After a lacklustre 2024 season—finishing 10th in the Formula Regional Oceania Championship and 21st in the Formula Regional European Championship—Nicola Lacorte stepped up to FIA Formula 3 for 2025, joining DAMS Lucas Oil alongside Matías Zagazeta and fellow rookie Christian Ho.
However, his F3 campaign has quickly unravelled into a disaster. Despite the fresh start, Lacorte failed to score a single point across the opening five rounds. Now, to make matters worse, he faces a ban for Round 6 in Spielberg following a chaotic string of incidents in Monte Carlo and Barcelona.
Track limits violations muddy a damp Melbourne debut
After finishing P24 in the opening Free Practice session of the 2025 Melbourne F3 Round, Nicola Lacorte entered Qualifying fully aware of the significant pace improvement required to secure a stronger starting position. However, the then-17-year-old Italian struggled from the outset. In the early stages of the session, he remained several seconds off the pace. Subsequently, a later attempt at improvement was invalidated due to a track limits violation. Although he returned to the circuit for a final flying lap, a Red Flag—triggered by Prema Racing’s Brando Badoer crashing into the barriers at Turn 7—halted the session, jeopardising his Qualifying progress. Another Red Flag, this time brought out when Ho stopped on track, eliminated any opportunity for progress.
Nevertheless, the Saturday Sprint Race proved marginally more forgiving. Despite the challenging conditions and a series of incidents involving other drivers, Lacorte managed to stay out of trouble and brought the car home in P17. Meanwhile, his DAMS Lucas Oil teammates Christian Ho and Matías Zagazeta finished P15 and P5 respectively, highlighting a significant performance gap within the DAMS Lucas Oil team.
Unfortunately, Lacorte could not replicate that modest recovery in Sunday’s Feature Race. Despite a cleaner start, he failed to make any meaningful gains and ultimately crossed the line in P24. The race witnessed three retirements, including that of Ho, yet Lacorte remained unable to capitalise on the attrition ahead.
As a result, Lacorte departed the 2025 Melbourne F3 Round 25th in the Drivers’ Championship, without a single point to his name.
Struggles continue in Sakhir
However, Lacorte did enjoy a marginally better start to his 2025 Sakhir F3 Round, securing P25 in Qualifying and outpacing his team-mate Matías Zagazeta. This early improvement appeared to offer a glimmer of progress. Nevertheless, unlike in Melbourne, the young Italian failed to capitalise on the misfortunes of others to gain positions in the Sprint Race. Instead, he found himself unable to reach the chequered flag.
After surviving a minor clash with AIX Racing’s Javier Sagrera, Lacorte’s race unravelled on Lap 12. He sustained damage to the rear of his car following a second incident, this time involving ART Grand Prix’s Laurens van Hoepen. Consequently, he was forced to retire from the race.
In the Feature Race, Lacorte managed to avoid further trouble and finished P20. However, with no points scored for the second consecutive weekend, his tally remained at zero. As a result, he slipped further down the order, leaving Sakhir 28th in the Drivers’ Championship standings.
Progress undone by penalty in Imola
After two disappointing rounds, Nicola Lacorte arrived at Imola fully aware of the urgent need to turn his season around. To his credit, he delivered a glimpse of his potential during Friday’s Qualifying session, securing P18—his best starting position of the season—and finishing ahead of both DAMS Lucas Oil team-mates, Christian Ho and Matías Zagazeta.
Encouragingly, Lacorte carried that momentum into Saturday’s Sprint Race. Although he lacked the outright pace to challenge for the points, he executed a composed drive to finish P15, marking a clear step forward in performance.
However, any signs of progress quickly unravelled during Sunday’s Feature Race. Initially classified P19 at the chequered flag, DAMS Lucas Oil’s Lacorte was later handed a ten-second time penalty by the Stewards, which demoted him to P25. The penalty stemmed from a move on Prema Racing’s Brando Badoer at Turn 2. According to the Stewards’ report, Lacorte—driving Car 29—attempted an overtake on Car 1 but carried excessive speed into the corner, leaving the track at the exit and rejoining ahead after Turn 3. The Stewards ruled that it was unclear whether the move would have succeeded had Car 29 remained within track limits. As such, failing to relinquish the position constituted gaining a lasting advantage.
The breach was found to violate Article 27.3 of the FIA Formula 3 Sporting Regulations, and the standard ten-second penalty was applied in accordance with Article 12.4.1.h of the FIA International Sporting Code.
Ultimately, Lacorte left Imola with another point-less weekend. With his tally still at zero, he found himself 27th in the Championship.
Misfortune and chaos in Monte Carlo
The 2025 Monte Carlo F3 Round proved to be Nicola Lacorte’s most disastrous weekend of the season to date. The DAMS Lucas Oil driver failed to finish either race and accumulated seven penalty points, underscoring a campaign rapidly losing momentum.
Black-flagged in Qualifying
Lacorte’s weekend began in dramatic fashion during Friday’s Qualifying session. After coming to a stop at Turn 1, the DAMS Lucas Oil driver received physical assistance from marshals at 11:34:30 before rejoining the circuit. This action directly breached Article 31.4 of the FIA Formula 3 Sporting Regulations, which explicitly prohibits any driver from continuing in the session once a car has received physical assistance outside the pit lane.
As a result, the Stewards issued a Black Flag to Lacorte. Nevertheless, he remained on track and proceeded to complete multiple laps. He failed to respond to the black flag, which had been clearly displayed on timing monitors and the GPS track map in accordance with Appendix H, Article 2.5.4.1.d of the International Sporting Code.
Subsequently, the Stewards issued a strong penalty. They disqualified Lacorte from the session, deleted all of his lap times, and added five penalty points to his licence. Although he had not recorded a time within 107% of the fastest lap, the Stewards granted him permission to start both races from the back of the grid. The team successfully demonstrated that he had shown adequate pace during Free Practice.
Opening-lap collision in the Sprint Race
Lacorte’s 2025 Monte Carlo F3 Sprint Race ended almost as soon as it began. On Lap 1, he attempted an ambitious outside overtake on Car 21, fielded by RAM Racing, at Turn 7. While Lacorte reached the apex slightly ahead and therefore held the right to racing room, the Stewards concluded that he failed to leave sufficient space for his rival on the inside.
Both cars collided and retired from the race. The Stewards placed full responsibility for the incident on Lacorte. Although he had earned room on the outside, he failed to account for the spatial limitations of Monaco’s narrow streets. By unnecessarily pinching his competitor, he caused a collision in a section of the track where mutual respect was essential. Consequently, the Stewards applied the standard penalty for causing a collision: a ten-second time penalty, converted into a five-place grid drop for the next race, and two additional penalty points. Lacorte’s total for the season rose to seven.
Mechanical failure ends Feature Race early
Unfortunately, Sunday’s Feature Race provided no redemption. Starting from the back of the grid due to his disqualification and accumulated penalties, Lacorte struggled to find rhythm or make meaningful progress through the field. On Lap 29, a suspension issue forced him to retire from the race. This marked his second non-finish of the weekend and his fourth overall DNF of the season.
A championship slipping away
By the end of the Monte Carlo round, Lacorte remained 27th in the Drivers’ Championship with zero points. The weekend, defined by regulatory infractions, driving misjudgements, and mechanical unreliability, further highlighted the downward trajectory of his 2025 campaign.
Barcelona breakdown: penalty chaos continues
If Nicola Lacorte had hoped for redemption in Barcelona following the catastrophe of Monte Carlo, he faced bitter disappointment. Across another fraught weekend, he added eleven more penalty points to his superlicence, received two separate time penalties for Safety Car infringements, caused another collision, and earned a one-race suspension. His campaign, already under scrutiny, veered deeper into disarray.
Qualifying calamity: collision and consequences
Lacorte qualified 29th after a controversial incident during Friday’s Qualifying session. At 15:26, Car 29 collided with Car 26 (Jose Garfias) on the straight between Turns 9 and 10. The incident resulted in a breach of Appendix L, Chapter IV, Article 2(d), and Article 12.2.1.h of the 2025 International Sporting Code.
During the Stewards’ hearing, Lacorte admitted responsibility. He explained that while on a preparation lap, he became frustrated with Garfias, whom he accused of brake-testing and defending too aggressively. In a moment of poor judgement, Lacorte moved towards Car 26 and misjudged the distance between them, resulting in contact. Garfias, for his part, stated that he had merely been warming tyres and had applied light braking to let Lacorte through. He left adequate space and had shown no malicious intent.
The Stewards deemed Lacorte wholly responsible. They condemned his retaliatory behaviour, stressing that such actions have no place in the championship. As a result, they issued a ten-place grid drop for both the Sprint and Feature Races and added four penalty points to his licence, raising his total to eleven.
Modest progress from the back in the Sprint Race
Despite starting last due to the penalty, Lacorte managed to climb to P19 in the Sprint Race. Although the result offered a modest improvement over previous performances, it did little to offset the broader narrative of poor discipline and repeated misjudgement.
More penalties in the Feature Race
Starting once again from P30, Lacorte made little impression during Sunday’s Feature Race. He retired on Lap 25 due to an undisclosed issue but was still classified P26. However, his driving conduct during the race triggered a string of disciplinary actions.
A race ban earned
The first came after he breached Article 40.7 of the FIA Formula 3 Sporting Regulations by failing to remain above the ECU-defined minimum delta time in eight consecutive marshalling sectors—specifically from Sector 10 to Sector 15, including Safety Car Line 1 and Sector 16. The Stewards issued a standard ten-second stop-and-go penalty and added three points to his licence, bringing his season total to 14.
This infringement automatically triggered a suspension. Under Article 39.3 of the 2025 FIA F3 Sporting Regulations, any driver who accrues 12 penalty points must serve a one-race ban. Because Lacorte’s twelfth point was incurred during the Feature Race, he was rendered ineligible for the following round. The FIA confirmed his suspension and subsequently removed twelve points from his licence, reducing his active total to two.
That figure, however, did not last long.
Further breaches and final tally
Later in the race, Lacorte received a second delta time penalty—this time for breaching the same regulation over nine consecutive marshalling sectors, from Sector 8 through Sector 15 and at Safety Car Line 1. As the infraction occurred in the final three laps, the ten-second stop-and-go penalty converted to a 30-second time addition. The Stewards imposed three more penalty points, bringing his post-suspension tally to five.
The final blow came on Lap 18, when Lacorte collided with Brando Badoer in Car 1 at Turn 1. While attempting a late overtake, Lacorte misjudged his braking and rear-ended Badoer after the latter moved to defend the inside line. Though the Stewards acknowledged the late defensive move as a contributing factor, they found Lacorte wholly responsible. He received a ten-second time penalty and one additional penalty point, raising his active total to six.
Following the Barcelona round, Lacorte remained 28th in the Drivers’ Championship with zero points.
A campaign in crisis
At the midpoint of the 2025 FIA F3 season, Nicola Lacorte stands at a pivotal stage in his early career. His record so far presents a difficult narrative: zero points, multiple retirements, and a one-race suspension. However, statistics alone do not fully encapsulate the challenges and learning opportunities faced by a rookie driver in a highly competitive field.
While Lacorte’s 2025 F3 campaign with DAMS Lucas Oil has been marred by penalties and on-track errors, it also represents a formative period of growth. Many drivers have endured similarly turbulent starts before developing the consistency required for success. For Lacorte, the remaining rounds offer a chance to reset his approach, reduce the frequency of mistakes, and demonstrate improved discipline and racecraft.
There have been glimpses of potential. A clean performance in the Imola Sprint Race and a solid qualifying result in Sakhir indicate that progress is possible. With guidance from his team and a renewed emphasis on composure, Lacorte can still regain control of his trajectory.
The path forward demands focus and resilience. F3 offers few opportunities for recovery, but it also rewards those who adapt and persevere. The manner in which Lacorte responds in the second half of the season will help shape not only his 2025 F3 campaign but also his future in motorsport.
