![Esteban Ocon 2017 Malaysia 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Esteban_Ocon_2017_Malaysia_1.jpg)
The 2015 GP3 Series was the sixth season of the third-tier of Formula One feeder championship and also sixth season under the moniker of
GP3 Series
The GP3 Series, or GP3 for short, was a single-seater motor racing series launched in 2010 as a feeder series for the GP2 Series, introduced by GP2 organiser Bruno Michel. GP3 followed the entire European leg of the Formula One series and the ...
, a
motor racing
Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...
feeder series that was run in support of the FIA Formula One World Championship and sister series
GP2. Thirty-one drivers represented eight teams over the course of the season's nine rounds, starting in
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
on 9 May and ending in
Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area.
...
on 29 November. It was the final season for the Dallara GP3/13-
AER P57 V6 chassis and engine package that debuted in 2013. A new Dallara-built chassis was introduced for 2016 along with a
Mecachrome
Mecachrome SAS is a precision engineering company based in France that operates in the aerospace, motor racing, energy and defence sectors.
History
Mecachrome was founded in 1937 in Colombes, France. As a precision engineering company, Mecachrom ...
normally-aspirated V6 engine.
French driver
Esteban Ocon
Esteban José Jean-Pierre Ocon-Khelfane (; born 17 September 1996) is a French racing driver who competes for Alpine in Formula One. He made his Formula One debut for Manor Racing in the 2016 Belgian Grand Prix, replacing Rio Haryanto. He move ...
(
ART Grand Prix
ART Grand Prix is a French motor racing team that competes in formula single-seaters in Europe. In 2012, it competed in the GP2 Series and GP3 Series as Lotus GP to reflect sponsorship from British sports and racing car manufacturer Lotus. The ...
) finished the campaign as the drivers' champion after a season-long battle with
Trident
A trident is a three- pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and historically as a polearm.
The trident is the weapon of Poseidon, or Neptune, the God of the Sea in classical mythology. The trident may occasionally be held by other marine ...
driver
Luca Ghiotto
Luca Ghiotto (born 24 February 1995) is an Italian racing driver who most recently raced in the FIA Formula 2 Championship for DAMS.
Career
Karting
Born in Arzignano, Ghiotto entered karting in 2008, when he took the title in the KF3 class of ...
. Despite winning only one race in 2015 – the first race in Barcelona – Ocon took fourteen podium finishes, including a run of nine successive runner-up placings over the mid-course of the season. Ocon ultimately finished eight points clear of Ghiotto, who won a season-high five races. Another five-time winner,
Marvin Kirchhöfer
Marvin Kirchhöfer (born 19 March 1994) is a German racing driver.
Career
Karting
Born in Leipzig, Saxony, Kirchhöfer began karting in 1999 and mainly raced in Germany, working his way up from the junior ranks (Bambini-B) to the KF2 category ...
, completed the championship top three, some fifty-three points behind team-mate Ocon. The performances of Ocon and Kirchhöfer were more than enough for ART Grand Prix to regain the teams' championship title they had missed out on for the first time in
2014
File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
. Five other drivers took race victories during the 2015 season;
Arden International
Arden International is a multiple formula racing team created and run by Christian Horner and Garry Horner. It currently runs teams in the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and F4 British Championship, and formerly ran in the FIA Formula 2 Championship ...
pairing
Emil Bernstorff
Emil G. J. Bernstorff (born 7 June 1993) is a British racing driver of Danish and German descent. He last raced in the 2016 GP2 Series.
Career
Karting
Born in Greater London, Bernstorff began karting in 2003 and raced mostly in the United Ki ...
and
Kevin Ceccon
Kevin Ceccon (born 24 September 1993 in Clusone) is a professional racing driver from Italy.
Career
Karting
Prior to his single–seater career, Ceccon enjoyed a long and successful spell in the junior karting ranks. In 2005 he achieved a fif ...
each took two victories, while
Jimmy Eriksson
Jimmy Eriksson (born 14 March 1991 in Tomelilla) is a Swedish race car driver who drove in the GP2 Series for Arden International in the 2016 GP2 Series
Career
Karting
Eriksson made his karting debut in 2005, at the age of fourteen. In 2008 he ...
,
Álex Palou
Álex Palou Montalbo (; born 1 April 1997) is a Spanish racing driver who drives for Chip Ganassi Racing in the IndyCar Series, where he won the 2021 series championship. He is the first Spanish racing driver to win a National Championship in ...
and
Óscar Tunjo
Óscar Andrés Tunjo (born 5 January 1996) is a Colombian racing driver.
Career
Karting
Born in Cali, Tunjo began his racing career in karting at the age of five in Colombian championships, collecting titles in various classes. In 2007 he mo ...
each took sprint race victories, which were held with partially-reversed grids – an inversion of the top eight finishers in the previous day's feature race.
Teams and drivers
The following teams competed in the 2015 season:
Driver changes
Changing teams
*
Emil Bernstorff
Emil G. J. Bernstorff (born 7 June 1993) is a British racing driver of Danish and German descent. He last raced in the 2016 GP2 Series.
Career
Karting
Born in Greater London, Bernstorff began karting in 2003 and raced mostly in the United Ki ...
switched from
Carlin to
Arden International
Arden International is a multiple formula racing team created and run by Christian Horner and Garry Horner. It currently runs teams in the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and F4 British Championship, and formerly ran in the FIA Formula 2 Championship ...
.
*
Kevin Ceccon
Kevin Ceccon (born 24 September 1993 in Clusone) is a professional racing driver from Italy.
Career
Karting
Prior to his single–seater career, Ceccon enjoyed a long and successful spell in the junior karting ranks. In 2005 he achieved a fif ...
switched from
Jenzer Motorsport
Jenzer Motorsport is an auto racing team based in Switzerland. Founded in 1993 by Andreas Jenzer the team is currently competing in FIA Formula 3, Italian F4 and F4 Spanish and has had a number of drivers who would turn out to be successful in ...
to Arden International.
*
Alfonso Celis Jr.
Alfonso Celis Enecoiz, known as Alfonso Celis Jr., (born 18 September 1996) is a Mexican former racing driver.
Career
Karting
Born in Mexico City, Celis entered karting in 2009 and raced until 2012 in the local Mexican karting championships.
E ...
, who raced for
Status Grand Prix
Status Grand Prix is a former motorsport team registered in Canada.
Team history
Based in Silverstone the team was formed in 2005 to run the A1 Team Ireland franchise in the new A1 Grand Prix series. The team's founders were former Jordan Grand Pr ...
switched to
ART Grand Prix
ART Grand Prix is a French motor racing team that competes in formula single-seaters in Europe. In 2012, it competed in the GP2 Series and GP3 Series as Lotus GP to reflect sponsorship from British sports and racing car manufacturer Lotus. The ...
.
*
Adderly Fong
Adderly Fong Cheun-yue (Traditional Chinese: 方駿宇; Pinyin: ''Fāng Jùnyǔ''; born March 2, 1990) is a Canadian-Hong Kong racing driver. His career started in 2004. He is currently competing in the Blancpain GT World Challenge Asia racing se ...
moved from Jenzer Motorsport to
Koiranen GP
Koiranen Kemppi Motorsport, formerly also known as Koiranen bros. Motorsport and Koiranen GP, is a Finnish auto racing team based in Lahti, Finland. The team currently fields a one car entry in the LMP3 class of Asian Le Mans Series and Prototype ...
.
*
Alex Fontana
Alex Fontana (born 5 August 1992 in Lugano) is a Swiss racing driver of Greek descent, currently racing as a professional driver in the GT4 European Series for Centri Porsche Ticino. He is a freelance driver with an open contract able to race f ...
left ART Grand Prix to join
Status Grand Prix
Status Grand Prix is a former motorsport team registered in Canada.
Team history
Based in Silverstone the team was formed in 2005 to run the A1 Team Ireland franchise in the new A1 Grand Prix series. The team's founders were former Jordan Grand Pr ...
.
*
Mitchell Gilbert
Mitchell Gilbert (born 10 May 1995) is a Malaysian-Australian racing driver. He has participated under both nationalities at various points in his career.
Career
Born in Kuala Lumpur, Gilbert began his racing career in 2002 in karting, whe ...
and
Jann Mardenborough
Jann Mardenborough (born 9 September 1991) is a British professional racing driver competing in the Japanese Super GT series. In 2011 he became the third (and youngest) winner of the GT Academy competition, beating 90,000 entrants. He was rewar ...
, who raced for
Trident
A trident is a three- pronged spear. It is used for spear fishing and historically as a polearm.
The trident is the weapon of Poseidon, or Neptune, the God of the Sea in classical mythology. The trident may occasionally be held by other marine ...
and
Arden International
Arden International is a multiple formula racing team created and run by Christian Horner and Garry Horner. It currently runs teams in the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and F4 British Championship, and formerly ran in the FIA Formula 2 Championship ...
respectively in 2014, raced for Carlin.
Entering GP3
*
2014 European Formula 3 Championship winner
Esteban Ocon
Esteban José Jean-Pierre Ocon-Khelfane (; born 17 September 1996) is a French racing driver who competes for Alpine in Formula One. He made his Formula One debut for Manor Racing in the 2016 Belgian Grand Prix, replacing Rio Haryanto. He move ...
stepped up to the series with
ART Grand Prix
ART Grand Prix is a French motor racing team that competes in formula single-seaters in Europe. In 2012, it competed in the GP2 Series and GP3 Series as Lotus GP to reflect sponsorship from British sports and racing car manufacturer Lotus. The ...
.
*
Zaid Ashkanani
Zaid Ashkanani (born 24 May 1994) is a Kuwaiti racing driver.
Career
Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East
Ashkanani began racing in the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East in 2012 and already in his first year he managed to get on the podium. ...
, the 2014 Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East champion, moved into the series with
Campos Racing
Campos Racing is a Spanish motor racing team, founded by former Formula One driver Adrián Campos. The team has been successful in Formula Three and the GP2 Series.
History
After retiring from racing, Campos formed his own team at the end of 19 ...
.
*
Aleksander Bosak graduated from the
Formula Renault 2.0 Alps series, joining Arden International.
*
Seb Morris
Sebastian "Seb" Morris (born 30 November 1995) is a professional racing driver from Marford, who lives in Chester, Cheshire. He won the 2017 British GT Championship. He also won the 2017 Sunoco Challenge which gave him the prize drive in the Num ...
stepped up to the series from
Formula Renault 2.0 NEC, joining Status Grand Prix.
*
Matt Parry
Matthew Parry (born 14 January 1994) is a British racing driver.
Career
Karting
Born in Cardiff, Parry entered karting in 2006, when he finished second in the Hoddesdon Kart Club Championship Minimax. His biggest success was in the last year ...
graduated to the series with Koiranen GP, having competed in various Formula Renault series in 2014.
*
ADAC Formel Masters
ADAC Formel Masters was an ADAC sanctioned open wheel racing series based in Germany, held annually from 2008 to 2014. It was replacement of the local Formula BMW championship. The first season was in 2008 and is the main feeder series to the ATS F ...
driver
Ralph Boschung
Ralph Boschung (born 23 September 1997) is a Swiss racing driver set to compete in the FIA Formula 2 Championship for Campos Racing. He is a race winner in the GP3 Series and has previously competed in Formula 2 from to , for Campos, MP Motors ...
graduated to the series with Jenzer Motorsport.
*
Antonio Fuoco
Antonio Fuoco (born 20 May 1996) is an Italian racing driver who currently serves as a development driver for the Scuderia Ferrari Formula One team and is a junior driver for the Competizione GT. He previously competed in Formula 2 for Charouz ...
, who finished fifth in the
2014 European Formula 3 Championship, moved into the series – as a
Ferrari Driver Academy
Ferrari Driver Academy is an initiative from Formula One team Scuderia Ferrari to promote young talent inside its own organisation, with several drivers being selected and funded by the team, being under long-term contracts. Some notable former ...
member – with
Carlin.
* The top three drivers from the
2014 Euroformula Open Championship competed in the GP3 Series in 2015.
Sandy Stuvik
Sandy Nicholas Stuvik ( th, แซนดี้ นิโคลัส สตูวิค; born 11 April 1995), also referred to as Sandy Kraokaew Stuvik, is a Thai racing driver.
Career Karting
Born in Phuket to a Norwegian father, Martin Stuvik, ...
,
Artur Janosz and
Álex Palou
Álex Palou Montalbo (; born 1 April 1997) is a Spanish racing driver who drives for Chip Ganassi Racing in the IndyCar Series, where he won the 2021 series championship. He is the first Spanish racing driver to win a National Championship in ...
made their débuts with Status Grand Prix, Trident and Campos Racing respectively.
*
2014 Formula Renault 3.5 Series driver
Óscar Tunjo
Óscar Andrés Tunjo (born 5 January 1996) is a Colombian racing driver.
Career
Karting
Born in Cali, Tunjo began his racing career in karting at the age of five in Colombian championships, collecting titles in various classes. In 2007 he mo ...
moved to the GP3 Series with Trident.
Leaving GP3
* 2014 series champion
Alex Lynn
Alexander George Lynn (born 17 September 1993) is a British racing driver. He most recently competed in Formula E, driving for Mahindra Racing in the 2021 season, winning the second race of his home ePrix in London. Lynn has also competed full- ...
left the series to compete in
GP2 with
DAMS
A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, ...
.
* 2014 series runner-up
Dean Stoneman
Dean Colin Stoneman (born July 24, 1990) is a British racing driver. Stoneman was the 2010 Formula Two champion.
Career
Like many drivers, Stoneman began his career in karting. He made his first steps in single-seaters in 2006 when he compete ...
left the series to compete in
Formula Renault 3.5 with DAMS, after joining the
Red Bull Junior Team
The Red Bull Junior Team is a driver development program run by the energy drink company Red Bull GmbH in an attempt to identify potential future racing stars in open wheel racing. The similar Red Bull Driver Search, now ended, was an American ...
.
*
Kang Ling
Kang Ling (凌康 born 14 March 1997) is a Chinese racing driver.
Career
Karting
Ling began karting in 2010 and raced in Asia for the majority of his career, winning 2012 Asian Karting Championship x30 Senior class. Other highlights in his kart ...
left the series to compete in the
European Formula 3 Championship
The FIA Formula 3 European Championship was a European Formula Three(F3) auto racing competition, organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). After one season of the FIA Formula 3 International Trophy, the FIA revived th ...
with
kfzteile24 Mücke Motorsport.
*
Patric Niederhauser
Patric Niederhauser (born 8 October 1991 in Münsingen) is a professional racing driver from Switzerland and a current Audi Factory Driver. He was the champion of the Formula Abarth Italian Series.
Career
Karting
Niederhauser began karting in ...
left the GP3 Series and moved to the
Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe with the Raton Racing team.
*
Santiago Urrutia
Santiago Urrutia Lausarot (born 30 August 1996) is an Uruguayan racing driver. He currently competes in the World Touring Car Cup, driving for Cyan Performance Lynk & Co. He formerly competed in Indy Lights, and was the 2015 Pro Mazda series ch ...
left the series to compete in the
Pro Mazda Championship
The USF Pro 2000 Championship Presented by Cooper Tires, formerly known as the Star Mazda Championship, Pro Mazda Championship, and later Indy Pro 2000 Championship, is an Open-wheel car, open-wheel racing series serving as the third step on th ...
with
Team Pelfrey
Team Pelfrey is an American racing team in the F1600 Championship Series and F2000 Championship Series. The team is owned by Dale Pelfrey.
Indy Racing League (1998–2000)
John Paul Jr. replaced Danny Ongais as driver for the 1998 Indianapolis 5 ...
.
*
Robert Vișoiu
Robert Vișoiu (born 10 February 1996 in Pitești) is a former racing driver from Romania.
Career
Karting
At the age of six, Vișoiu first sat behind the wheel of a kart, the beginning of his karting career. He raced primarily in his native Roma ...
left the series to compete in GP2 with
Rapax
Rapax Team was an Italian motor racing team. The team's history can be traced back to when the GP Racing team was founded in 1997, and also to when Piquet Sports was created in 2000 by triple world champion Nelson Piquet. In 2007, Piquet Sports an ...
.
*
Dino Zamparelli
Dino Zamparelli (born 5 October 1992) is a British racing driver, born to English parents and with Italian ancestry. His father Mike was a F1 Powerboat World Championship racer.
Career
Early career
Zamparelli began karting at the age of seven, ...
left the series to compete in the
Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain
The Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain is a multi-event one-make motor racing series that takes place in the United Kingdom for the Porsche 911 GT3. Being the fastest and most successful single marque GT championship in the UK, the Carrera Cup ...
with Parr Motorsport.
*
Richie Stanaway
Richie Stanaway (born 24 November 1991) is a racing car driver from New Zealand.
Career New Zealand
Born in Tauranga, Stanaway was originally from a motocross background, before making the switch to speedway at the age of twelve. Following tha ...
left the series to compete in
GP2 with
Status Grand Prix
Status Grand Prix is a former motorsport team registered in Canada.
Team history
Based in Silverstone the team was formed in 2005 to run the A1 Team Ireland franchise in the new A1 Grand Prix series. The team's founders were former Jordan Grand Pr ...
.
Team changes
* Following the bankruptcy of the
Marussia F1
The Marussia F1 Team (subsequently Manor Marussia F1 Team) was a Formula One racing team and constructor which was based in Banbury, Oxfordshire and then later Dinnington, South Yorkshire in the United Kingdom and competed with a Russian licen ...
team,
Marussia Manor Racing
Manor Motorsport Ltd, currently trading as Manor Endurance Racing Ltd is a British motor racing company that was formed in 1990 by former single-seater champion John Booth. Manor has participated as a team in many motorsport disciplines since ...
decided to leave the
GP3 Series
The GP3 Series, or GP3 for short, was a single-seater motor racing series launched in 2010 as a feeder series for the GP2 Series, introduced by GP2 organiser Bruno Michel. GP3 followed the entire European leg of the Formula One series and the ...
. With no replacement team found, the number of teams competing in the 2015 season was reduced to eight.
*
Campos Racing
Campos Racing is a Spanish motor racing team, founded by former Formula One driver Adrián Campos. The team has been successful in Formula Three and the GP2 Series.
History
After retiring from racing, Campos formed his own team at the end of 19 ...
entered the series, replacing
Hilmer Motorsport
Hilmer Motorsport was a German racing team established in 2013 by Franz Hilmer. The team first raced in the GP2 Series, starting in 2013, replacing Ocean Racing Technology.
Hilmer joined the GP3 Series in 2014 with support from Force India, rep ...
.
Calendar
In December 2014, the full 2015 calendar was revealed with nine events.
Calendar changes
* The series was scheduled to run in support of the
German Grand Prix
The German Grand Prix (german: Großer Preis von Deutschland) was a motor race that took place most years since 1926, with 75 races having been held. The race has been held at only three venues throughout its history; the Nürburgring in R ...
, at a venue that, at the time of the calendar's publication, had not yet been decided. With the cancellation of the German Grand Prix, the planned GP2 meeting was rescheduled to
Bahrain International Circuit
The Bahrain International Circuit ( ar, حلبة البحرين الدولية, Ḥalba al-Baḥrayn ad-Dawliyya) is a motorsport venue opened in 2004 and used for drag racing, GP2 Series (now FIA Formula 2), and the annual Formula One Bahrai ...
in the
2015 6 Hours of Bahrain
The 2015 6 Hours of Bahrain was an endurance sports car racing event held on the Grand Prix Circuit of the Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain on 19–21 November 2015, and served as the eighth and last race of the 2015 FIA World Endur ...
weekend.
Results
Championship standings
;Scoring system
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
;Race 2 points
Points were awarded to the top 8 classified finishers.
Drivers' championship
;Notes:
*† — Drivers did not finish the race, but were classified as they completed over 90% of the race distance.
Teams' championship
Footnotes
References
External links
*
{{Use dmy dates, date=October 2014
GP3
GP3 Series seasons
GP3
GP3 Series
The GP3 Series, or GP3 for short, was a single-seater motor racing series launched in 2010 as a feeder series for the GP2 Series, introduced by GP2 organiser Bruno Michel. GP3 followed the entire European leg of the Formula One series and the ...