New F3 Championship to run alongside F1 on race weekends

A new Formula 3 Championship will run alongside F1 and F2 on race weekends, starting in 2019.

This new race division will give young drivers an opportunity to show their talent and potentially impress Formula 1 teams at the race weekends themselves.

The F1 Group said that the new division gives a platform for "young driver working their way up the FIA's single seater pyramid, which now spans the full spectrum of the discipline from Formula 3 to Formula 2 and Formula 1."

The F1 group added that this set-up is "easier than ever for fans to follow the careers of aspiring young drivers".

The F3 cars will have a single supplier for engines, chassis and tyres, so to provide a more level playing field than the one we see present in Formula 1 today.

The grid will consist of up to 30 cars and the series will use a 2-race per weekend system with either nine or ten rounds, similarly to how F2, formerly GP2 is run.

F1's managing director of motorsports Ross Brawn was happy with the announcement, telling the media: "The Grand Prix weekends will feature another step on the FIA's racing ladder, in which the best young drivers from national and regional categories will be able to race on the greatest and most prestigious race tracks in the world."