Arvid Lindblad delivered a supremely impressive performance during his first and only season in Formula 3.
The 17-year-old Brit secured four wins on his way to a fourth-place finish in the championship for PREMA Racing.
He will graduate to Formula 2 with Campos Racing next year, who have proven with another Red Bull junior – Isack Hadjar, that they can be title contenders this year.
So the future looks promising, and Lindblad enters his next series as the youngest driver on the grid with a whole lot to prove.
Arvid Lindblad did ‘better than he expected’ in Formula 3
Lindblad currently appears to be the most promising junior that Red Bull have had on their books since Max Verstappen.
Whether or not he has the potential to be as good is another question, but his backers clearly have a lot of faith in him.
Speaking on the Autosport podcast, Kevin Turner said he may have even surprised himself with how well he fared in Formula 3.
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“As a rookie and jumping straight from F4 into F3, not even going via FRECA or GB3. That’s a Red Bull junior programme or Helmut Marko decision.
“I think he did better than he expected. I spoke to him a couple of times over the winter and before the season.
“I think he knows that he’s good, but I think he also knew that F3 was a big step and he had some proper teammates and proper opposition. Actually, I think he did a really good job.”
How Lindblad delivered under the pressure generated by Red Bull
The biggest showing of faith from Red Bull was enabling him to go straight from Formula 4 to Formula 3 in 2024.
It may appear like a direct jump, but it isn’t – with categories such as GB3 and FRECA viewed as a good middle ground before reaching a Formula 1 support series.
In skipping those, it could have hurt his development by forcing him into a series that he possibly wasn’t ready for, damaging his confidence levels.
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But he responded in the way that everyone hoped that he would, even remaining in contention for the title until the final race of the season at the Italian Grand Prix.
Expectations for his maiden Formula 2 season in 2025 won’t be too high, but if he finishes inside the top three, he could be within a shout of a Formula 1 drive for 2026 when the new technical regulations arrive.