Formula 3 has been a superb championship that has developed multiple drivers good enough to progress further up the ladder and even race in F1.
Victor Martins won the FIA F3 title in 2022 and is now racing in the next championship up the ladder, Formula 2. Oscar Piastri took the Formula 3 championship in 2020, the Formula 2 title in 2021 and has now won two Grands Prix at the highest level.
Now, the Formula 3 grid is starting to take shape ahead of the 2025 season as current drivers move on and rookies step up the ladder.
Christian Ho is one such driver on the verge of stepping up to FIA F3 and racing under the nose of Formula 1. He will even be the first driver from Singapore to race in Formula 3 after a competitive campaign in Eurocup-3 for Campos.
Christian Ho is wary that FIA F3 will be ‘a whole new ball game’ while making history for Singapore
FIA F3 is ruthlessly competitive, with 30 drivers looking to impress while battling on a Formula 1 weekend and further their careers up the ladder.
The championship is usually very chaotic and much more unpredictable over a race distance than the series’ further down the pyramid.
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Ho will go into Formula 3 having driven on some of the tracks already in Eurocup-3, such as Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium and the Red Bull Ring in Austria.
This should help him learn at a faster rate as Ho may know the intricacies of the circuits before he arrives and sets his first lap times in an FIA F3 car in practice.
Ho explained to The Straits Times, which notes that his team will be announced imminently, that moving up to FIA F3 will be a real challenge. But he is eager to learn whilst making history as the first Formula 3 driver from Singapore.
He said: “F3 is going to be a whole new ball game with better, faster drivers and while it’s going to get harder from here, I know I can make it. I’m ready to learn, ready to take things to the next level and keep getting better.
“All F3 races will be shown live on TV before the F1 races. I really hope that with more exposure, more Singaporeans as well as local sponsors will be able to catch me in action and support my quest to become the first Singaporean F1 driver.”
Christian Ho will be the first Singaporean to race in Formula 3
Singapore has been a part of the Formula 1 calendar since 2008, becoming the first Grand Prix to be held at night.
The Marina Bay Street Circuit has produced some memorable moments over its history with Sebastian Vettel taking five wins, the most of any driver.
Despite the event being on the calendar for more than a decade, no driver from Singapore has ever raced at his home event.
Ho could go on to become the first driver from his nation to race in the Singapore GP, but it will take a sizeable step in the right direction once he lines up on the FIA F3 grid for the first time next season.