Written by Sean McKean
In qualifying for the Spa-Francorchamps Formula 3 round, Callum Voisin put it on pole for Rodin Motorsport – their first pole since 2022. Following him on the second row was Alex Dunne, who also continues a solid run of form.
First pole for Voisin
The start of Voisin’s season was lacklustre, to say the least.
In the first 12 races of the season, the Briton finished in the top 15 one time. Furthermore, stellar performances by teammate Joseph Loake in Monaco – where he took points in both races – aided in overshadowing the defending GB3 champion.
However, when the F3 field came to Silverstone, it all changed.
In qualifying, Voisin secured ninth place – his best qualifying result at the time. He then converted it to a fourth-placed finish in the sprint. But he wasn’t done there, as in a topsy-turvy feature race, he crossed the line to take victory on-track but was demoted to third following a penalty.
Following a round in Budapest where he finished sixth in both races, Voisin has now taken this momentum into Spa-Francorchamps for his first ever FIA Formula 3 pole.
“Yeah no, it’s pretty amazing to be honest,” Voisin said in a press conference attended by DIVEBOMB. “First pole for me in this series and my first pole for the team in quite a long time as well. So, you know, we’ve been working extremely hard to get these results and it’s nice to see that it’s finally paying off.”
The Belgian track is a famously difficult one to nail a lap on, with lap times just over two minutes long. However, he displayed all of his confidence on track.
“The last run was just making sure that sector two I nailed everything and didn’t make any mistakes,” he said.
“Yeah, I didn’t really bother with the tow, to be honest, because I just wanted to get the lap going, and I wasn’t planning on pole or anything like that, just making sure I had a solid position because we were P10 or something like that so, yeah. Overall, very happy.”
As previously mentioned, Voisin is coming off a four-race streak of points finishes. Given his slow start to the season, he attributes his newfound success to gelling with the team.
“In general, I’ve been working very hard with the engineers, we’re working well together. It was a bit of a slow start, you know, being a bit underprepared. The team [is] quite new to everything, me… myself being new to everything. Working hard and not giving up was the main thing.”
Despite having crossed the line first in the Silverstone feature race, he still achieved his first ever F3 podium in third. One would think having a victory snatched away would damage their confidence, but it was quite the opposite for Voisin.
“And I think that podium in Silverstone really gave me a good confidence boost, knowing that I can do it and that I can win in front of the other 29 drivers. Yeah, as I said, just hard work and keeping going is the main thing.”
Front row for Dunne
The driver alongside Voisin will be McLaren junior Alex Dunne.
This season, qualifying has been a struggle for the Irishman, and although he’s happy with this result, Dunne fears it’s too little, too late.
“I don’t think you can be disappointed with a front row start,” Dunne said. “I think, to be honest, as nice as it is, it’s maybe a little bit too late, and it’s probably something we could’ve or should’ve gotten earlier in the season, but a couple of things have gone wrong and we’ve been a little unlucky.
“I think this was mainly to do to just maximise on what was possible, no mistakes, make sure the car was in a good window, and just put everything together, and that’s what we did today.”
Come the chequered flag, Dunne was only one tenth away from the Rodin driver’s lap time ahead. On a track as long as Spa, one tenth doesn’t seem like that much of a margin.
However, he doesn’t seem to be overanalysing any data points later tonight.
“To be honest, it wasn’t a bad lap. I think of course when you look at the data you kinda think, ‘Oh if I did this, this, or this, the pole was there,’ but I think this car is, I would say, one of the more difficult cars to complete a perfect lap in,” the MP Motorsport driver said.
“I think as far as quali lap goes, there’s always going to be a couple things you could’ve done better, and I’m sure for Callum it was the same. I think as far as quali lap goes, it wasn’t too bad.”
For Saturday and Sunday’s races, Dunne has a great opportunity to score big points. Given he and his team’s pace in race-trim, the Irishman carries confidence into the races.
“Of course it’s nice. To finally be in a position to hopefully score some good points is a nice feeling. I think the race pace through the year has been probably stronger than our quali pace, so I think if we can do what we have done through the year, I think a good result is possible,” he concluded.
The aid of previous experience
Both Callum Voisin and Alex Dunne are graduates of GB3 – Great Britain’s premier F3-level junior championship.
Voisin spent two years in the category, notably winning the title in 2023. Dunne, meanwhile, raced last year as well, finishing second in the standings with five. Subsequently, these two are no strangers to the Spa-Francorchamps circuit. In 2023, Voisin took two poles here whilst Dunne took two victories.
For someone still relatively new to F3 machinery, Dunne sees this experience as helpful.
“I think for sure, it helps a little bit. You know, obviously everything in F3 compared to GB3 is completely different, so I think there’s still a lot you have to adapt to. But I think understanding what downforce feels like at the track is something that helps a little bit,” he said.
“I think coming in, any small bit of experience you can get, whether it be a different car, it helps… For sure, it was beneficial.”
As for Voisin, he echoes the sentiment of Dunne.
I guess especially, in my career, I’ve only ever raced in UK championships, you know. Coming into Formula 3 this year, a lot of times I’ve never been to this track or only certain bits of tracks before, so you get two or three laps in FP and that’s about it, you’re straight into quali.
“I mean, certainly, Spa is a track I’ve been to the last two years and have had success at, so you know that makes a big difference, knowing the flow of the circuit, it’s shown in Silverstone and this time in Spa. You know, it’s nice to be on pole here, especially after doing pole last year in well in GB3,” he concluded.
Callum Voisin currently sits 14th in the standings whilst Dunne sits 15th.
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