Foreign riders show top form in AF3 practice sessions

Irish John O’ Hara and Australian Christian Jones paced the 30-minute timed practices leading to Sunday’s Addict Mobile Formula 3 Super Prix, the first of five AF3 legs for this year, clocking in the fastest lap times at the Batangas Racing Circuit (BRC) yesterday.

Save for the Autoplus tandem because of minor car adjustments, everyone participated during the practice laps, but it was the foreigners who gave the best account for themselves during the two-day practice serving as tune-up for Sunday’s main event, the first leg of the Philippine Formula 3 championship.

O’Hara and Jones are two of only four foreigners competing in Sunday’s two 12-lap races, which parades a field of 14 drivers comprising seven teams — Kinetic Team Racing with O’Hara and defending AF3 champ Jose Luis "Pepon" Marave, Minardi Team Asia, with British Mark Goddard and Tyson Sy, Speedtech Asia, with Jojo Silverio and Roland Hermoso, Tom’s, with siblings Don and Enzo Pastor, Team Autoplus, with Mike Tuason and Carlos Anton, and JF3 Racing with Richard Joson and Japanese Kenkou Miura.

Though the two foreigners were the most impressive in the practices, the possibility of the Filipinos edging them out come race day can’t be discounted as some of them were still getting accustomed to their new cars, like "Pepon" Marave, or the AF3 brand of race, like first-timers Pastor, Sy and Pena, all of whom are just in their teens.

O’ Hara, the reigning Formula Ireland titlist, lived up to his impressive European credentials with a best fastest of 1:25:65. For the year, he’s partnered with returning champ Marave, who logged 1:27.65, still behind his personal target of 1:25.00.

O’ Hara will be enjoying the luxury of riding on a tested "champion car", a bright-red colored Dalara F 301 Torii powered by Toyota, which is strikingly similar to a Ferrari.