The legendary Formula 1 circuit of Spa-Francorchamps in the Belgian Ardennes region was the venue for the fifth season round of the FIA Formula 3 European Championship. For German driver Fabian Schiller, the foray into the forest turned out to be particularly successful: he made great progress and scored his first-ever championship points with his ninth-place finish in race one. “I am particularly happy with the fact that I was able to make up so many positions by my own means,” he reported. In the second race, the driver of the West-Tec F3 team finished 15th . In race three, he was eliminated by an opponent and was forced to retire as a result.

For Fabian Schiller, the 7.004 kilometres long Spa-Francorchamps circuit was familiar territory as he had already raced there in Formula ADAC two years ago. “Of course, in Formula 3, speeds are even higher. The first two, three laps through Eau Rouge and up the Raidillon were quite spectacular, but at the end of the day, the track is the same, irrespective of the car, and you get used to it quite quickly. All in all, Spa is a track that every driver likes, it definitely is one of the best on the calendar.”

“In qualifying, in mixed conditions, we were caught out by red flags, which prevented us from getting better results,” Schiller continued his report. In qualifying for race 1, he ended up 21st. He added a 27th place in qualifying for race 2 and the same result in the ranking of the second-fastest laps, used to determine the starting grid positions for race three.

The first race at Spa was probably Schiller’s best race of the season to date. “I was able to overtake several drivers, the speed was there and I finished ninth, not because of other drivers retiring, but simply because we were quick enough and that really was great fun,” he said. “Being able to make up positions by my own means is a good feeling. Probably, that means even more to me than the fact that I have scored championship points, although the points are a nice reward for my efforts, too.

In race two, in which he started 25th, Schiller again made good progress, moving up ten positions to finish 15th. “Of course some retirements in front of me were helpful, but once again, we had the speed and that was good. Initially, I was in a group of drivers who were battling with each other all the time, sometimes even three abreast, and then it is not always easy to make up positions, because there simply was no room to overtake them. Then, the safety car came out and I was able to gain some positions at the restart. After that, there was another safety car intervention, so there was nothing more I could do.”

The third race was held on a drying track after a typical Spa downpour on Sunday morning. Schiller again made good progress from 24th place on the grid, had already moved up twelve positions after fives laps and looked set for another point-scoring finish. However, progress for the German, a protégé of the Deutsche Post Speed Academy talent scheme, suddenly came to a halt: on lap seven, British driver Matt Rao ran into the back of Schiller’s car at ‘Les Combes’, which meant the end of the race for Schiller. “Too bad, that really was an unnecessary move,” he commented. The stewards of the meeting shared his view of the situation and gave Rao a five places grid penalty for the next race.


Formula 3 action continues next week already with three races at the 2.3 kilometres short Norisring in Nuremberg. After Pau, this is the second street circuit on this year’s FIA Formula 3 European Championship calendar. “Of course, Norisring will be an entirely different affair and it is still uncharted territory for me. The event has a long tradition and it is one of the highlights of the season. Hopefully, I can add some more good results to my record,” Schiller says.