Fittipaldi’s Guest Column: You’ve got to keep fighting till the end

Enzo Fittipaldi scored his first Formula 3 podium in Race 2 at Budapest and followed that up with a mega charge through the field from 17th to ninth in the third race, despite wet conditions and the well-known challenges of overtaking at the Hungaroring.

The Charouz Racing System driver takes control of this week’s guest column to pen his thoughts on how it felt to stand on the podium, what he learned from Round 4 and how he is planning to spend the summer break.

ONE GOOD POINT – SPRAYING SOME CHAMPAGNE

It was good to get the chance to spray some champagne and get our first podium. Our race pace was very strong and very consistent. Even in the rain in Race 3, we had good race pace coming from 17th to ninth in the points.

I was really happy, and I think that our strong pace in general throughout the weekend and in the races was the best thing from the weekend. And of course the podium for Charouz.

ONE BAD POINT – QUALIFYING

We had the pace, but I got stuck in some traffic and didn't really put my lap together. One or two tenths here or there can mean five or six positions and that's why we were back in 17th.

I was able to show in the races that I had the pace to move up, getting up to 12th in Race 1 and then from 17th to ninth in Race 3. The Hungaroring is really hard to overtake on, so Qualifying was really important, which is why that session was the most difficult part of the weekend.

WHAT I LEARNED – NEVER GIVE UP

I remember finishing Friday and thinking ‘Jesus, this is going to be a really hard weekend' because Budapest is a track where Qualifying is everything, so when I enjoyed a really good Race 1 and got pole for Race 2, it felt like my weekend was turning around. I then got a podium in Race 2.

I didn't expect that at all, so I learned that you can never give up, you’ve got to keep fighting till the end. We got a podium and if you had asked me on Friday after Qualifying, then I wouldn't have expected to get such good results. I was really, really happy with that.

FANS MAY HAVE MISSED – AN INTRA-TEAM BATTLE

The battle between me and Logan (Sargeant) for who would get Charouz their first podium in FIA F3. We were always joking with each other about who would get there first.

I almost got one in Barcelona in Round 1, then Logan had one taken away from him in Spielberg. This weekend, we both scored one, but he got it first in Race 1. It was a fun little battle and ended up getting it on the same day.

PLANS FOR THE SUMMER BREAK

I will rest up, but I will also spend a lot of time preparing for the next race weekend in Spa. I will be training and enjoying some time off.

As a race car driver, it is always difficult to have holidays. You just want to be in the car every single day. These holidays, I will be working really hard every single day, I am still very hungry for a win.

Tchau, Enzo