Three rookies catching the eye: Jenzer Motorsport Testing Round-up

Jenzer Motorsport enjoyed their most successful season in FIA Formula 3 last year as they placed sixth in the Teams’ Championship.

They also scored 106 points – their first time going above the 100-point mark – with Taylor Barnard’s victory at the Spa-Francorchamps Feature Race giving them their first win since 2019.

The team return in 2024 looking to build on that and by the looks of their pre-season testing in Sakhir, it looks like they have made a fine start.

Reflecting on their three days of work in Bahrain, Team Manager Jamie Codyre said: “It was really good. It's been a short break since Macau, so we've been busy getting the car ready but it's always nice to be back here in Bahrain especially. The weather was not the best on the first day but it’s good to be back on track.

“For us there were no issues. Really happy with our three drivers because at different times they all showed the pace, so we are really happy with them, and how they've gone in this test.”

Those three drivers are all rookies which makes their form in Sakhir all the more impressive.

Charlie Wurz, Matías Zagazeta, and Max Esterson were all constant fixtures in and around the top-10 throughout testing.

Wurz, the youngest of the trio at 18-years-old, showed impressive pace and even topped the timesheets in the opening session on the second day, before placing fifth in the afternoon segment.

Zagazeta was also in fine form throughout in Bahrain and like the rest of his teammates has settled in well. He has also impressed Jenzer since taking part at the post-season tests, and at the Macau World Cup with the Swiss squad.

Esterson logged the most laps for the team across the three days, as he toured the track on 148 occasions. Considering the torrential rain the impacted running on the opening day, that was plenty as he, Wurz, and Zagazeta continue to acclimatise themselves within the team.

The American driver was consistent throughout testing, but very much caught the eye on the final day when plenty opted to go for low fuel runs in conditions they would expect to face in qualifying in Bahrain later this month.

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Esterson set the third fastest time and was just over two and a half tenths off the lap of pace-setter Luke Browning. This form is encouraging for Jenzer, with all three drivers having a strong foundation from which to start the year.

“We had the same three drivers in Macau, so they are not strangers to us, but as I said we were really happy,” said Codyre. “They were all capable of showing that they could be in the top 10 over the test.

“Obviously with the tyre situation, it wasn't as clear when normally at a test we have hards but here with the medium compounds and the hard compounds it was a bit more difficult to figure out what people were doing at which time on the tyres. But as I said they all showed good potential.”

So, how do Jenzer follow up their best season in F3 in 2024? Well, the team are not setting any end of year targets just yet. Instead, Codyre is looking for his newcomers to give themselves a chance of scoring points at each race weekend.

The Jenzer Team Manager added: “I think potentially because it's always not so easy with having rookie drivers, I think if we can qualify with them inside the top 15 or 12 is obviously the goal and if you qualify around there then you have a good chance in both races to get some decent results.”