VAR signs Filip Ugran for 2022 EFO Championship
Van Amersfoort Racing is excited to announce the joining of Romanian Filip Ugran. The 19-year-old will compete for the Dutch team in the upcoming Euroformula Open Championship, which starts early May at the Autódromo do Estoril.
Born in the city of Tirgu, located in central Romania, Filip started karting at the age of eleven and entered the international karting scene at the age of thirteen. His karting career came to an end in 2019, as he leaped into single-seater racing at the age of fifteen. The Romanian made his Formula racing debut in the Italian Formula 4, which is widely regarded at being the most competitive F4 championship in the world.
Meant to be a learning year, Ugran gained hard-fought experience throughout the season. Alongside the Italian F4, the young Romanian made a guest appearance in both the German F4 series and the final round of the Spanish F4 championship. It was in the latter where Filip secured a podium finish in all three races, claiming two second positions and one third place finish.
2020 saw Ugran return to the Italian F4 championship, performing strong from the first outing onwards. He recorded fastest lap times from the get-go and claimed his first win in Formula racing during the second round at Imola. As done in the previous year, Filip joined the final round of the 2020 Spanish F4 championship and again made an impressive appearance. During the three races held that weekend, Ugran claimed three podiums of which two victories, including a pole position and a fastest lap time.
The year thereafter Filip made a big step by joining the FIA F3 championship. A tough season, yet a year in which the now 19-year-old has gained an incredible amount of experience. The Rumanian youngster comments: “I enjoyed FIA F3 very much. I knew jumping from F4 into F3 was going to be particularly challenging, but the experience I have gained will be extremely valuable for all that lies ahead. Having said that, I am absolutely delighted to be joining the EFO grid for this year with Van Amersfoort Racing. I got a taste of their way of working during the FIA F3 post-season test at Valencia and I was really impressed by their level of professionalism and attention to detail. Preparations for the season are in full force and I can’t wait to jump behind the wheel during winter testing at Barcelona mid-March.”
The 2022 edition of the Euroformula Open will run over nine events with three races per weekend. Returning to the calendar will be the prestigious “Grand Prix du Pau”, taking place on the historic streets of the Pyrenean city of Pau. Due to an adjusted schedule, the Pau round will feature only two races, instead of the three races held at all other rounds.
“We are absolutely happy to add Filip to our EFO driver line-up.” says Rob Niessink, CEO at Van Amersfoort Racing. He continues: “He brings a good amount of experience to the team and has a great attitude towards where he is at right now, despite his challenging season last year. We both believe strongly that the experience he gained will benefit him in the Euroformula Open series. Last year we have proven to be able to fight for podiums and race wins, and we see Filip doing just that this year!”
The 2022 Euroformula Open series is held over nine rounds with three races each (Except for the Grand Prix du Pau, which is a two-race event). The season kicks-off at the Autódromo do Estoril in Portugal (April 29- May 01). Round two and three of the championship brings the team to France, where they first strike the streets of Pau for the Grand Prix du Pau (May 06-08), followed by the circuit of Paul Ricard (May 20-22). Round four takes place at the famous Spa-Francorchamps circuit (June 17-19), located in the beautiful surroundings of the Belgian Ardennes. The Hungaroring acts as the host for round five of the series (July 08-10), after which the team returns home for the summer break.
The season picks up again with round six, held at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, located along Imola’s Santerno river (Sept.02-04). The team then moves straight to the Styrian Alps for round seven at the Red Bull Ring (Sept.09-11) and returns to Italy for the penultimate round of the season, held at the Temple of Speed, Monza (Sept.23-25). The season finale takes place mid-October and is hosted by circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain (Oct.14-16).