Sandro Zeller wins eighth title in the Drexler Formula 3 Cup

Drexler Formula Cup – Misano (ITA)

The final round of the Drexler Formula Cup in Misano was eagerly anticipated, and the seventh race lived up to expectations in many respects. Certainly not for defending champion Benjamin Berta (Franz Wöss Racing), who secured the front row of the grid alongside his teammate Victor Smialek with a qualifying time of 1:30.016 minutes, only to suffer an unexpected retirement on lap 10 of the first race. This paved the way for Sandro Zeller (Jo Zeller Racing), who secured his eighth Drexler Formula Cup title on Saturday with his sixth victory of the season and controlled the race from start to finish. The new champion's reaction at the finish line was rather subdued. ‘I would have preferred to win on the track rather than because of a problem with my competitor,’ said Zeller.

The race began with Benjamin Berta in the lead, who got off to a good start and initially had to battle it out with Oliver Kratsch (Facondini Racing) and Sandro Zeller. In the fourth lap, Berta slowed down. Not only did he lose a lot of power, but he also lost a few positions before heading for the pits in the tenth lap. Sandro Zeller defended his lead in his usual manner and controlled the field, although Victor Smialek got everything out of his Dallara F320 until the end of the 13-lap race and closed the gap on Zeller to just over three seconds. Andrea Benalli (Puresport) secured a podium finish in third place ahead of Oliver Kratsch, who was in good form and won the Formula 3 Trophy category ahead of Andre Petropoulos (Team Hoffmann Racing), relegating Stig Larsen (Franz Wöss Racing) to sixth place in the overall standings of the first race. The Formula Light category was won by Karim Sartori (Speed Motor) ahead of the already confirmed champion Michael Fischer (LRT Racing) and newcomer Laszlo Kovacs (Kermor Motorsport).

Without Benjamin Berta, the Drexler Formula Cup will start its final race on Sunday. The Hungarian wanted to start from the pit lane. However, the technical problems with his Dallara F320 could not be fully resolved, even though the Franz Wöss Racing team had already tried everything possible on Saturday to get Berta on the track for the second race. He only managed one lap before Berta had to give up for good. At the start of the second race, Victor Smialek won the duel against Sandro Zeller, and this battle was to continue until the chequered flag fell. Both drivers showed strong pace and immediately pulled out a lead. Behind them, Oliver Kratsch settled into third place and drove onto the overall podium for the first time. He was part of a group of three who fought hard for position. Kratsch defended his position against Andrea Benalli, who in turn fended off attacks from Andre Petropoulos. The Team Hoffmann Racing driver finished fifth overall and, in the Formula 3 Trophy category, scored exactly the points behind Kratsch and ahead of Lee Cunningham (Jo Zeller Racing) that secured him the Formula 3 Trophy drivers' title. The race was interrupted by two safety car phases, but these had no impact on the outcome. On both occasions, Victor Smialek completed the restart without any mistakes and won after 18 laps with a 0.631-second lead over the new champion from Switzerland. ‘This is a success that I share with the team and the sponsors. For me, it was an intense championship in which consistency and strategy made the difference,’ said Sandro Zeller. In the Formula Light category, Karim Sartori prevailed ahead of Michael Fischer and Sarene Ziffel. Mattia Bagioni (Puresport) took a double victory in Formula Regional at Misano ahead of Luca Iannoccone (Neri Motorsport).  

RS.26.10.2025

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