F3 Sprint: Inthraphuvasak becomes the first Thai winner in FIA F3 at Silverstone

Written By Trisha Lynnette

Credit: Formula 3 via X

The Formula 3 Sprint Race went underway on the 5th of July, Saturday at Silverstone. Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak of Campos Racing took the ultimate win, followed by Martinius Stenshorne of Hitech TGR at P2 and Mari Boya of Campos took P3. This marked a historical day for Thailand as it saw it’s first ever win in the F3 series.

A cloudy Saturday morning in Silverstone saw the Formula 3 Sprint Race get underway. Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak of Campos Racing took pole position for the sprint, followed by Christian Ho of DAMS Lucas Oil and Martinius Stenshorne of Hitech Pulse-Eight (Hitech TGR).

At 09:15 AM BST, the drivers set out on track, weaving as they warmed their tyres during the formation lap. Lined up at the starting line, the lights were out and racing began at the legendary Silverstone circuit – 18 laps of Sprint racing ahead.

Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak and Christian Ho had a close battle as they both had a strong start off the line. Theophile Naël of Van Amersfoort Racing (VAR) attempted an early overtake on Ho, who was forced to shift focus to defending.

Naël managed to get past Ho as the lap progressed. Rafael Câmara of Trident made a move around the inside of Charlie Wurz, also of Trident, as the three Trident drivers went side by side fighting for higher positions.

Lap 2 began with the deployment of the Virtual Safety Car, forcing the drivers to slow down. Nikola Tsolov of Campos Racing dropped down to P29 after a collision with Brando Badoer of Prema Racing at Turn 4. The incident led to Badoer’s retirement and Tsolov’s drop down the order.

Charlie Wurz received a radio warning from his Trident team, instructing him to avoid any incident with teammate Rafael Câmara, who is currently in the championship battle. The Safety Car period ended on Lap 4, with drivers ordered to stop weaving. The green flag waved, and racing resumed.

Inthraphuvasak began to slowly pull away from the rest of the grid. However, Naël started closing the gap to the Thai driver. Martinius Stenshorne had climbed to P4, overtaking Ho in the process.

Credit: Formula 3 via X

Race Control announced that the collision between Tsolov and Badoer would be investigated after the race. Tsolov managed to climb back up to P27. Naël, now within DRS range, attempted a move on Inthraphuvasak but ran wide before making the overtake. Meanwhile, Câmara advanced to P10. Race Control also noted the incident at Turn 4 between Nael and Inthraphuvasak.

Tim Tramnitz of MP Motorsport attempted an overtake on Noel León of Prema Racing as he closed the gap between them. Ho, who had started in P2, had now fallen to P5 - not a great race day for the Singaporean driver who was looking for a major podium today. Laurens van Hoepen of ART Grand Prix was making his presence felt as well.

Nicola Lacorte of DAMS Lucas Oil and James Hedley of AIX Racing were noted for a Safety Car infringement. Nikola Tsolov had made it up to P26 by Lap 9. Ugo Ugochukwu of Prema

Racing came under pressure from Câmara who lay at P10.

Naël was instructed to give the position back to Inthraphuvasak on Lap 10, following the earlier off-track pass. Inthraphuvasak retook the lead, and Naël fell back to P2. Inthraphuvasak then started to pull away again, while Naël came under increasing pressure from Martinius Stenshorne.

Credit: Formula 3 via X

Inthraphuvasak ran wide briefly, losing the gap he had earlier built. Tim Tramnitz dropped down to P11 after running wide and dirtying his tyres, allowing Rafael Câmara to overtake him.

Trident reminded Charlie Wurz to work together with Rafael Câmara as they moved into Lap 12.

Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak continued to handle the pressure impressively. 

The 19-year-old Thai driver pulled away once more, with Naël a second behind. Stenshorne began to apply serious pressure on Naël in a bid for P2.

Mari Boya of Campos Racing tried to make a move on Christian Ho, who had dropped from P2 to P5. Ugo Ugochukwu overtook his teammate Laurens van Hoepen to move into P7. Stenshorne succeeded in overtaking Naël and moved into second place.

Mari Boya of Campos Racing managed to overtake Naël, moving up to P3 after a series of overtakes. Meanwhile Van Hoepen of ART Grand Prix held P5. The incident between Naël and Van Hoepen was noted by the stewards for review. The two French drivers battled it out in the final stages of the race, with Van Hoepen attempting one last overtake on his compatriot.

Credit: Formula 3 via X

Inthraphuvasak crossed the finish line, securing his first podium of the season and claiming his maiden win in the FIA Formula 3 Championship. Following the conclusion of the race, Naël was handed a 10-second time penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.

Inthraphuvasak went on to make history by becoming the first Thai driver ever to stand on the podium in the FIA Formula 3 Championship – and he did so in dominant fashion, claiming his maiden race victory in the series. 

It was a landmark moment not only for the 19-year-old Campos Racing driver but also for Thai motorsport, marking a significant step forward for representation on the international single-seater stage. 

Inthraphuvasak showcased remarkable composure under pressure, defending his position at the front of the field and responding to challenges from rivals with maturity and pace. His performance at Silverstone was a statement of intent and a reminder that new talents continue to emerge from regions previously underrepresented at the highest levels of junior formula racing.

"This win gives me a lot of confidence. Like I said again, We have had the speed throughout the whole season just not putting things together but this definitely has boost my confidence and then hopefully we keep the momentum up for the remainder of the season," said Inthraphuvasak.

"I started P6 and then I was P4 after lap one and then I made my way up to P3 a bit after," said Stenshorne. "I think we had not so bad pace. I was trying to play it smart in the beginning" he continued, highlighting how the pace and his strategy played a vital role in his podium.

"It was a really fun. I think our pace in races have been really strong. The last races and again today in Silverstone which show our great pace. Yeah very happy also for the team because 1 and 3 is a really nice result. And tomorrow I think we have also a really nice opportunity to fight for everything," said Boya who has brought great points alongside his teammates for Campos.

This brings an end to Sprint Race at Silverstone. We go racing again at 09:30 BST (08:30 GMT) with Tsolov leading the grid at P1 followed by Ugochukwu and Câmara at P2 and P3 respectively.

Make sure to catch the Feature Race live. If not, head back to DIVEBOMB for all the action you might have missed.

Full Classification for Sprint Race

P1	Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak	Campos Racing
P2	Martinius Stenshorne	Hitech TGR
P3	Mari Boya	Campos Racing
P4	Laurens Van Hoepen	ART Grand Prix
P5	Ugo Ugochukwu	PREMA Racing
P6	Christian Ho	DAMS Lucas Oil
P7	Noel León	PREMA Racing
P8	Rafael Câmara	TRIDENT
P9	Charlie Wurz	TRIDENT
P10	Roman Bilinski	Rodin Motorsport
P11	Tim Tramnitz	MP Motorsport
P12	Theophile Naël	MP Motorsport
P13	Alessandro Giusti	MP Motorsport
P14	Noah Strømsted	TRIDENT
P15	Brad Benavides	AIX Racing
P16	Santiago Ramos	Van Amersfoort Racing
P17	James Wharton	ART Grand Prix
P18	Ivan Domingues	Van Amersfoort Racing
P19	Tuukka Taponen	ART Grand Prix
P20	Bruno Del Pino	MP Motorsport
P21	Louis Sharp	Rodin Motorsport
P22	Callum Voisin	Rodin Motorsport
P23	Nicola Lacorte	DAMS Lucas Oil
P24	Gerrard Xie	Hitech TGR
P25	Matías Zagazeta	DAMS Lucas Oil
P26	James Hedley	AIX Racing
P27	Nikita Johnson	Hitech TGR
P28	Nicola Marinangeli	AIX Racing
P29	Nikola Tsolov	Campos Racing
DNF	Brando Badoer	PREMA Racing