The Colombian driver achieved his greatest accomplishment to date in an FIA F3 race this weekend. Additionally, Montoya also finished in the points in the other race on Belgian soil. Goethe, for his part, also secured a points position in the Saturday race. Boya was unlucky in the Ardennes
Campos Racing achieved their fifth podium of the 2024 FIA Formula 3 season this weekend thanks to the magnificent performance of Sebas Montoya at Spa-Francorchamps. The Colombian driver proved to be one of the most in-tune on the always challenging Belgian track and confirmed it with a second place in the Sunday race, marking his best result in the category to date. Similarly, Montoya also scored points in the Saturday sprint race. German-Danish driver Oliver Goethe, after a difficult qualifying session, managed to climb up to the points on Saturday. The less fortunate was Spanish driver Mari Boya, who couldn’t achieve a good result after having to start from the back of the grid on both days.
On Friday, during the early morning free practice session which had mixed conditions of rain and dry, Montoya already showcased his speed by setting the seventh-best time with his lap of 2m16.210s, while Boya finished eleventh with his 2m16.761s. Goethe was slightly further back, setting a personal best lap of 2m17.729s. In the afternoon, the qualifying session took place in dry conditions, where Montoya again emerged as the best Campos Racing representative, setting a time of 2m04.521s, securing the fourth position on the timesheets. Goethe came close to pole position in the inverted grid for Saturday with a lap of 2m04.760s, placing him 14th, while Boya was 22nd with his time of 2m05.502s.
Rain was a key factor overnight, and the track, ahead of the 12-lap race 1, was wet in the first sector but drying rapidly in the second and third sectors. When the lights went out, Montoya gained two positions to move into seventh, while Goethe also had a meteoric start, climbing to tenth. However, the safety car was deployed immediately, and the race did not resume until lap 3. Upon restart, Goethe overtook Leonardo Fornaroli while Montoya did the same with Luke Browning. With all cars running in a pack, and within DRS distance of each other, the two Campos Racing drivers shone in the final sprint, with Montoya finishing fifth, just ahead of teammate Goethe, who was sixth. Boya crossed the line in 21st place, but was one of many drivers to receive penalties from the Stewards, relegating him to 25th place.
In the Sunday race, scheduled for 15 laps, the sun shone from early on, and the drivers didn’t have to worry about a slippery track. When the lights went out, Montoya had another rocket start, moving from fourth to second in the first corner, just behind Callum Voisin. Goethe, due to a touch from a rival, suffered a puncture and had to pit to change the damaged tire. Boya, meanwhile, had gained a good number of positions and was already 16th. The main protagonist of these first two-thirds of the race was the safety car, coming out several times. One of these instances, on lap 10, was due to Boya's off-track excursion, resulting in another puncture after another touch from a rival, ending the Campos Racing driver's race. Thus, the race was reduced to a final sprint of just a couple of laps in which Montoya tried to surprise Voisin while keeping Fornaroli at bay. At the end of the fifteen laps, Montoya crossed the finish line in second place, just nine-tenths behind Voisin. Goethe finished 19th.
Now comes the summer break, with only one race remaining before the end of the season, which will be held in Monza on August 31 and September 1. After 18 races, Goethe occupies seventh place in the standings with 94 points. Boya and Montoya are 14th and 15th respectively with 41 and 40 points. In the team standings, Campos Racing maintains fourth place with 175 points.
Photos: © Dutch Photo Agency
