The 2012 GP3 Series season was the third season of the GP3 Series, a feeder series for the GP2 Series. The season began at Barcelona on 12 May and concluded at Autodromo Nazionale Monza on 9 September after eight rounds made up of two races each and all in support of European Formula One Grands Prix.
The series adopted the points system used by Formula One for the feature race, with points awarded to the top ten drivers and twenty-five points on offer for victory. The points awarded in the sprint race also were changed, with the winner receiving fifteen points and top eight drivers receiving points. The points awarded for pole position and the fastest lap of the race also were doubled.[1]
The winner of the championship was Mitch Evans driving for the MW Arden team, who outscored Lotus GP driver Daniel Abt by two points.[2]
2012 was also the final season that the Dallara GP3/10 chassis package, which débuted in the inaugural season of the series in 2010, was used in competition, as a new chassis package and car, the Dallara GP3/13, was introduced for 2013.
Teams and drivers
Ten teams and thirty drivers had been due to take part in the 2012 season. However, in April 2012 it was reported[3] that only twenty-seven drivers would take place with Mücke Motorsport missing from the grid.
British Formula Renault driver Alice Powell signed with Status Grand Prix,[18] and was joined in the team by British Formula 3 Rookie champion Kotaro Sakurai.[16]
John Wartique was replaced by Fabio Gamberini at Atech CRS GP for the Silverstone round after Wartique's sponsors failed to meet their financial obligations with the team.[36]
Team changes
The series has proposed amending the rules which mean teams are obligated to run three cars.[39] Under the proposed rule changes, teams will only need to enter two cars, and will have the option of entering a third.
Addax Team will exit the championship to concentrate on their GP2 Series team, and will be replaced by Trident Racing.[27] Trident started the season with only two cars instead of three,[40] before entering a third from Silverstone onwards.[30]
After competing as LotusART in 2011, ART Grand Prix was renamed as Lotus Grand Prix in both the GP2 and GP3 Series championships, reflecting their increased relationship with title sponsor Lotus Cars.[4] The cars will carry a black and gold livery modelled on the livery used by parent team Lotus F1.
RSC Mücke, the Ralf Schumacher-Mücke Motorsport collaboration, indicated to series organisers that they would not be taking part in the 2012 season, reducing the number of cars on the grid from thirty to twenty-seven.[40]
2012 Schedule
The 2012 calendar was announced on 16 December 2011.[41] The series consisted of eight rounds, with a round in Monaco confirmed on 26 January 2012.[42] The series had previously attempted to include a race in Monaco for the 2011 season, but was forced to abandon its plans when it was found that the support paddock did not have enough space for the GP3 Series.[43] The series supported every Grand Prix on the European leg of the 2012 Formula One season.
Carlin's António Félix da Costa qualified on pole position by 0.01 seconds to Lotus GP drivers Conor Daly and Aaro Vainio.[44] However, on the start of the race their team-mate Daniel Abt made a fast getaway from seventh on the grid to lead. But Abt and Félix da Costa both had a jump start and got drive-through penalties. Returnee Mitch Evans, who was behind the two drivers after the start, won the opening race at Barcelona. Status Grand Prix's Marlon Stöckinger scored his first series podium, finishing second. Vainio completed the podium.[45] Conor Daly recouped in the sprint race, claiming his first series win. Reverse polesitter Robert Visoiu and MW Arden's Matias Laine were also on podium.[46]
The next series stop was at Valencia Street Circuit, where Mitch Evans regained championship lead with win from pole. Aaro Vainio was second, while David Fumanelli scored his first series podium.[49] Like at Monaco the win in the sprint race was claimed by reverse polesitter. This time it was Jenzer Motorsport's Patric Niederhauser, who won the race in GP3 for the first time. Abt and Laine completed the podium.[50]
Prior Silverstone round António Félix da Costa became part of the Red Bull Junior Team and his results increased.[51] He scored his first win of the season, despite start behind championship leaders Evans and Vainio, who joined Félix da Costa on podium.[52] Tyre strategy enabled William Buller to claim the victory in the second race starting from last row on the grid. Daly and Niederhauser completed the podium.[53]
Daniel Abt scored his first pole position on the home soil at Hockenheim.[54] But wet race conditions helped Patric Niederhauser score his second win. Conor Daly and Trident Racing's Giovanni Venturini joined him on podium.[55] Evans extended championship lead by winning the sprint race. He was joined by Lotus GP's Abt and Daly. The race was noted by airborne accidents which left Vicky Piria and Fabiano Machado with injuries.[56]
António Félix da Costa was unstoppable at Budapest, becoming the first GP3 Series driver, who had double win during the weekend. Habitual residents of the podium Abt, Evans and Niederhauser rose again on the podium stages, with Alex Brundle, who joined them for the first time.[57][58]
Points were awarded to the top 10 classified finishers in the race 1, and to the top 8 classified finishers in the race 2. The pole-sitter in the race 1 also received four points, and two points were given to the driver who set the fastest lap inside the top ten in both the race 1 and race 2. No extra points were awarded to the pole-sitter in the race 2.
Race 1 points
Position
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
9th
10th
Pole
FL
Points
25
18
15
12
10
8
6
4
2
1
4
2
Race 2 points
Points were awarded to the top 8 classified finishers.
† — Drivers did not finish the race, but were classified as they completed over 90% of the race distance.
Footnotes
^Arden International competed under a Australia license.
^Status Grand Prix competed under a Ireland license.
^Kotaro Sakurai ran under a Japanese licence for the first two meetings of the season before changing to a Filipino one for Silverstone.
^Marlon Stöckinger set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap. Kevin Ceccon was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^Mitch Evans set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap. António Félix da Costa was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^Mitch Evans set the fastest lap, but did not finish in the top 10, so was ineligible to be the point-scorer for the fastest lap. Matias Laine was the point-scorer instead for setting the fastest lap of those finishing in the top 10.
^ abcdHalf points were awarded for the feature race as less than 75% of the race distance had been completed.
^ ab"2012 Season Preview: Round 6, Budapest Hungary". GP3 Series. GP2 Motorsport Limited. 26 July 2012. Archived from the original on 5 December 2012. Retrieved 26 July 2012. Atech CRS GP have Argentine driver Facu Regalia driving for them in Budapest after he had raced with Jenzer in Silverstone.