Eurocup-3: Bianca Bustamante begins the season with top-20 finish
- LIAM REDFORD
- May 4
- 7 min read
Bianca Bustamante began her Eurocup-3 season with a top-20 finish at Circuit Paul Ricard in a weekend where the Palou Motorsport driver made an encouraging start to her main championship campaign, as she battled confidently within the midfield on her way to securing a best result of 18th.
Bianca Bustamante began her Eurocup-3 season with a top-20 finish at Circuit Paul Ricard in a weekend where the Palou Motorsport driver made an encouraging start to her main championship campaign.
Bustamante battled confidently within the midfield on her way to securing a best result of 18th in Saturday’s sprint race. After an unfortunate retirement in race one, Bustamante bounced back to complete two positive races to conclude the opening round of the championship as she continues to adapt to the Dallara 326 machine.
Bustamante’s move into the Eurocup-3 Championship marked a crucial step in her development following an encouraging season in the GB3 Championship. Driving for Elite Motorsport in 2025, Bustamante achieved seven top-15 finishes during her rookie season which saw her compete at regional F3 level. Therefore, Bustamante built upon her experiences from F1 Academy, where she was twice a race winner, as she continues her climb up the single seater ladder.
In preparation for her main Eurocup-3 Championship campaign, Bustamante raced in the first edition of the Eurocup-3 Spanish Winter Championship which took place in February and March of this year. Nine races were held across three rounds which took place across the Iberian Peninsula, providing the young drivers with an ideal opportunity to gain additional familiarity with both the car and circuits. Bustamante secured two top-15 results, including a best finish of 13th at Portimao, while displaying promising speed despite her inexperience at this level of competition.
With a capacity grid of 30 cars at Circuit Paul Ricard, Bustamante was aiming to establish herself as midfield contender from the outset. Unlike many of her rivals, Bustamante had previously competed at the circuit in regional F3 machinery following her W Series campaign in 2022. The Palou Motorsport driver also competed on an alternative layout of the track during the following year when F1 Academy visited the French circuit. This knowledge proved valuable in getting up to speed quickly during the limited testing opportunities available to the drivers.
On-track action began on Thursday as the drivers participated in a 50-minute official test session late in the afternoon. It was a productive session for Bustamante as she completed 19 laps on her way to a fastest lap of a 1:57.907 which placed her in 24th position overall. The Palou Motorsport driver was especially strong through the first sector as she looked to continue her progress into a busy day of running on Friday.
Friday’s action began with the first of two free practice sessions and Bustamante improved upon her time from the opening test session. Setting a quickest lap of a 1:57.647, the Palou Motorsport finished the session in 26th position while making substantial gains through the middle sector. Session two took place later in the afternoon and after again running uninterrupted, Bustamante banked further valuable knowledge. Improving by a further two tenths of a second to a 1:57.437, Bustamante completed the session in 25th position overall.
Friday’s running was completed by both qualifying sessions which were held back-to-back to set the grids for the trio of races. Bustamante steadily improved her times throughout the first session as she set a quickest lap of a 1:57.514 which saw her qualify in 25th position.
The second session followed directly after and it was interrupted with five minutes remaining after Bustamante’s teammate Rafael Perard became beached in the gravel. With the majority of the field having not set a representative lap time, it was a busy end to qualifying as the drivers were given two laps in which to improve. Bustamante’s fastest time of a 1:57.439 came on her final lap of the session and this placed her in 27th position.
The opening race of the season took place on Saturday afternoon with Bustamante lining up from 25th on the grid. It was a challenging start to the race for the Palou Motorsport driver who stalled off the line and fell to 30th position, however she was soon regaining lost positions. By the end of the opening lap, Bustamante had already overtaken Benjamin Beckley and she was now challenging the drivers directly ahead.
Using her racecraft to pass both Andre Rodriguez and Renzo Barbuy through the first sector of lap two, Bustamante was up to 27th position before drawing level with Eduardo Borgna down the back straight. Bustamante overtook both Borgna and Argentinian driver Gino Trappa who was slowing with damage as lap three began.
Now in 25th position, Bustamante had regained her starting spot, however misfortune then struck as contact with another car saw her retire from the race at turn five. It was an unfortunate end to race one of the weekend which had seen Bustamante make good progress after an early setback.
Bustamante had a chance to bounce back with the first sprint race of the season taking place on Saturday afternoon. The 20-minute contest featured a reverse grid at the front of the field, while the remainder of the grid positions were set by the times from the first qualifying session.
The Palou Motorsport driver lined up from 25th on the grid and Bustamante made an excellent start while avoiding a number of stalled cars around her. Immediately into 23rd position, Bianca was racing confidently in the early stages as the midfield battles intensified. As the drivers exited turn eight, Bustamante was required to defend from Edouard Borgna with the French driver claiming the position. With Rene Lammers pitting to replace his front wing, Bustamante completed lap one in 23rd position as she targeted a move into the top-20.
On lap three, Griffin Core driver Patrick Heuzenroeder moved ahead with the Australian racer looking to recover from a difficult qualifying session. As the drivers began lap four, Bustamante almost drew level with Andre Rodriguez with the GRS driver also looking to make a move on Borgna. Following a superb move of her own on Borgna, Bustamante reclaimed 23rd position while she fended off former IndyCar Series driver Linus Lundqvist.
Bustamante’s pace remained strong and on lap five, she comfortably ran a top-15 lap time as she cut the margin to the drivers ahead. After a spell of pressure, Lundqvist passed Bustamante, however Bianca moved up to 22nd after contact between Luca Viisoreanu and Rayan Caretti saw both drivers retire from the race.
On lap seven, a technical issue for Alceu Feldmann Neto saw the MP Motorsport driver slow and stop out on the circuit. This resulted in a safety car period while his car was recovered and subsequently Bustamante moved up to 21st position.
The race resumed with two laps remaining and the battles in the midfield remained extremely competitive. Bustamante did a nice job to defend from Lorenzo Campos on the final lap with the Palou Motorsport driver holding her ground against the Double R Racing competitor.
Protecting her position to the chequered flag, it was a strong sprint race for Bustamante who crossed the line in 21st spot.
Following post-race penalties applied to three drivers ahead, this promoted Bustamante into 18th position in the final classification.
Race three at Circuit Paul Ricard took place early on Sunday morning with significantly cooler track temperatures compared to the earlier contests. The grid positions were based upon the qualifying results from the second session and therefore Bustamante lined up from 27th on the grid.
Bustamante got a good launch off the line and immediately challenged towards the top-20. By the end of the first sector, she was already up to 22nd and by the conclusion of lap one Bianca was into 21st position. With four drivers entering the pits to repair damage and Lorenzo Campos stopped out on circuit, Bustamante drove smartly as the safety car was then deployed.
The race was set to resume on lap four, however Gianmarco Pradel encountered a technical issue and therefore the safety car remained on circuit for one additional lap. Bustamante was now inside the top-20 as the green flag was displayed as she looked to hold off the Drivex machine of Fillippo Fiorentino. As the battles in the midfield remained close, Fiorentino was able to make his way ahead of Bustamante with Bianca remaining in 20th position after Linus Lundqvist fell down the order.
With a number of fast drivers looking to recover after earlier pit stops, Bustamante’s defensive skills were put to the test. As Enzo Tarnvanichkul and Thomas Strauven made their way through, Bustamante did a nice job to follow them through as they overtook Andre Rodriguez. Now in 21st position, Bustamante was looking to stay within five seconds of Alceu Feldmann Neto ahead who had picked up a time penalty for exceeding track limits.
On lap nine, Stefan Bostandjiev overtook Bustamante with the race now settling into a rhythm. After setting a series of personal best times, Bustamante improved to a 1:58.109 on lap 13 as she looked to mount a late-race charge. As those ahead began to battle, the Palou Motorsport driver was aiming to secure her second top-20 finish of the weekend.
In a thrilling finish, Rodriguez overtook Bustamante out of the final corner to claim the position by just seven hundredths of a second. Following the track limits penalty applied to Feldmann Neto and a separate penalty handed to Bostandjiev, Bustamante was classified in 21st position to round-out the weekend.
It was an encouraging first event of the regular season for Bustamante who enjoyed a number of close midfield battles. Securing an 18th place result in race two was a further sign of promise and Bustamante will be aiming to reduce the margin to the top-10 drivers over the course of the season.
The next round of the Eurocup-3 Championship takes place at Portimao on the weekend of 6th/7th June.
