Colapinto and Van Amersfoort take FIA F3 debut pole

Argentine debutant Franco Colapinto took the first pole position of the season at the Bahrain International Circuit on Friday.

Both he and Van Amersfoort Racing make their FIA Formula 3 Championship bows this weekend, and have shown their hand at the earliest possible opportunity, starting at the top of the order for Sunday’s Feature Race.

Roman Stanek topped Free Practice earlier in the day, and put his Trident just behind Colapinto, who went fastest with his first valid lap.

Kush Maini finished the session in third place, but was later ordered to start both the Sprint and Feature Race from the pits after failing to stop at the weighbridge, while Charouz Racing System‘s Ayrton Simmons picked up a three-place penalty for the Sprint Race for impeding Maini’s MP Motorsport team-mate Alexander Smolyar at the end of the Russian’s lap.

The ART Grand Prix cars impressed and locked out fourth through sixth position, with Gregoire Saucy leading Victor Martins and Juan Manuel Correa home.

Smolyar still managed to finish in eighth place, with Isack Hadjar and David Vidales (Campos Racing) rounding out the top ten.

Maini’s penalty sees his other team-mate Caio Collet start from Sprint Race pole, ahead of Carlin‘s Zak O’Sullivan.

O’Sullivan’s fellow F3 debutant and fellow GB3 Championship race-winner Oliver Bearman (Prema Racing) will start third on Saturday morning.

FIA Formula 3 Qualifying Result – Bahrain International Circuit