Motorsport has always been expensive. It’s not something that is hidden from our sight. But it is something that needs to be addressed. I don’t want to sound like a harbinger of doom and gloom, but a lack of attainable seats on the FIA ladder is worrying. Some people are big fans of the new feeder series system, but I do think there are some issues to be addressed if Formulas 2&3 are to consistently hold the best junior talents in the future.

The sheer cost of a Formula 2 campaign is frightening. To race in Formula 2, you’ll need to be spending somewhere in the region of 2-3 Million UK pounds per season, and for a season in Formula 3 it’s about half of that. Is such a huge fee attainable for the best young drivers? No, it really isn’t. 

Look at someone like Logan Sergeant. He finished 3^rd in Formula 3 in 2020, having been leading the championship going into the final round in Mugello. He probably would’ve won the championship had things gone his way at the previous round in Monza. Surely a logical step would’ve been for him to move up to Formula 2?

Well that’s not what happened. Instead he spent 2021 in Formula 3, dragging his Charoux car far higher up the grid than any of his teammates could manage. He was with Prema in 2020, the best team in Formula 3, but had to race with Charoux in 2021 because his funds didn’t allow him to make the step up.

In contrast, Alessio Deledda raced in Formula 2 in 2021, having achieved a best place finish in the 2020 Formula 3 season of 20^th. He ended up 34^th in a 30 car championship, yet his funds allowed him to make the jump to the final stepping stone before Formula 1. This isn’t right. 

Luckily for Logan Sergeant, he has been snapped up by Williams’s driver academy and has secured a 2022 Formula 2 seat, so things are looking up for the young and speedy American. But many others haven’t been so lucky. With costs soaring, funds are hard to come by, and it is actually ridiculous how many drivers pulled out of F2 in 2021 due to the lack of sponsorship money. I understand Formula 2 will never be truly equal, with some teams able to set up their cars better than others, but at least make it an accessible and fair playing field. 

The FIA have taken good action in reducing the races per weekend to two and making the calendar ‘fuller’, rather than building huge gaps between rounds. But something more needs to be done to allow actual talents to make to up the ladder, not rich pay drivers with plenty of funds and no actual talent. 

I say introduce a rule which requires drivers to have a minimum number of super licence points on their record before they get into these feeder series. Reduce the cost of a season, make the cars more reliable (and I’m sure Juri Vips will back me up on that one), and make the championship as competitive as possible. 

May the best driver win. Not the richest one.