Théophile Nael claims his first FIA Formula 3 victory in Barcelona
Nael converts pole into first Formula 3 win
Théophile Nael delivered a composed and decisive drive to claim his maiden FIA Formula 3 victory in the Barcelona Feature Race, converting pole position into a landmark win for Campos Racing at its home event.
The Frenchman had already underlined his speed in qualifying, having taken Barcelona pole by just 0.039s over teammate Ugo Ugochukwu â a performance covered in detail in our report on Naelâs third straight pole in Barcelona. On race day, he turned that one-lap authority into something more valuable: control under pressure.
Nael launched cleanly from pole, while Ugochukwu was slow away from second and dropped behind Van Amersfoort Racingâs Hiyu Yamakoshi before Turn 1. Yamakoshi briefly attacked Nael into the first corner, but after running off the road, he had to hand the position back.
Yamakoshi applies early pressure
The opening phase was far from comfortable for Nael. Yamakoshi kept within DRS range and set the fastest lap on Lap 6, reducing the gap to just 0.6s. Behind them, Freddie Slater was moving quickly, passing Enzo Deligny for seventh and then Ernesto Rivera for sixth before the race was interrupted by a Virtual Safety Car to clear debris after contact between Woohyun Shin and Yevan David.
A second VSC followed after DAMS Lucas Oil teammates Nicola Lacorte and Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi made contact at Turn 10, with Lacorte retiring. When racing resumed on Lap 9, Slater received a five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage on the opening lap, though he continued to show strong pace by passing Brando Badoer for fifth.
Naelâs decisive phase came after further debris triggered another VSC, with Yamakoshi only 0.4s behind. Once the race settled, the Campos driver finally began to stretch the gap, moving 1.3s clear while setting personal best sector times.
Campos secures a one-three finish
Ugochukwu briefly lost third to Bruno del Pino after running wide at the final corner, but reclaimed the podium place with DRS on Lap 20. Badoer then passed Slater for fifth and later overtook del Pino for fourth, while Deligny also moved ahead of his struggling teammate on the final lap.
Nael crossed the line 0.7s ahead of Yamakoshi, with Ugochukwu completing the podium. Badoer finished fourth, followed by Deligny, del Pino, Rivera and Slater, whose penalty dropped him to eighth. Taito Kato and Maciej Gladysz completed the points.
âFirst victory in FIA Formula 3. Iâm super happy, especially as itâs a home race for the team, so a one-three, I am super happy. Thereâs still a long way to the end of the championship but itâs good points this weekend,â said Nael.
Ugochukwu still leads the standings on 58 points, but Nael is now second, only six points behind. Del Pino sits third on 48, one ahead of Slater, with Badoer fifth on 41. Campos Racing leads the Teamsâ Standings with 126 points ahead of Van Amersfoort Racing on 99. The championship resumes in Spielberg from June 26-28.
Simone Scanu
Heâs a software engineer with a deep passion for Formula 1 and motorsport. He co-founded Formula Live Pulse to make live telemetry and race insights accessible, visual, and easy to follow.