When returning for their second or even third season in Formula 3, many drivers choose to seek out new opportunities with another team. Van Amersfoort Racing’s Santiago Ramos and Trident’s Charlie Wurz are two of the sophomore drivers who opted for a new team this season, and Feeder Series spoke to them about how they have handled the changes in scenery.

By Tori Turner

Out of the 12 returning drivers currently racing in the series, seven chose to move to a new team for the 2025 season. One of those drivers is Ramos, who raced for Trident last year and finished 16th overall with 44 points. He scored his only podium of the season at the final round in Monza, finishing second in the sprint race.

Despite moving away from the team that carried Leonardo Fornaroli to the drivers’ title and finished second in the teams’ standings, Ramos has already found great success in Van Amersfoort, who finished seventh in 2024, this season.  After just five rounds, Ramos is one of three drivers to score multiple wins, having taken his maiden victory in the season-opening sprint race in Melbourne and another win in the Imola feature race. He is currently sixth in the standings with 45 points, already eclipsing his 2024 total.

Ramos recognised that his newfound glory this season was partially due to the experience he gained with the Italian team in 2024.

“After coming from Trident, I’ve learned many things from them,” Ramos told Feeder Series. “They’re one of the best teams historically in F3, so I knew I had to take my notes on the good things they did last year. From there, I’ve just tried to work with Van Amersfoort. They have a very different philosophy from the one they had in Trident, but I have to say I’m really liking it.”

Ramos is the only experienced driver on the team, as his two teammates Ivan Domingues and Théophile Naël are in their rookie season. Despite their lack of running, both drivers have already proven they can finish on the podium, with Domingues even picking up his maiden win during the sprint race in Spain. 

The combined efforts of all three drivers so far have helped the team jump to fourth in the teams’ championship, a stark contrast from their sixth- and two seventh-place finishes in their previous three seasons

“It’s also the good chemistry I have with my teammates and all the engineers and mechanics,” Ramos added. “That is helping everything, and they have always been a really good team for developing new cars. This year is not the exception.”

Like Ramos, Wurz – who took his place in Trident’s #6 car and works with Umberto Visintini, Ramos’ former engineer – has already beaten his 2024 points total of 10 despite only being halfway through the current season. Wurz struggled to score points throughout his rookie season with former F3 team Jenzer Motorsport, with his only points finish coming from fifth place in the Melbourne feature race. 

Having joined Trident this season, Wurz has added three top-10 finishes to his record and scored 15 points in total.

“The work with Trident started almost a year ago, so we’ve been working for a long time in trying to understand each other and build a relationship,” Wurz said. “I think we’ve done that, so that’s pretty positive, and I’ve enjoyed and learned so much from them. On that side, it’s been a very good season. I’ve made big steps forward and learned some lessons that I, for sure, will keep for a long time.”

Header photo credit: Dutch Photo Agency