Thoughts of a Champion – Leonardo Fornaroli

FIA Formula 3: Leonardo Fornaroli, the FIA Formula 3 Champion. Leo, how does that sound?
Leonardo Fornaroli: Amazing. This weekend has been hard because I’ve never been in this position to win such an important Championship. Now that it’s finally over and I’ve taken the title, it’s amazing and I can’t believe I did it.
FIA Formula 3: Well, you came into this weekend as the Championship leader but just one point ahead of Gabriele Minì, six ahead of Luke Browning. Just how confident were you that you could finish the job with it being so close?
Fornaroli: I knew that the pace was very strong. We took Pole Position on Friday, then yesterday I managed to do a good race, a good recovery and score some points on Gabriele. Today, despite my race not being perfect – I have to say I’m not fully happy with my performance, we took all the points I gained on him and Luke in the previous rounds and managed to win even if I didn’t finish in front of him.
FIA Formula 3: Let’s just reflect on the two races, you took Pole Position but it was quite a messy session and then got a grid penalty for the Sprint Race. So you were starting 16th and finishing 8th, what was your mindset going into that race?
Fornaroli: Of course I knew that I had to recover to gain some points, but I also kept in mind that I had to finish the race, otherwise it would have been a disaster. Our pace was very strong at the start and middle of the race, but in the end I suffered a lot with the rear degradation and unfortunately, I lost two positions. But anyway, I finished in front of Gabriele which was the most important thing, to take some points and that allowed me to take the title today.
FIA Formula 3: It did indeed set it all up for today. You lined up at the front of the grid for the final race, and what a race it was. You sealed the title with an epic move into the final corner of the final lap. What went through your mind when you were on that final lap and you knew you had to gain a position, and then what went through your head when you crossed the line?
Fornaroli: The mess started with my mistake into Ascari. In the lap before during the Safety Car, I saw that the corner was full of dust but I wasn’t expecting it to be so slippery. So I did my normal line, completely lost the back end and lost three positions. I knew I had to recover as many positions as possible so I pushed a lot on the tyres to try and overtake everyone. In the end I struggled a lot with the tyres. I also had some flatspots at the front to make it even worse. When Gabriele and Mansell passed me I asked my engineer if I was still Champion. He said no, absolutely you have to overtake Mansell in front of you. It was hard I have to say because they were faster than me in that part of the race because my tyres were completely gone. But luckily they started to fight a bit on the last lap. I tried a move at the second chicane, but it wasn’t enough. I locked up the fronts because I had no grip. I knew Ascari was basically the last chance but I couldn’t get it. So going into the last corner, I said ok, it’s all in. I cannot accept to lose the title in the last two laps of the season. So I managed to send it on the inside. He was quite fair I have to say, to leave a good gap between me and him. It was fair, correct and I managed to take a podium and the title in the last corner.
When I crossed the finish line, all the pressure I had during the weekend and during the season went down, and I’m the happiest man in the world. It’s one of the best days of my life.
FIA Formula 3: Well congratulations, we loved seeing the celebrations. Let’s talk about your winning season then. No race wins but seven podiums, a pole position, a couple of fastest laps, three front-row starts – you missed finishing in the points only twice this season in two Sprint Races. How did you manage such impressive consistency?
Fornaroli: With Trident, we worked a lot to improve my race pace compared to last year which was a weak point of mine. This year, I definitely did a step forward and to be always there in all the races without too many mistakes allowed me to gain a lot of points. Even if I didn’t have any wins.
FIA Formula 3: Does the lack of a win mean any significance to you now you’ve won the Championship?
Fornaroli: Of course, now I care less, but once the adrenaline has gone down, I’ll start to analyse that maybe the race today wasn’t perfect, and I will look at it all later to try to improve for the future and to take the first win in these categories.
FIA Formula 3: Well, we’ll come to that in a minute, but is there any race weekend that you look back on that you’re particularly proud of?
Fornaroli: Yes, Monza is a circuit that I love. It’s my home track. I got my first podium here in Formula 4, so it’s very special. Going into Qualifying I was very confident even if I’d only had one lap in Free Practice with old tyres. We did a very good job with Trident. The car was absolutely on rails, and I managed to get a good tow during the lap. Yesterday the pace was very good but at the end of the race I was lacking a bit, so we went a bit conservative on the setup but maybe it was too much. At the start, Alex was faster than me, but then I think without all the mistakes I did, it was going to be a good race.
FIA Formula 3: How about looking back earlier in the season though given how close it’s been among many drivers for this Championship fight. Were you ever doubting that you could win it?
Fornaroli: After Barcelona, I have to say I had a boost of confidence because I saw that I could do it. But then I had two bad weekends and I finished 26 points behind the leaders. To go back on top I knew it was going to be hard, but I managed always to stay in the top five in almost every session in the last few weekends. I finished in front of my title contenders, and I gained a lot of points. After Spa I was only one point in front of Gabriele, so already I was very happy with our performances. But now, to finally finish on top, it’s amazing.
FIA Formula 3: You mentioned a bit ago the gains you made in terms of race pace. Last year in your rookie season – one pole position and three podiums. Second year, the progress to go and win the Championship. Both seasons spent in this Championship spent with Trident, just how important have the team been in your success?
Fornaroli: I felt amazing with Trident these two years. Now it’s like a second family to me. I also did Formula Regional European Championship with them in order to adapt even more to the team. With my engineer, we did an incredible job. I’m super proud and I can’t thank them enough.
FIA Formula 3: It has been an incredibly close season and high pressure. We saw a moment when you hugged Gabriele in the parc ferme afterwards. Do you have a word about your title rivals – there were so many of them this season?
Fornaroli: Yeah, they didn’t make my life easy. They were both very fast this weekend – Luke unfortunately got blocked on his fastest lap in Qualifying I think, but yesterday he was flying, and he passed me on the last lap with a very good move. Gabriele almost overtook me as well, but I managed to defend well. I knew today was going to be hard. At the start, I was pretty confident behind Alex but then after the mistake, I said now I have to recover otherwise I’m going to destroy everything. Gabriele did a very good race, unfortunately Luke had contact in the first lap that I saw on the big screen while I was driving. That was extremely unlucky because he’s been a very good driver and he’s demonstrated his speed this year. With Gabriele, I had a very good fight today. He was going to beat me until the last corner but then I managed to overtake Christian in front of me. Of course, it’s not the result I was hoping for but anyway, he did an amazing Championship and an amazing race today.
FIA Formula 3: Very well said. Finally, what’s next for the Formula 3 Champion?
Fornaroli: My racing programme for next year is already defined and it will be announced shortly.
FIA Formula 3: Well, we look forward to seeing it. Congratulations once again.