Mercedes junior Andrea Kimi Antonelli will skip Formula 3 and make the step up to Formula 2 in 2024 with Prema after winning the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine title.

Last year, Antonelli won both the Italian and ADAC Formula 4 championships with Prema in only his first season of single-seater racing.

This season, Antonelli has been competing in the FRECA series, where he has won five races to clinch the title with two rounds remaining at Zandvoort.

Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff had previously hinted that the two-time European karting champion could progress straight from FRECA to F2 and now it’s been confirmed.

Antonelli will continue his association with the Prema squad that has taken Charles Leclerc (2017), Mick Schumacher (2020), and Oscar Piastri (2021) to championship glory.

The 17-year-old will get behind the wheel of an F2 car for the first time at the post-season test in Abu Dhabi. The next season will also see F2 introduce a new car.

Antonelli said he was “very happy for this opportunity”, admitting that he is aware of the “huge jump” that will come from moving to FRECA to F2.

“I’m very happy for this opportunity,” Antonelli expressed.

“From Formula Regional to Formula 2, it will be a huge jump. I’m aware that it will be very challenging because the level is really high there.

“It will be a new car, for me and the others as well, but it’s still going to be tough.

“I don’t want to set expectations, I will try to learn as much as possible in testing to be ready for the first race, have fun as always, and do a good job.

“I’m delighted to continue with Prema as I started my single-seater career with them and they are my second family. I love working with them.”

Meanwhile, Prema team boss Rene Rosin said: “We are proud to welcome Kimi to our FIA Formula 2 team.

“He has been with us since the very beginning so not only do we know him well, but we are also particularly proud of what he was able to achieve in his first two years full-time in single-seaters.

“Kimi is a gifted racer and a great team player, so we cannot wait to see what the 2024 season will bring and we are focused on helping him to make the step in the smoothest possible way.”

Prema Racing announced today that it is retaining the services of driver Dino Beganovic for an assault on the FIA Formula 3 World Championship in 2024.

A Ferrari Academy driver with ties with Prema that go back to 2020, Beganovic will be furthering his single-seater career with the squad that knows him best.

So far the Swede has competed with Prema in the 2020 Italian Formula 4 Championship, finishing third in the standings, as well as the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine in 2021, a series in which he became champion in 2022.

This year, in his maiden F3 campaign, Beganovic secured four podium finishes en route to sixth place in the Drivers’ standings.

“We always enjoyed working with Dino,” said Prema Team Principal Rene Rosin.

“He is a quick and knowledgeable driver and works really well in our team’s environment.

“With the experience gained this year, he will make his challenge even more solid and by what we saw so far in testing, there is great promise for sure.

“We are very happy to continue the path we started together in 2020, and we look forward to seeing what the future will bring.”

Beganovic is delighted to continue his partnership with Prema, which will enter its fifth year in 2025.

“I’m super happy to confirm that I’m staying for another year with my team, PREMA Racing, in Formula 3,” he said.

It’s very nice to stay with the team as it will be our fifth year together.

“I cannot wait to continue the work we have done together throughout the years, starting from Formula 4.

“Our targets are clear and have been set high, but they are achievable.

“We will continue to focus on the testing sessions to prepare as much as possible for the first race next year.”

The 10-round 2024 F3 calendar commences in Bahrain on February 29 – March 2.

Prema’s Oliver Bearman took victory in the Formula 2 Feature Race at Monza, which was blighted by several Safety Car incidents.

Bearman was followed home by Ayumu Iwasa and Theo Pourchaire, with championship contender Frederik Vesti crashing out early on.

Championship leader Pourchaire lined up on pole for the first time since Bahrain, alongside Bearman on the front row, with Saturday’s Sprint Winner esti starting in eighth.

On a glorious sunny Sunday morning at Monza, Vesti needed to go on the offensive to continue to close the gap to Pourchaire at the top of the standings, but would the Prema driver be able to pull it off?

After Saturday’s Sprint, Pourchaire’s lead was cut to just nine points over Vesti in the Championship, 175 points to 166.

It was a good reaction from Pourchaire at the start and he secured the lead into the opening chicane, but Bearman held the inside line at Turn 3 and made his move to take his lead at Della Roggia.

There was then disaster for Vesti who was squeezed and spun round by Roman Stanek going out of Della Roggia and into the first Lesmo, ending the championship challenger’s race and bringing out the Safety Car.

Stanek had just lost out to Victor Martins at Della Roggia and his aggressive defence against Vesti will have huge implications for the championship fight.

For his part in the incident, Stanek was handed a five-second time penalty.

Contributing to the stoppage was Zandvoort Feature winner Clement Novalak, who also spun off into the gravel trap on the opening lap.

With the hazard cleared, racing resumed at the end of Lap 3 and Bearman comfortably led the field to green in front of Pourchaire and Martins.

Bearman’s focus then turned to stretching away from Pourchaire to clear DRS range, with Pourchaire’s goal transforming into capitalising on Vesti’s misfortune by taking as many points as possible with only one more round of the season remaining after the F2 action in Italy.

DRS was enabled at the start of Lap 6, with Pourchaire still within seventh-tenths of leader Bearman.

Further down the order, there was a spin for Arthur Leclerc and his stranded DAMS car prompted another Safety Car on Lap 7, prompting a flurry of action in pit lane as the drivers elected to take their mandatory pit stops and get rid of their super soft tyres.

Jehan Daruvala, Jack Doohan and Iwasa were on the alternate strategy having started on the medium compound tyre and cycled through to the front as a result.

Bearman was then put under investigation for an unsafe release as the Prema driver squeezed Pourchaire toward the pit wall when exiting his pit box, but no further action was taken upon review.

Racing got back underway at the end of Lap 11 with the alternate strategy runners tasked with defending against the rest of the pack, but there was a high-speed crash at the back of the field on the start-finish straight involving Zane Maloney on the restart prompting another Safety Car period.

The Rodin Carlin driver was tagged from behind by Roy Nissany and clattered into the barriers, but luckily was able to get out of the car with Nissany later be handed a drive-through penalty for his part in the incident.

Daruvala, Doohan and Iwasa continued to fight at the front whilst race direction took their time to call the Safety Car into action, with Iwasa winning out in the three-way tussle.

Iwasa and Daruvla then elected to pit under caution, meaning that Bearman inherited the lead once again behind the Safety Car, ahead of Doohan and Pourchaire.

Racing resumed at the end of Lap 15 and Bearman held the lead well, with Pourchaire taking the challenge to Doohan, who was backing up the pack and handing a big advantage to Bearman out in front.

Pourchaire then took second off of Doohan at the start of Lap 18 and set about chasing Bearman for the lead with 12 laps remaining.

Martins then had an issue with his DRS, which got stuck open, prompting him to head to the pits after the black and orange flag was shown to the ART driver.

The Safety Car was then brought out for the fourth time as Kush Maini was tagged by Jak Crawford whilst going for a move around the outside and was sent crashing out with a puncture and front wing damage.

This eroded Bearman’s 2.5-second advantage out front, meaning he had to fight once again when racing resumed at the end of Lap 26.

Bearman nailed the restart and Iwasa snatched second from Pourchaire.

There was then another incident on the penultimate lap as the Virtual Safety Car was called with Crawford stranded at the side of Ascari, after being tagged by Stanek.

The VSC then became a full and fifth Safety Car period, bringing an end to the race under cuation.

Bearman took the feature win (his fourth victory in his rookie season) ahead of Iwasa (who climbed 13 places) and Pourchaire in second and third.

Enzo Fittipaldi took fourth, ahead of Dennis Hauger in fifth and Doohan in sixth.

Daruvala took seventh with Amaury Cordeel in eighth and Ralph Boschung and Stanek completed the top-10.

Pourchaire now holds a 25-point lead over Vesti in the Championship, with the F2 season now on hiatus until the season finale in Abu Dhabi in November.

Formula 2’s practice session gave us a first look at a slightly modified Jeddah Corniche Circuit, with changes made to improve safety and racing.

Jeddah debutant Victor Martins set the early pace with a 1:46.411 but the second lap times quickly saw that change as drivers began to push.

Bahrain Sprint Race winner Ralph Boschung enjoyed a short stint atop the timing charts until Victor Martins reclaimed the top spot, improving repeatedly.

At the halfway point in the session, Martins had established himself as the clear pacesetter in the field. His best lap time of 1:43.739 saw him half a second clear of second-place Dennis Hauger.

A snap at the tightened Turn 22 and 23 chicane saw Arthur Leclerc take to the extended run-off area. A mistake that surely would have ended his running last year.

Ollie Bearman managed to jump to the top of the timesheets ahead of teammate Frederik Vesti. Prema are looking to improve on a disappointing weekend last time out in Bahrain which saw both cars struggle with degradation.

A spin for Amaury Cordeel brought out a red flag with 5 minutes left on the clock. A tap on the wall sent the car into a spin that stranded the Virtuosi in the middle of the track.

The session would not restart leaving the Prema duo fastest in the session. Victor Martins finished third, showing some impressive pace throughout practice. Kush Maini and Dennis Hauger rounded out the top five.

Championship leader Theo Pourhcaire had a quiet session finishing in seventeenth place. The Frenchman had a difficult weekend in Jeddah last season and will need to find some pace in order to prevent a repeat in 2023.

18-year-old French driver Doriane Pin told MotorsportWeek.com that she’s excited about making her debut in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

“I am really excited about this next step in my career,” she said.

“Driving in LMP2 with PREMA this year is a great opportunity for me. I can’t wait to make my first season in the FIA World Endurance Championship and to start working with such a strong team.”

While this may seem obvious, Pin is noteworthy because of her age and gender. She’s only 19, and as may be evident, is female — not the norm in racing circles. But, despite her youth, racing against drivers potentially double her age or more, the teenager is excited about the season ahead.

“The season promises to be exciting and challenging, can’t wait to fight for it,” she told MotorsportWeek.com in an email exchange.

Pin’s rise to one of motorsport premier series has been nothing short of meteoric. Just three years ago, aged 16, she made her debut in Renault Clio Cup France. The next year she graduated to the Le Mans Cup, racing in the GT3 class, along with occasional races in GT World Challenge and Ferrari Challenge Europe.

That same year, she started her association with Iron Lynx and the Iron Dames squad, the latter of which was formed to increase the participation of female drivers in motorsport and sportscars.

In 2022, though, Pin really stepped up, dominating Ferrari Challenge Europe — winning nine out of 14 races on the way to the title — and winning the European Le Mans Series season finale at Portimao.

Perhaps the biggest win of her career so far, though, was winning the Gold Cup class of the 2022 Spa 24 Hours, along with teammates and fellow Iron Dames, Rahel Frey, Michelle Gatting, and Sarah Bovy.

For 2022, the French teenager has been picked up by Prema to race in the second of its two Oreca 07-Gibsons in LMP2, alongside Mirko Bortolotti and Daniil Kvyat. She previously drove a prototype for the first time at the Bahrain rookie test at the back end of last year, and while the times were not released, she must have impressed, as Prema hired her quickly for 2023.

Indeed, she got off to a flying start at the Prologue, setting not only her car’s fastest lap, but the third fastest lap in LMP2 overall, a 1:50.860, with only F1 race winner Robert Kubica and LMP2 veteran Filipe Albuquerque ahead of her.

“I’m really really happy about the prologue,” said Pin in a press statement issued by her team.

“I enjoyed every single moment and it feels so special to be here for my first official test. We worked very well since the beginning with the team and my teammates. The sensation is good, and we can say it was a productive test.

“We are there, the pace is competitive, and we look forward to the next week, my first LMP2 weekend. The Sebring track is amazing, and I cannot wait for the race,” she concluded.

Ex-F1 racer Daniil Kvyat will contest this year’s World Endurance Championship with Prema.

Kvyat will share the #63 Oreca LMP2 machine with Mirko Bortolotti and Doriane Pin.

Kvyat started 110 grands prix for Toro Rosso/AlphaTauri and Red Bull, taking three podium finishes, across 2014-20.

He also held test/development positions with Ferrari and Alpine either side of his race stints.

Kvyat last year made a handful of outings in NASCAR and has now sealed a deal to compete for Prema in WEC.

“It’s a very exciting part of my career to join Prema and compete in the FIA World Endurance Championship together,” said Kvyat.

“The team is very notorious for previous success, and it’s now looking to conquer the world of Endurance racing as well.

“I’m very excited to be part of it and very motivated to give my absolute best to try to put ourselves in the top positions.”

Prema has added Filip Ugran and Bent Viscaal to its #9 entry alongside the already-confirmed Juan Manuel Correa.

Andrea Caldarelli will replace Correa on the occasions where the Formula 2 calendar clashes with WEC’s schedule.

Prema will return to the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2023 with a two car LMP2 effort, the Italian team has announced.

Prema debuted in the FIA WEC last year with a single Oreca 07-Gibson LMP2 entry, impressing rival teams, finishing second at Le Mans. It also entered an Oreca 07-Gibson into the European Le Mans Series, winning the title in its first season of prototype racing.

One of the drivers from that victorious campaign, Juan Manual Correa, will be included as part of the team’s lineup, with the Ecuadorian-American in the team’s #9 car. He began his car racing career with Prema in 2016, and has seen success with the team in the junior formulae of single-seater racing.

The 23-year-old said: “It’s super exciting to be taking the next step up the endurance racing ladder alongside my Formula 2 commitments in 2023. ELMS was a new challenge for me last year and one that I really enjoyed, so thank you to PREMA for keeping me on board as they step up to this new two-car entry in FIA WEC.

“We have a very cool calendar and there are some tracks I’m really looking forward to racing at for the first time, so I’m looking forward to another exciting season with the team,” he added.

Meanwhile, in the other car, #63, ‘Iron Dame’ Doriane Pin will step up to prototype racing after the 18-year-old impressed the endurance racing world in her multi-series endeavours last year, finishing 10th in GTE-Am at Le Mans with her fellow Iron Dames, plus winning the final ELMS race of the season and winning their class at the 24 Hours of Spa.

The young French racer said of the opportunity to step up into prototypes: “I am very happy and excited to join PREMA for the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2023 as an Iron Dame. I have been working hard for this and I am very delighted for such opportunity, and I can’t thank the team enough for their ongoing support. I am looking forward to starting the season in Sebring and to reaching our common goals together with the team.”

The other four drivers, split across both cars, will be named at a later date.

PREMA have confirmed Mercedes Formula 1 junior driver Frederik Vesti as their new driver for the 2023 Formula 2 season, in a move that sees him join Oliver Bearman after the Briton’s signature with the team for his debut campaign.

The Dane has scored five podiums in his first F2 season this year with ART, three of them materialising in feature races. His excellent performances helped him to an ninth-placed finish in the championship.

The arrival of Bearman and Vesti follows the departure of Red Bull juniors, Dennis Hauger and Jehan Daruvala.

Vesti’s former ART team are yet to finalise their plans for next season, with Formula 3 champion, Victor Martins, keen to remain with the French team in F2.

“To join Prema Racing for the 2023 Formula 2 season is great news for me,” Vesti said. “I have known Prema since 2019 when we won the Formula Regional European Championship together.

“Prema is an amazing place to be at and in my opinion, gives me the best opportunity to fight for the F2 title in 2023! I have big dreams and Prema is the team I believe that I can achieve those dreams with.

“There is no doubt that 2023 F2 is going to be incredibly close, but I will give my everything to be fast and consistent throughout the season.”

Rene Rosin, Prema Team Principal added: “We are delighted to welcome Frederik back. He is a quick and hard-working driver, which we already had the chance to appreciate in 2019 and 2020.

“We are obviously looking forward to joining forces again and seeing what we will be able to achieve together next season. With his skills and the experience he has matured, we expect him to be a contender and we are determined to support him the best way we can.”

	Team	No.		Drivers
	MP Motorsport	1 2		Dennis Hauger Jehan Daruvala
	Rodin Carlin	3 4		Enzo Fittipaldi Zane Maloney
	ART Grand Prix	5 6		Theo Pourchaire Victor Martins
	Prema Racing	7 8		Frederick Vesti Oliver Bearman
	Hitech Grand Prix	9 10		Jak Crawford Isack Hadjar
	DAMS	11 12		Ayumu Iwasa Arthur Leclerc
	Virtuosi Racing	14 15		Jack Doohan Amaury Cordeel
	PHM Racing by Charouz	16 17		Roy Nissany Brad Benavides
	Trident	20 21		Roman Stanek Clement Novalak
	Van Amersfoort Racing	22 23		Richard Verschoor Juan Manuel Correa
	Campos Racing	24 25		Kush Maini Ralph Boschung

Zak O’Sullivan’s Formula 3 adventure will continue with PREMA next season, having made his debut with Carlin in 2022.

The Williams-backed driver finished 11^th in the standings this year, claiming two podiums at Silverstone and Zandvoort, having taken a pole position at the former.

Having moved Ollie Bearman up to Formula 2, PREMA have now captured the services of O’Sullivan, who recently tested an Aston Martin Formula 1 car at Silverstone.

READ MORE: Boschung remains with Campos for 2023 F2 season

The 19-year-old is “excited” to take on the new challenge, with the team that has won three of the last four teams’ championships in the series.

“I am really excited to be joining PREMA for the 2023 FIA Formula 3 season,” he said in a press release.

“It will be a new environment for me, but PREMA’s history says all we need to know so I’m confident we can have a good year together. 

“The first impressions from testing were good, and the pace was pretty strong. I was still learning the car as there are a few differences, and I focused on getting to know all the team and the engineers, as well as learning some Italian as well!”

Sven Smeets, sporting director at Williams, is looking forward to seeing his driver jump into his new surroundings.

“We’re looking forward to seeing Zak compete in his second season of Formula 3 with PREMA and working alongside them to develop and highlight Zak’s talents on and off the track,” added the Belgian.

“Zak is an integral part of our Driver Academy since joining at the beginning of 2022 and has shown his capabilities throughout his rookie season in F3. Following a productive test with PREMA, I’m sure he’ll adapt to his new surroundings quickly and hit the ground running in 2023.”

	Team	No.		Drivers
	Prema Racing	1 2 3		Paul Aron Dino Beganovic Zak O'Sullivan
	Trident	4 5 6		Leonardo Fornaroli Gabriel Bortoleto Oliver Goethe
	ART Grand Prix	7 8 9		Kaylen Frederick Gregoire Saucy Nikola Tsolov
	MP Motorsport	10 11 12		Franco Colapinto Mari Boya Jonny Edgar
	Hitech Grand Prix	14 15 16		Sebastian Montoya Gabriele Mini Luke Browning
	Van Amersfoort Racing	17 18 19		Caio Collet Rafael Villagomez Tommy Smith
	Rodin Carlin	20 21 22		Hunter Yeany Oliver Gray Ido Cohen
	Campos Racing	23 24 25		Pepe Martí Christian Mansell Hugh Barter
	Jenzer Motorsport	26 27 28		Nikita Bedrin Taylor Barnard Alex Garcia
	PHM Racing by Charouz	29 30 31		Sophia Floersch Roberto Faria Piotr Wiśnicki

Oliver Bearman will compete for PREMA in the 2023 FIA Formula 2 Championship, the Italian squad has confirmed.

The Briton raced for PREMA in FIA Formula 3 this year and ended the campaign third in the Drivers’ Championship, just seven points down on title-winner Victor Martins.

Bearman is part of the Ferrari Driver Academy.

The 17-year-old is the second driver to be confirmed on the 2023 F2 grid after Dennis Hauger, who is racing for PREMA this year, announced that he will move to MP Motorsport.

“I’m really excited to continue another year with the PREMA family, this time in F2,” Bearman said. “I’m really happy with how my first season went in F3.

“It was a really nice introduction and I felt like the team coached me throughout the year really well.

“I will continue to work hard over the winter with the Ferrari Driver Academy, in order to be fully prepared for 2023.

“It will be a tough challenge, but everyone works so hard and I’m really looking forward to the challenge. I’m already really excited for the test in Abu Dhabi and for the first round of 2023 in Bahrain.”

Bearman took one victory and seven further podiums en route to his third place finish in F3 this year.

PREMA team boss Rene Rosin added: “We were amazed by how quickly and successfully Ollie transitioned from F4 to Formula 3 racing.

“He is a really talented driver, and while he will be making his first steps in the FIA Formula 2 Championship, we are confident he will improve race by race with the support of our team and the Ferrari Driver Academy as well.

“It won’t be easy, because the step from F3 to F2 is considerable, but we are confident in his potential for the season ahead.”

	Team	No.		Drivers
	MP Motorsport	1 2		Dennis Hauger Jehan Daruvala
	Rodin Carlin	3 4		Enzo Fittipaldi Zane Maloney
	ART Grand Prix	5 6		Theo Pourchaire Victor Martins
	Prema Racing	7 8		Frederick Vesti Oliver Bearman
	Hitech Grand Prix	9 10		Jak Crawford Isack Hadjar
	DAMS	11 12		Ayumu Iwasa Arthur Leclerc
	Virtuosi Racing	14 15		Jack Doohan Amaury Cordeel
	PHM Racing by Charouz	16 17		Roy Nissany Brad Benavides
	Trident	20 21		Roman Stanek Clement Novalak
	Van Amersfoort Racing	22 23		Richard Verschoor Juan Manuel Correa
	Campos Racing	24 25		Kush Maini Ralph Boschung