Prema Powerteam driver Ralf Aron led from start to finish in the first European Formula 3 race at Zandvoort to hoist himself back into title contention.
Aron got a better start than polesitting teammate Guan Yu Zhou and, despite Zhou attempting to defend, Aron was able to squeeze through on the inside and take the lead into Tarzanbocht.
Zhou kept Aron under constant pressure through the first half of the race. The Chinese Ferrari junior tried a move at Tarzan on the third lap, and constantly jinked around in Aron’s slipstream.
Another attempt came on the eighth lap, after Aron almost spun on gravel at the chicane, but again the leader held firm.
Over the second half of the race, Aron was able to pull out a gap of just over a second and held on for his second win of the season, and the first to carry full points.
Whenever Zhou attacked, he in turn came under pressure from Mick Schumacher, putting him in an invidious position. But over the final few laps Schumacher fell away.
Schumacher therefore found championship leader Marcus Armstrong looming large in his mirrors, as Prema scored a 1-2-3-4 finish.
Red Bull junior Dan Ticktum took fifth in his Motopark car, but a scrappy second lap forced him to defend from teammate Juri Vips, who had a mighty opening lap to rise from ninth on the grid but almost threw away his position on the final lap with a moment at the chicane.
The duo completed the top six, while another Motopark driver, Jonathan Aberdein, kept Prema’s Robert Shwartzman at bay for seventh.
Ben Hingeley got the better of Hitech GP teammate Alex Palou, who had started ahead of him, on the opening lap and was able to hold off the experienced Spaniard for ninth.
Sophia Floersch finished her debut F3 race in 23rd for Van Amersfoort Racing, having qualified in the same position, only beating the Fortec car of Petru Florescu.
Race results:
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