2025 F3 Post-Season Test | Jerez | Giusti fastest as MP Motorsport shine on opening day of Jerez testing

The 2025 F3 post-season test roared into life at Circuito de Jerez, with MP Motorsport making a bold statement. Alessandro Giusti topped the morning session with the quickest lap of the day, while teammate Tuukka Taponen closed out the afternoon on top. Across both sessions, drivers took advantage of clean running, gathered valuable data, and showed flashes of early promise as they adapted to new teams and machinery.

Giusti sets the benchmark in the morning

The morning session began with installation laps and initial efforts led by Tuukka Taponen, who set a strong early benchmark of 1:31.556. Mattia Colnaghi briefly followed close behind, but a red flag—caused by James Wharton stopping at Turn 11—paused the action.

Once the session resumed, Freddie Slater put Trident at the top momentarily with a 1:31.355. However, Ugo Ugochukwu responded soon after, posting a 1:31.223 to go fastest for Campos Racing. Yet, as track conditions improved, Alessandro Giusti stepped up with an impressive 1:30.732, the only lap in the 1:30.7s. It was a commanding time that no other driver could match for the rest of the day.

Slater did improve and slotted into second place, also breaking into the 1:30s, while Colnaghi held onto third. Meanwhile, Van Amersfoort’s Jesse Carrasquedo and MP’s Taponen completed the top five.

Morning Session Standings

1. Alessandro Giusti – MP Motorsport – 1:30.732 – 38 laps
2. Freddie Slater – Trident – 1:30.943 – 23 laps
3. Mattia Colnaghi – MP Motorsport – 1:31.036 – 35 laps
4. Jesse Carrasquedo – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:31.087 – 25 laps
5. Tuukka Taponen – MP Motorsport – 1:31.143 – 34 laps
6. Ugo Ugochukwu – Campos Racing – 1:31.223 – 34 laps
7. Noah Stromsted – Trident – 1:31.250 – 19 laps
8. Ernesto Rivera – Campos Racing – 1:31.406 – 32 laps
9. Christian Ho – Rodin Motorsport – 1:31.530 – 21 laps
10. Matteo de Palo – Trident – 1:31.613 – 26 laps
11. Pedro Clerot – Rodin Motorsport – 1:31.622 – 22 laps
12. Hiyu Yamakoshi – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:31.700 – 28 laps
13. Brando Badoer – Rodin Motorsport – 1:31.890 – 23 laps
14. Nicola Lacorte – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:31.912 – 23 laps
15. Louis Sharp – PREMA Racing – 1:31.938 – 32 laps
16. Théophile Nael – Campos Racing – 1:32.037 – 38 laps
17. Yevan David – AIX Racing – 1:32.047 – 27 laps
18. Brad Benavides – AIX Racing – 1:32.056 – 25 laps
19. James Wharton – PREMA Racing – 1:32.099 – 31 laps
20. Taito Kato – ART Grand Prix – 1:32.118 – 21 laps
21. Jin Nakamura – Hitech TGR – 1:32.168 – 30 laps
22. Bruno del Pino – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:32.177 – 23 laps
23. Maciej Gladysz – ART Grand Prix – 1:32.201 – 22 laps
24. Gerrard Xie – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:32.246 – 20 laps
25. Michael Shin – Hitech TGR – 1:32.462 – 28 laps
26. Enzo Deligny – PREMA Racing – 1:32.541 – 33 laps
27. Fionn McLaughlin – Hitech TGR – 1:32.577 – 23 laps
28. Kanato Le – ART Grand Prix – 1:32.587 – 22 laps
29. Fernando Barrichello – AIX Racing – 1:32.724 – 25 laps
30. Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:33.270 – 23 laps

Taponen answers back in the afternoon

After the lunch break, Campos Racing took control of the early afternoon running. Ugo Ugochukwu again showed pace, going fastest with a 1:32.214, followed by teammates Ernesto Rivera and Théophile Nael. However, much of the session shifted towards longer runs, with fewer attempts at outright pace.

That changed when red flags halted running twice—first for Rivera at Turn 8 and later for Noah Stromsted at Turn 2. As the session resumed, Alessandro Giusti came close to topping the times again, setting a 1:32.101, only 0.030s behind Ugochukwu. Christian Ho then nudged him to third with a 1:32.229.

However, with less than 10 minutes to go, Taponen made a late push. The Finnish driver logged a 1:31.980 to go fastest, giving MP Motorsport both session-topping times for the day. Giusti slotted into second, continuing his consistent form, while Gerrard Xie secured third for DAMS Lucas Oil with an impressive late effort.

Afternoon Session Standings

1. Tuukka Taponen – MP Motorsport – 1:31.980 – 38 laps
2. Alessandro Giusti – MP Motorsport – 1:32.101 – 40 laps
3. Gerrard Xie – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:32.195 – 26 laps
4. Ugo Ugochukwu – Campos Racing – 1:32.214 – 39 laps
5. Christian Ho – Rodin Motorsport – 1:32.229 – 36 laps
6. Mattia Colnaghi – MP Motorsport – 1:32.253 – 40 laps
7. Yevan David – AIX Racing – 1:32.296 – 33 laps
8. Louis Sharp – PREMA Racing – 1:32.383 – 36 laps
9. Matteo de Palo – Trident – 1:32.393 – 41 laps
10. Ernesto Rivera – Campos Racing – 1:32.410 – 32 laps
11. Théophile Nael – Campos Racing – 1:32.416 – 38 laps
12. Hiyu Yamakoshi – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:32.425 – 40 laps
13. Michael Shin – Hitech TGR – 1:32.499 – 25 laps
14. James Wharton – PREMA Racing – 1:32.504 – 35 laps
15. Jesse Carrasquedo – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:32.504 – 35 laps
16. Enzo Deligny – PREMA Racing – 1:32.521 – 32 laps
17. Maciej Gladysz – ART Grand Prix – 1:32.645 – 30 laps
18. Bruno del Pino – Van Amersfoort Racing – 1:32.688 – 39 laps
19. Freddie Slater – Trident – 1:32.716 – 35 laps
20. Brando Badoer – Rodin Motorsport – 1:32.771 – 38 laps
21. Taito Kato – ART Grand Prix – 1:32.805 – 29 laps
22. Jin Nakamura – Hitech TGR – 1:32.808 – 29 laps
23. Noah Stromsted – Trident – 1:32.887 – 30 laps
24. Nicola Lacorte – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:32.935 – 28 laps
25. Fionn McLaughlin – Hitech TGR – 1:32.969 – 28 laps
26. Pedro Clerot – Rodin Motorsport – 1:32.978 – 38 laps
27. Fernando Barrichello – AIX Racing – 1:32.982 – 36 laps
28. Kanato Le – ART Grand Prix – 1:33.232 – 15 laps
29. Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi – DAMS Lucas Oil – 1:33.503 – 29 laps
30. Brad Benavides – AIX Racing – 1:34.110 – 42 laps

MP Motorsport lead the day

Day 1 at Jerez ended with MP Motorsport firmly in control. Alessandro Giusti’s morning benchmark remained the fastest of the day, while Tuukka Taponen’s afternoon surge demonstrated the team’s strength across both sessions. Campos Racing showed consistent form through Ugochukwu and Rivera, and Gerrard Xie turned heads with an eye-catching top-three time in the afternoon. Meanwhile, several rookies and returning drivers used the day to build confidence and mileage ahead of what promises to be a competitive 2026 season.

Drivers return to the Spanish circuit for a second and final day of testing on Wednesday, beginning at 09:00 local time.