Immersed in the heart of the Belgian Ardennes, Spa-Francorchamps is one of the most iconic and demanding circuits in motorsport, renowned for its high-speed corners, dramatic elevation changes and notoriously unpredictable weather.
Indeed, the FIA Formula 3 Free Practice session was initially delayed due to heavy fog enveloping the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, which compromised medical helicopter visibility, a key requirement for on-track sessions to proceed. The session was rescheduled in a shortened 30-minute format and held at 14:00 local time, with Qualifying pushed back to 19:15.
In Free Practice, Wharton set a best lap of 2:07.118, placing him in P19. Unfortunately, he was unable to improve on his final flying lap due to a double yellow flag in the final sector, which forced him to lift off the throttle and abort the attempt.
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The Qualifying session, reduced to 30 minutes instead of the usual 45, took place late in the evening. With the track evolving rapidly throughout the session, Wharton secured P20 with a best time of 2:05.279. Constantly changing grip levels and a crowded field made it difficult to extract maximum performance.
Starting from P20 on the grid, Wharton approached the Sprint Race with a conservative strategy, aiming to avoid first-lap incidents and manage his race smartly in the opening stages. Dropping as low as P25 midway through the race, he gradually recovered to P22 by the chequered flag.
The Feature Race began under heavy rain, in stark contrast to Saturday’s conditions. Due to extremely poor visibility and standing water, the race director opted for a Safety Car start at 09:05. Even during the formation laps, the treacherous conditions took their toll, with Inthraphuvasak sliding off the track while attempting to avoid a slowing car.
By lap 3, the decision was made to bring out the red flag once again, and shortly after, Race Direction officially declared the race would not resume. With fewer than two laps completed under green-flag conditions, the event was classified as cancelled, and no points were awarded.
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"It’s been a really tough weekend: both from the car’s point of view and with the challenging conditions we faced. Missing out on the Feature Race is always frustrating, but now our focus shifts to Budapest. We need to work on getting the car into a better window for qualifying next week so we can start closer to the front, giving us a stronger shot in both the Sprint and Feature Races. Big thanks to the team for their efforts. There's still a lot of work to do before next weekend. We weren’t in the window this time, but now it's all about Budapest and the second-to-last race weekend of the season. Let's give it everything we’ve got”, James Wharton Said.
The penultimate round of the FIA Formula 3 Championship will take place at the Hungaroring from August 1–3, marking the final race before the summer break. Wharton and ART Grand Prix will now regroup and refocus ahead of the technical challenge posed by the tight and twisty Hungarian circuit.