2025 marked 19-year-old James Wharton’s first full F3 season as he joined ART Grand Prix. Previously, the Australian driver gained experience in Formula 3 by joining Hitech Pulse-Eight for two race weekends the year before. In 2024, the Australian became the runner-up in the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine. In 2022, Wharton began his single seater journey and finished fifth in the Italian F4, UAE, and ADAC Formula 4 Championship.
He finished the Formula 3 season as 18th in standings with 25 points, including one Sprint Race victory around the Red Bull Ring in Austria.
Started on a sour note
His debut season has been underwhelming and not lived up to what the rookie hoped for. The season opener, and his home race, in Australia started on a sour note. The ART driver qualified P22 followed by a DNF during the Sprint race. Lap 3 saw the driver collide with Rafael Câmara as his race came to a premature end. As he was found to be at fault for the incident, Wharton was hit with a five-place grid penalty, forcing him to line up P26 in the feature race. Despite this, the racer managed to fight his way up to P21, gaining five places.
Next round took place in Bahrain where the young driver showed more potential. After qualifying P24 in a chaotic session, the Sprint Race saw Wharton battle his way through plenty cars ahead. His grit gained him 11 positions and he finished the Sprint in P13. The feature race was another moment to forget as he suffered another collision. The heavy damage left him without much hope and he ended the race P29.
Round 3 in Imola started on a rough note with Wharton not being able to participate in Free Practice as he suffered mechanical issues. After qualifying P20 and finishing the Sprint P22, the weekend looked tough to improve. However, the Australian had a solid recovery drive in the Feature Race as he managed to battle his way to P13. The racer showed great pace and confidence, hoping to build a stronger momentum.
Bounced back stronger
The season turn around came around the narrow streets of Monte Carlo. While the Monte Carlo streets are unforgiving, the racer’s first time around them led to his best finish yet. Wharton struggled through practice, Qualifying, and the Sprint, where he was at the back of the grid in P22. However, the Feature Race was where it turned around for him. Despite starting P22, the Australian relied on his quick pace, the mistakes of the cars in front, and his overtaking skills to improve. In a chaotic race, he climbed his way from P22 to P11.
The Australian’s first points came in Round 5 around the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. Wharton had a strong Qualifying, initially being P12 which would mean a reverse grid pole in the Sprint Race. However, as Roman Bilinski got his lap reinstated, it pushed Wharton down a place to P13. When the lights went out, the rookie had a great launch off the line. He quickly climbed from P13 to P6. Eventually, it became difficult to hold onto his P6 spot and he finished the race P8. The Feature Race came with its own set of challenges, as Wharton ended up P16 as a result of a 5-second penalty for exceeding track limits. Still, he came away from the round with his first points.
The highpoint of Wharton’s season was Round 6 in Spielberg. The ART driver qualified P12, putting him on reverse grid pole for the Sprint Race. Wharton had a strong launch from pole, defending his position from Giusti and Wurz behind. After the Safety Car was deployed on Lap 13 and went in on Lap 18, Wharton capitalised off a late restart. With a narrow 0.6 seconds lead, Wharton roared across the finish line to take his maiden F3 victory. The Feature Race was another roller coaster for the Australian as he finished the race P14.
Highs and lows
While he began the Silverstone weekend with disappointment, it turned around in the Feature Race. The Australian begun P20 but managed to fight his way up to an impressive P6 finish. The tricky conditions and mistakes further up allowed Wharton to move up the field with confidence.
Spa was a round to forget for the rookie as he came away with no points and stayed in P20 throughout the weekend. Next came Hungary which was a roller coaster for the rookie. After having a rough time in Free Practice, Qualifying saw him finish with a strong P10. The Sprint originally saw Wharton finish with a disappointing P22. However, after the chaotic Sprint several post-race penalties were applied, this promoted Wharton up to P5. The Feature Race was not as lucky for the 19-year-old as he suffered another retirement.
Future plans
Last round of the season was in Monza and was underwhelming for the youngster. The Sprint had him line up P22 and finish P19 before post-race penalties bumped him up to P16. The Feature Race ended with similar disappointment as he ended the season with another P16.
After his success in FRECA, Wharton had hoped for a better rookie season in F3. The Australian had several shining moments this season, showing his quick pace and determination. However, his season was equally filled with disappointment and mistakes. On the bright side, Wharton will be continuing his F3 journey as he will return to the grid with PREMA. The 19-year-old will be someone to watch next season as his growth as a racing driver will look to improve.
