifying and race sessions will be streamed live on the Euroformula Open YouTube page with English commentary.

Live timing is provided as well and can be reached through the official Euroformula Open website. 

Header photo credit: Euroformula Open