Trident Team Manager Giacomo Ricci has heaped praise on Rafael Câmara after the Brazilian clinched the 2025 FIA F3 Championship in dominant fashion at the Hungaroring. With a controlled, clinical Feature Race victory from pole position at the 2025 Hungarian GP, Câmara secured the crown with one round still remaining—extending Trident’s remarkable record to three consecutive F3 titles.
The performance capped off a season defined by speed, resilience, and racecraft under pressure, and Ricci made no effort to hide his pride in both the driver and the entire Trident team.
Dominant title, difficult circumstances
The win in Budapest was more than just another victory—it was a statement of control under pressure. Câmara had to fend off the consistent challenge of Mari Boya, not just in Sunday’s Feature Race, but from the opening moments of the weekend. The two title protagonists went toe-to-toe in qualifying, with the Trident driver narrowly edging out his Campos rival by just 0.008s to claim pole.
“It’s special for us, for the team, winning the title with one round left, with a new car—it’s an amazing feeling,” Ricci said. “In my opinion, he was the quickest this year. He was on top in every condition.”
Despite Câmara’s impressive stats—five pole positions, four Feature Race wins—Ricci emphasised that the road to the title had not been straightforward. The early part of the season saw Trident score fewer points than expected in Sprint Races, allowing drivers starting further down the grid to remain in contention.
“The downside on our side, especially in the first part of the season, we did not score points in the Sprint Race,” he explained. “That’s why the guys that were usually qualifying P12, P13, P9, they were scoring points over us, so the gap was staying quite close. But the last two rounds, being able to score in both, opened up the gap a bit more.”
Mastering pressure in Budapest
The defining moment of the weekend came in the opening stages of the Feature Race. With Boya in DRS range and pushing hard through the opening corners, Câmara needed to keep a cool head and manage his tyres—something he executed with remarkable calmness.
“Today he did an exceptional job,” said Ricci. “He was under pressure from Boya, especially in the first part of the race. Speaking with him, he was keeping things under control and keeping the tyres alive, but Boya was extremely close and the DRS was available.”
Ricci continued: “But once he opened the gap, he managed things perfectly on the restarts. He was always on it, he did not make a mistake, and in the last phase of the race he was managing and keeping the tyres alive.”
Misfortune, not mistakes
While Câmara appeared dominant through most of the season, he endured a pair of difficult weekends in Monte Carlo and Silverstone, scoring only seven points across both. However, Ricci refused to criticise his driver’s form, instead pointing to the unpredictable nature of F3 and external variables that made an impact.
“In my opinion, his form never went down,” Ricci insisted. “It was simply sometimes small things can make a difference. The track time is limited, finding traffic in qualifying, people are backing off in front of you even if you organise the strategy perfectly.”
He argued that Câmara’s underlying speed never faded, even when results did not follow. Ricci also pointed to one particular highlight from early in the season to demonstrate just how quickly Câmara could adapt.
“For me, here and Spa we were back on top with him. His overall talent is impressive. I remember in Melbourne, he didn’t know the track—of course, he did the simulator—but he didn’t know the track, and from the second push lap: P1. Then he did pole position in Qualifying. It’s like for him, sometimes things come quite easy. It’s like for him, sometimes thing come easy.”
Qualifying heroics in Budapest
The F3 Qualifying session at the 2025 Hungarian GP was another moment of high drama. Race control deleted Câmara’s first lap time track limits, and on his second effort, he could only manage fifth. As he prepared for a final push, he unexpectedly ended up in the pitlane, forcing Trident to completely change plans on the fly. The team acted quickly, switching to an improvised strategy based on Boya’s positioning.
“Of course, we were ready to do the classic out and push,” Ricci said. “But then unfortunately he had been pushed inside the pitlane just before starting the push lap. At the moment he opened the radio and said, ‘I am coming to the pitlane,’ we were quite surprised. Then, we decided quickly to go to Plan C, to align him with the strategy being used by Campos.”
It was a risky gamble, especially in the closing minutes of Qualifying when red flags and traffic are common. But Câmara, once again, delivered when it mattered most.
“It was quite risky because statistically towards the end of Qualifying, it’s easier to find a Red Flag or other problems. With like four warm-up laps before starting a push lap, being able to deliver a fantastic lap—he was on pole position. It was very tight because Boya was extremely close, but again, he collected the two points and it was impressive.”
Eyes still on the prize
Despite locking in the 2025 F3 Drivers’ Championship at the Hungarian GP, Ricci and Câmara are not done yet. The Teams’ Championship remains undecided heading into the final round at Monza, and TRIDENT are aiming for a clean sweep.
Câmara has already promised to give it everything after the summer break, and with the kind of form he showed at the 2025 Hungarian GP, the team will go to Italy full of confidence.
For Ricci, Câmara’s title was not simply a result of speed—it was a product of maturity, adaptability, and relentless commitment. As Trident celebrate yet another F3 crown, there’s no doubt the young Brazilian has made a lasting impression on the paddock—and likely, many more to come.
