Formula Three Raffaele Marciello has set a Formula Renault 3.5 (FR3.5) record at Motorland Aragon during a week of group testing.
F3 stars Marciello, Felix Rosenqvist and Alex Lynn were all invited to test the most powerful Formula Renault machines and flew in from the Macau Grand Prix to test with thirteen FR3.5 teams.
The cars represent one of the two key stepping stones up to Formula One, with World Series by Renault completing a Renault ladder that begins with Formula Renault 1.6.
On the first day of FR3.5 testing the Ferrari Academy Driver was completely unstoppable in his domination of the time sheets, racing for Strakka he set a track record of 1:38.976 in only his first session in the 530HP machines.
Marciello said after his record breaking time: “These two days with Strakka Racing have gone really well. The car was good, easy to drive, we didn’t have any problems so it was quite easy to push it to the limit, and that’s what we did with the lap record. I felt very comfortable in the Formula Renault 3.5 vehicle right from the start. I think that this car suits my style of driving really well. The biggest differences compared to an F3 vehicle are the carbon brakes but it didn’t take me a long time to accustom to them. I think that Formula 3 is a great school: not only for Formula Renault 3.5 but for all the tasks to come.”
Of the other F3 runners, Rosenqvist was second best with a best of 13th: “This was my first time in the car and I was really impressed by the brakes. You can really feel them when pressing the brake pedal down at the end of the straight and that’s the big difference between Formula Renault 3.5 and Formula 3. The car is heavier but the driving style is more or less the same.”
Macau GP winner Alex Lynn could only finish 16th after his run. As of yet, none of the trio have plans for next year confirmed but FR3.5 must be a good option for all of them.
