Rodin Motorsport Kiwi driver Louis Sharp’s only practice session in this weekend’s FIA Formula 3 season opener earlier this morning ended in an unfortunate manner after setting the pace at the beginning of the session.
The 2024 GB3 and British F4 champion debuted on the Melbourne circuit and the F3 series with a brand-new car.
Sharp got the ball rolling by setting a 1:38.676 and the early time to beat before lowering that to a 1:37.009 on his next attempt.

Sharp had completed 17 laps and was showing good pace before coming to a sudden stop on track with 6 minutes to go, causing a red flag and ending the session.
Sharp finished the session 16th, while Trident’s Rafael Camara was quickest in free practice with a 1.34.652 lap time, a 1.306s gap to Sharp’s best lap.

Formula 3 Qualifying is later today at 4:00 pm NZT. A Sprint Race occurs tomorrow at 1:15 pm NZT before the big Feature Race on Sunday at 11:00 am NZT.
Header Image:Alex Caparros – Formula 1/Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images