Edoardo Mortara has won the 2010 Formula 3 Euro Series title at the penultimate round of the season at Oschersleben.
The Swiss-born Italian has dominated the series, taking six victories for the Signature team. His sixth place finish in the first of the two races at German circuit put him out of reach at the top of the standings. In doing so, he becomes the first driver to win the title for a team other than ART (previously known as ASM) since Ryan Briscoe won the first ever Euro Series back in 2003.
Mortara originally competed in the Euro Series in 2007 and 2008 for Signature, finishing second in the standings to Nico Hulkenberg. He stepped up to GP2 in 2009, but struggled to make the jump, finishing 14th in the championship. He returned to F3 at the end of the year, racing for Signature at the prestigious Macau Grand Prix, which he won. He then opted to return to the Euro Series for 2010, and has benefited from the Volkswagen-powered Signature outfit knocking ART off their perch as the top team in the series. His nearest challenge for the title has come from teammate Marco Wittmann, with ART's Valtteri Bottas and Alexander Sims both having disappointing seasons.
Mortara follows in the footsteps of Lewis Hamilton, Paul di Resta and Hulkenberg in becoming European F3 champion. Upon winning the title, he said “It is great that I am the new champion. I was already very happy with my victory at Macau last year, but this success is one step higher as it is not just one race. Throughout the year, we have been able to win races and claim pole positions.”
Bottas won the first race at Oschersleben, ahead of Sims and Antonio Felix da Costa. French rookie Jim Pla won race two, with Wittmann and Nicolas Marroc completing the podium. Mortara retired on the opening lap after a collision with Sims. The season concludes at Hockenheim on October 17.
