Campos Racing’s Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak crossed the line victorious to claim his second win of the season at the F3 Hungarian GP. Currently P14 in the Drivers’ Standings, the Thai driver has accumulated 48 points and two wins to his name. In recent rounds, Inthraphuvasak has found some form during Sprints. Most importantly, Inthraphuvasak’s victory has kept Campos firmly in contention for the Teams’ Championship, narrowing the gap to just 8 points. Returning to the top step of the podium, the Thai driver reflected on his composed drive during the post-sprint press conference with Pit Debrief and other media outlets.
Tyre management was key to securing win
Despite leading from start to finish, the Thai driver described it as a tough race. This year, Inthraphuvasak explained how managing tyres has proven especially difficult—particularly on a track like the Hungaroring where tyre degradation plays a major role.
“Yeah, thank you very much. It was a tricky race overall, I think. This year with the mediums, it’s very hard to manage the tyres, especially in a track where degradation is a big thing.”
As Inthraphuvasak saw a charging Ugo Ugochukwu in his mirrors, the Thai driver knew he needed to strategically use his tyres smartly. By keeping AIX Racing’s James Hedley within DRS range, Inthraphuvasak believed it made it more difficult for Ugochukwu to mount a challenge. After managing his race smartly, the victory satisfied the Thai driver.
“So yeah, I tried to manage as best as I could. I saw Ugo [Ugochukwu] in P3 mid-race coming very fast, so I just tried to do the best I can. At first I was trying to keep [James] Hedley in the DRS so that he maybe could find it a bit harder to overtake him. But yeah, in the end I kept pushing and I think we managed the race pretty well, so it came over with a win.”
Balancing management and pushing
The Thai driver believes he managed his tyres well—preserving just enough for the final laps. Nailing both safety car restarts, Inthraphuvasak noted the gap he managed to pull and was overall happy with the race he executed.
Inthraphuvasak said: “Yeah, I mean, it was kind of a guess for me how hard to push in the beginning, and I think I did quite a good job to be on the safe side of things, so that I had tyres in the last three laps. And after the safety car restart, we managed to pull a very big gap in the last lap, so I think we did quite a good job.”
More pace inQualifying
Reflecting on Qualifying, Inthraphuvasak admitted he was disappointed with P12, feeling regretful that he hadn’t maximised the car’s potential. However, he was pleased to have capitalised on the reverse-format today and to continue his strong recent form.
“Yeah, I’m a bit disappointed yesterday with Qualifying, honestly. I left a lot on the table and I think we had a lot of pace coming into the weekend before practice, so I’m disappointed with 12th in [Qualifying] yesterday. But yeah, I think I took good opportunities today and the past few rounds have been really good for me.”
Highlighting his recent Qualifying successes, the 19 year-old finds positives in his consistent form since the break. Looking ahead, Inthraphuvasak hopes to take the next step and fight for a Feature Race podium at Monza.
“I think for the past four or five [Qualifying’s] after the break, we’ve been always inside the top 12, so really positive. And yeah, trying to maybe do a bit better in Monza and get on the Feature Race podium next time around.”
Tyre degradation big factor in tomorrow’s race
Whilst both safety car periods helped tyre management, Inthraphuvasak noted that tyre degradation was more significant this year. Looking ahead to the Feature Race, the Thai driver sees tyre strategy as a key factor and believes starting from P12 presents him with a lot of overtaking opportunities.
“19 laps. It was okay to manage. We had two safety cars. So it helped overall a bit. But yeah, for sure. I felt that deg was a lot more of a factor than compared to last year. With the mediums now.”
Inthraphuvasak continued: “Yeah, I think it plays a big factor in tomorrow’s race. Obviously, it’s a longer race. So we have to manage a bit more, but it also opens a lot of opportunities for me, starting from P12. And a lot of opportunities to overtake at the end of the race as well when other people are struggling with tyres.”
Important points to end season in top ten
Currently P14 in the Drivers’ Standings, he believes his tough start to the season was lost opportunities to maximise points from the beginning. Inthraphuvasak reflected positively on his recent form, encouraged by the pace they’ve been able to show. With momentum on his side, the Thai driver explained he remains focused on taking things a step at a time and to hopefully end his season on a high.
“Yeah, for sure. We’re far from where we want to be in the standings. I think we started off having a really tough start to the season. A lot of mistakes and problems that stopped us from getting a lot of points in the beginning.”
“But yeah, I think we’re showing good performance in the past few rounds now. And the pace is looking super strong. So right now, I’m just focused race by race to do the best job I can to finish the year as strong as possible.”
Navigating both safety car restarts
When asked by Pit Debrief about how they navigated both safety car restarts, Inthraphuvasak came into the race expecting safety cars. Having prepared his restart strategy if he found himself in the lead, the 19 year-old was confident in his restart execution.
“Yeah, for sure. Coming into the race, I knew there was going to be a few safety cars expecting it already. So I kind of had a plan of where I would do the restart if I was in the lead. And yeah, I think both of my restarts were all right, were not too bad, I think. It’s pretty hard here to follow in the last sector anyways in the dirty air. So as long as I get a clean restart, I think I can manage in Turn 1 pretty well.”
Repeated success at the Hungaroring
Inthraphuvasak is no stranger to finding repeated success at the Hungarian GP. In 2024, the Thai driver was part of AIX Racing’s monumental one-two finish where he claimed his maiden F3 podium. Since then, the Thai driver has claimed two wins to add to his F3 silverware. Inthraphuvasak finds enjoyment in racing around the Hungaroring. Although he’s claimed two of his three podiums at the circuit, the Thai driver doesn’t consider it his strongest track.
“It’s a track I enjoy a lot. I think it’s a technical track and really enjoyable in [Qualifying]. A bit hard to overtake around here, since there’s not many straights. But yeah, I wouldn’t say it’s my strongest track.”
He credited last year’s success to AIX’s ability to dial in a strong setup, which allowed him to capitalise. Having showcased solid pace again this year, he’s pleased with what he accomplished today.
“I think last year got a good result here, because the team was in a really good window and made the most of it. And then this year, pace was strong as well. Wasn’t the best [Qualifying] yesterday, but I think I managed the race pretty well here. So yeah, I would take this result.”
