James Wharton wins his first race in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine at Mugello
Two races and two different winners at Mugello, the venue for the fifth doubleheader of the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine, where Tuukka Taponen (R-ace GP) and James Wharton (Prema Racing) stood on the top step of the podium.
The latter achieved his first victory, becoming the first Australian driver to win a race in this series and the twentieth driver to reach the top step of the podium since the championship’s inception. The Prema Racing driver had an excellent start, skillfully passing poleman Brando Badoer (Van Amersfoort Racing) in the early stages and maintaining the position until the checkered flag. It was another impressive performance from the Italian driver, who, after securing his first pole position, earned his fifth consecutive silver medal in the championship, consolidating his third place in the overall standings with 118 points.
Rafael Camara (Prema Racing) took the lowest step of the podium but was penalized with a two-position drop following a contact with his main rival, Taponen, while battling for third place in the final stages. This maneuver relegated the Brazilian to fifth place, further narrowing the gap between the two drivers to 29 points (Camara 179 points and Taponen 150). This opened the door for Pedro Clerot, driving another Van Amersfoort Racing car, to claim the third step of the podium and the rookie trophy. Consequently, fourth place went to Taponen, who concluded an almost perfect weekend with a pole position and victory in yesterday’s first race.
Another flawless race was delivered by R-ace GP’s Zachary David, who maintained a steady pace to secure the sixth position. Ivan Domingues (Van Amersfoort Racing) skillfully overtook Alessandro Giusti (ART Grand Prix) on the final lap, crossing the finish line in eighth. The top 10 was completed by Noah Strømsted (RPM) and Ruiqi Liu (Trident Motorsport).
James Wharton – Prema Racing
“I managed a good start and overtook Brando at the first corner. From that point, I aimed to control the race and manage the tires. It wasn’t easy, but we did a great job. I’ve made some mistakes in the early part of the season, and now we restart from this success to look ahead to the rest of the year.”
Brando Badoer – Van Amersfoort Racing
“I’m happy with this performance for the championship, where consistency is important. Proof of this is my fifth consecutive second-place finish. Now I will continue to push to achieve the victory we deserve, and I believe that if we keep going like this, it will come.”
Perdo Clerot – Van Amersfoort Racing
“We’ve had ups and downs this season. At Mugello, we reached a good pace with the podium slipping away yesterday at the end, while today I had the chance to battle with Rafael and Tuukka. We managed to score important points after the Budapest round where we deserved more, but here we did the right reset. Now we look forward positively to the next round at Paul Ricard.”
The international series will rev up its engines next weekend at Le Castellet, the stage for the sixth round of the season.