Pedro Clerot described his maiden FIA Formula 3 (F3) victory as “unbelievable” after claiming the Feature Race 1 win at the new Madring circuit in Madrid.
The Rodin Motorsport driver converted his strong pace into his first victory in the championship, finishing ahead of Taito Kato and Tuukka Taponen in a race that featured an early Red Flag and a Safety Car restart.
“It is unbelievable. I have no words to describe what I am feeling right now,” Clerot said during the FIA F3 post-Feature Race 1 Press Conference, attended by Pit Debrief.
“We knew it was going to be all about the start and together with the team we came up with a very good plan. We made the changes we needed from the race this morning and maximised everything within our control.
“It was a bit of a messy race and I am glad everyone is okay after the crash. We managed things well and then pushed flat out to the end. I am really happy to take the win and I think we deserve it.”
Making the move on Kato into Turn 1
Clerot made the perfect start from P3, immediately moving alongside Kato and taking the lead into Turn 1 of the 2026 F3 Madrid Feature Race 1.
“The start was really good. We knew it would be all about the launch and I felt very confident already on the Formation Lap. I told my engineer we should keep everything the same,” he explained.
“When the lights went out I got a great launch with no wheelspin. I was already side-by-side with Taito into Turn 1 and from there it was about making the corner.
“After the Red Flag and two Safety Car restarts it was a little trickier, but the car was absolutely flying. The team gave me an amazing car and I enjoyed every moment out there.”
The victory was made even more significant by the circumstances surrounding Clerot’s season. After celebrating on the podium, the Brazilian revealed the meaning behind his unusual phone celebration.
“It was the phone celebration,” Clerot said. “It has not been exactly the year we wanted, but I knew this moment would come sooner or later. There has been a lot of noise around not performing and today we proved people wrong. We showed we are here to fight and achieve great things.”
Looking ahead to Feature Race 2 on Sunday
Clerot will start P3 in the final race of the Madrid weekend, with another opportunity to add to his points tally.
“Let’s see. Tuukka had a fairly relaxed race today. I am aiming to score good points and capitalise on any opportunities that come,” he said.
“The car was very quick today and I think we can improve even more for tomorrow, but for now I want to enjoy this moment.”
Benefits of the F3 in-season test
The result also saw Clerot become the first FIA F3 Feature Race 1 winner at Madrid, a distinction he said was made possible by the additional preparation Rodin Motorsport had at the circuit.
“Well, amazing. I think we had a two-day test here and obviously we got to go around the track a bit more than the other categories and I felt really good from that moment onwards,” he said.
“I enjoyed a lot the track, I enjoyed a lot being close to the walls. I’m just very happy. I wouldn’t expect coming into this weekend that we were going to fight for victories.
“I knew we were going to have good pace. Since we practised, I understood immediately that we had a really strong car and from then on it was just about keeping it cool, maximising what I could control. I think we did that really well also in both qualifiers, obviously not ending the way I wanted them to, but it’s motorsport, things like this happen.
“I’m just really happy that we can take our first win of the season, a fourth podium for us, so quite a successful season so far in terms of podiums even though it’s a bit up and down.
“But I’m just really happy also for the team, the amount of effort they put in. They were fixing my car until 4am, so this one is much deserved for them.”
Several close battle for his maiden victory across the 2026 F3 season
The win came after several near-misses throughout the season, with Clerot highlighting strong performances at Spa, Monza and the Red Bull Ring.
“Obviously I think just enjoying the moment,” he said when asked about the confidence the result could provide for next season.
“Like you said, we had a few strikes, let’s say, battling for the win. Spa could have been Monza, leading the race, having the engine issue, Red Bull Ring another really strong weekend, P2 in the Sprint and also P4 in the Feature Race.
“But I knew it was a matter of time. Like I said, we got to the weekend and understood very quickly that we had the pace to be fighting. Obviously you try not to think about that and you try to think of what you can control and all the situations that are on your side.
“Obviously I left the team to do their job with the car and they did it, and I did my job on track, which I think is the most important thing.
“It’s been a long time since I won a race, almost a year, so I’m just really happy to be back on the top step, especially doing it on a track this hard and obviously a first win here in Madrid.”
First victory with emotional significance for Clerot
The emotional significance of the victory was evident on the podium, where Clerot celebrated with his team after finally converting his pace into a victory.
“I think as a Brazilian we are very emotional people,” he said. “I get this comment quite often that we show a lot of emotion and I think all of the work we put in this year, not only, we had really tough moments this year, completely out of our control.
“I knew it’s really difficult once you go through moments like that because you know you didn’t do nothing wrong but still the result is not there.
“Obviously Monza was a really harsh weekend on us but I kept my head high. I understood those things were not in my control, not on my side, and what I could control I did very well.
“And then obviously hearing the Brazilian anthem, with all the history Brazilians have in this championship, I’m just very happy to add my name on the list of winners.
“Obviously seeing Rafa, Gabi go through the ranking and demonstrate really good results, I’m just very happy to be putting my name up there together with theirs and it’s just an amazing feeling.
“Obviously the team deserves it so much. Seeing my mom and my sister here with me, my mom was saying I had a feeling I had to stay for this weekend, she was going to go back to Brazil. My dad flew back after Monza, so I spoke to him a little bit before the podium. I’m just very happy. We deserve this result.”
Making a strong start on Sunday
With the final race of the Madrid weekend still to come and several championship positions yet to be decided, Pit Debrief asked Clerot about balancing risk and reward at the start, particularly with the front-runners starting near the top of the grid.
“Obviously we saw today that that was a key thing. I’m not fighting for P3 in the championship, I think, at the moment, so I’m not going to be really worried about that tomorrow, just about enjoying the last race, you know.
“I think we understood exactly what we have to do, so try to repeat what I did today. Tomorrow obviously starting P3 gets a little bit tricky but, like I said before, I think we can capitalise on opportunities that we get.
“The car is really good. I feel really good driving as well, so yeah, just want to be focused on doing the job and see what we can achieve.”
Defining corners at the Madring
Clerot was also asked about La Monumental, one of the defining corners of the new Madrid circuit, describing it as an “iconic” section of track.
“Yeah, like Tuukka said, it’s a very iconic corner. You’re already going out of a sequence high speed and you’re going through such a banking. Reminds me a little bit of Zandvoort but obviously a bit more here.
“Not easy physically as well. It’s a point where the steering gets quite heavy and you just have to pray you don’t have any snaps, because if you don’t catch them… But yeah, very special track in general and that corner is obviously very special.”
The lack of overtaking opportunities was another talking point following the F3 Madrid Feature Race 1, with Clerot agreeing that the street circuit presented a significant challenge for drivers looking to make moves.
“Yeah, street tracks in general are quite difficult to overtake. You already are very on the limit. Obviously not a lot of space to go around.
“In the Sprint Race we saw Taito doing a very good job obviously of overtaking. But yeah, in the Feature Race now I didn’t see much going on.
“Obviously it’s very difficult to follow, especially in the last sector when you have such high-speed corners. I don’t think it’s very easy to get back and obviously we have back-to-back DRS zones, but still I don’t think maybe it’s quite enough.
“It’s not like Monaco. I think it’s easier to overtake than Monaco for sure, but still not an easy one.”
