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The 2016 Formula V8 3.5 Series was a multi-event motor racing championship for open wheel, formula racing cars held across Europe. The championship featured drivers competing in Formula V8 3.5 formula race cars that conformed to the technical regulations for the championship. The 2016 season was the first Formula V8 3.5 season organised independently by RPM Racing, after it was announced that Renault Sport would withdraw its backing of the championship at the end of the previous season.

The title was won by Tom Dillmann who took two race victories across the season such as championship runner-up Louis Delétraz, with the latter becoming the best rookie of the year. By winning the second race in Barcelona which turned out to be the title decider, Dillmann managed to overtake Delétraz in the standings in order to win the championship by seven points, becoming the oldest series' world champion aged 27 years. Despite winning the most races of the season with five, Egor Orudzhev finished third in the standings due to inconsistent results in the form of several retirements. Fourth-placed driver Roy Nissany took three victories, amongst winning both races in Silverstone. Matthieu Vaxivière, Aurélien Panis, Matevos Isaakyan and Johnny Cecotto Jr. were the other drivers to achieve at least one win throughout the year.

Teams and drivers

Team No. Driver name Status Rounds Fortec Motorsports 1 Louis Delétraz R All 2 Pietro Fittipaldi R All Lotus 3 René Binder All 4 Roy Nissany All Arden Motorsport 7 Egor Orudzhev All 8 Aurélien Panis All AVF 15 Alfonso Celis Jr. All 16 Tom Dillmann All Comtec Racing 17 Thomas Randle R 8–9 Durango Racing Team 20 Giuseppe Cipriani R All RP Motorsport 21 Johnny Cecotto Jr. 1–3 Artur Janosz R 4 Marco Bonanomi 6 William Buller 7 Jack Aitken R 8–9 22 Vitor Baptista R All SMP Racing 23 Matthieu Vaxivière All 24 Matevos Isaakyan R 1–4, 6, 8–9 Teo Martín Motorsport 25 Yu Kanamaru All 26 Beitske Visser All

Icon Meaning R Series rookie for 2016

Driver changes

Changed teams

• Tom Dillmann switched from Jagonya Ayam with Carlin to AVF.
• Yu Kanamaru moved from Pons Racing to newcomers Teo Martín Motorsport.
• Roy Nissany made his switch from Tech 1 Racing to Lotus.
• Aurélien Panis moved from Tech 1 Racing to Arden Motorsport.
• Matthieu Vaxivière switched from Lotus to SMP Racing.
• Beitske Visser, who raced for AVF for two consecutive seasons was set to join Pons Racing, but following their withdrawal from the series, she signed with Teo Martín Motorsport.

Entering/Re–Entering Formula V8 3.5

• 2015 SMP F4 Championship runner-up Vladimir Atoev was set join the series with SMP Racing but due to health problems he was replaced by 2015 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 driver Matevos Isaakyan.
• 2015 Euroformula Open champion Vitor Baptista will join the series with RP Motorsport.
• After competing for Pons Racing at the Nürburgring in 2015, GP2 Series driver René Binder will join the series full-time with Lotus.
• Johnny Cecotto Jr., who raced at GP2 Series in 2015 moved to the series with RP Motorsport.
• Gentleman driver Giuseppe Cipriani joins the series with Durango Racing Team.
• After competing for Comtec Racing at the Red Bull Ring in 2015, Louis Delétraz, the 2015 Formula Renault 2.0 NEC champion, will enter the series full-time with Fortec Motorsports.
• Pietro Fittipaldi, who raced in the 2015 European Formula 3 Championship, will continue his collaboration with Fortec Motorsports into the series.

Leaving Formula V8 3.5

• Philo Paz Armand, Sean Gelael, Gustav Malja and Nicholas Latifi, who raced for Pons Racing, Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, Strakka Racing and Arden Motorsport respectively, will join the 2016 GP2 Series with Trident, Campos Racing, Rapax, and DAMS. 2015 Formula Renault 3.5 Series champion Oliver Rowland, who raced part-time in GP2 in 2015, will join the series full-time with MP Motorsport.
• Jazeman Jaafar, who finished eighth for Fortec Motorsports in 2015, will race in both the Blancpain Sprint Series and Blancpain Endurance Series with HTP Motorsport.
• Roberto Merhi, who contested a part-season with Pons Racing, will join the 2016 FIA World Endurance Championship with Manor in the LMP2 category.
• DAMS drivers Dean Stoneman and Nyck de Vries will leave the series to compete in the 2016 Indy Lights and 2016 GP3 Series with Andretti Autosport and ART Grand Prix respectively.
• Nikita Zlobin, who took part in the final two rounds of 2015 with Pons Racing, will join Euroformula Open with Teo Martín Motorsport.

Mid-season changes

• Prior to the round at Le Castellet, Johnny Cecotto Jr. was replaced by Artur Janosz at RP Motorsport.
• Prior to the round at the Red Bull Ring, Marco Bonanomi filled the seat left empty by Janosz at RP Motorsport.
• Bonanomi was replaced by William Buller at RP Motorsport at Monza.
• Buller was replaced by Jack Aitken at RP Motorsport at the final two rounds at Jerez and Barcelona.

Team changes

• After five seasons in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series (the 2005 season and from 2012 to 2015), DAMS will leave the championship to join the GP3 Series. The team's entry will be taken by International GT Open team Teo Martín Motorsport.
• Swiss team Spirit of Race will make its debut in 2016, taking the slot vacated by International Draco Racing. It was announced in February 2016 that the team would be operated by the SMP Racing concern under a Russian license.
• Euroformula Open team RP Motorsport will make their series debut in 2016.
• Carlin announced their withdrawal from the championship in March 2016 in order to concentrate on their GP2 Series activities.
• Durango Racing Team will make their series debut in 2016, replacing Tech 1 Racing.
• Pons Racing withdrew from the championship to focus on their Moto2 commitments.

Race calendar

The provisional calendar for the 2016 season was announced on 17 October 2015, at the final round of the 2015 season. The championship returns to Paul Ricard, Monza and Barcelona. Rounds previously held at Monaco, Nürburgring and Le Mans Bugatti were removed from the schedule.

On 8 March 2016, it was announced that due to operational reasons, the final two rounds of the season would switch dates. The event at Jerez will become the penultimate round with the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya hosting the final round.

Round		Circuit	Date	Supporting
1	R1	Ciudad del Motor de Aragón, Alcañiz	16 April	Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 Renault Sport Trophy
	R2		17 April
2	R1	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	23 April	World Touring Car Championship
	R2		24 April
3	R1	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Spa	21 May	International GT Open
	R2		22 May
4	R1	Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet	25 June	Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup
	R2		26 June
5	R1	Silverstone Circuit	23 July	International GT Open
	R2		24 July
6	R1	Red Bull Ring, Spielberg	10 September
	R2		11 September
7	R1	Autodromo Nazionale Monza	1 October
	R2		2 October
8	R1	Circuito de Jerez, Jerez de la Frontera	29 October	Euroformula Open
	R2		30 October
9	R1	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Barcelona	5 November	International GT Open
	R2		6 November

Results

Round		Circuit	Pole Position	Fastest Lap	Winning Driver	Winning Team	Rookie Winner
1	R1	Ciudad del Motor de Aragón	Egor Orudzhev	Louis Delétraz	Louis Delétraz	Fortec Motorsports	Louis Delétraz
	R2		Tom Dillmann	Louis Delétraz	Aurélien Panis	Arden Motorsport	Louis Delétraz
2	R1	Hungaroring	Tom Dillmann	Tom Dillmann	Johnny Cecotto Jr.	RP Motorsport	Louis Delétraz
	R2		Tom Dillmann	Roy Nissany	Tom Dillmann	AVF	Louis Delétraz
3	R1	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps	Aurélien Panis	Egor Orudzhev	Egor Orudzhev	Arden Motorsport	Louis Delétraz
	R2		Tom Dillmann	Tom Dillmann	Matthieu Vaxivière	SMP Racing	Vitor Baptista
4	R1	Circuit Paul Ricard	Matthieu Vaxivière	Egor Orudzhev	Egor Orudzhev	Arden Motorsport	Louis Delétraz
	R2		Roy Nissany	Louis Delétraz	Louis Delétraz	Fortec Motorsports	Louis Delétraz
5	R1	Silverstone Circuit	Matthieu Vaxivière	Roy Nissany	Roy Nissany	Lotus	Pietro Fittipaldi
	R2		Matthieu Vaxivière	Roy Nissany	Roy Nissany	Lotus	Louis Delétraz
6	R1	Red Bull Ring	Louis Delétraz	Matthieu Vaxivière	Matthieu Vaxivière	SMP Racing	Louis Delétraz
	R2		Matevos Isaakyan	Matthieu Vaxivière	Aurélien Panis	Arden Motorsport	Matevos Isaakyan
7	R1	Autodromo Nazionale Monza	Roy Nissany	Roy Nissany	Roy Nissany	Lotus	Louis Delétraz
	R2		Roy Nissany	Roy Nissany	Egor Orudzhev	Arden Motorsport	Louis Delétraz
8	R1	Circuito de Jerez	Jack Aitken	Matthieu Vaxivière	Matevos Isaakyan	SMP Racing	Matevos Isaakyan
	R2		Louis Delétraz	Louis Delétraz	Egor Orudzhev	Arden Motorsport	Louis Delétraz
9	R1	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya	Tom Dillmann	Louis Delétraz	Egor Orudzhev	Arden Motorsport	Louis Delétraz
	R2		Louis Delétraz	Egor Orudzhev	Tom Dillmann	AVF	Pietro Fittipaldi

Championship standings

Points system

Points were awarded to the top 10 classified finishers.

Drivers' Championship

Pos Driver ALC HUN SPA LEC SIL RBR MNZ JER CAT Points 1 Tom Dillmann 3 2 2 1 2 2 4 6 4 4 3 2 12 8 Ret 8 3 1 237 2 Louis Delétraz 1 5 3 4 3 Ret 6 1 10 6 2 4 2 3 12 2 2 4 230 3 Egor Orudzhev Ret 14† Ret 9 1 Ret 1 3 Ret 3 Ret 5 7 1 2 1 1 7 193 4 Roy Nissany 7 7 6 2 Ret Ret 2 2 1 1 6 13 1 6 8 14 9 2 189 5 Aurélien Panis 5 1 4 3 8 5 8 4 5 5 5 1 4 Ret 4 Ret 4 12 183 6 Matthieu Vaxivière 2 Ret 5 5 Ret 1 5 Ret 2 7 1 6 3 Ret 3 3 Ret Ret 175 7 René Binder 4 3 11 7 5 6 3 5 3 2 Ret 12 5 2 5 7 Ret 6 161 8 Yu Kanamaru Ret 4 9 10 4 7 7 11 7 9 7 Ret 6 5 6 10 8 10 85 9 Matevos Isaakyan 12 10 Ret Ret DNS Ret 10 12 12 3 1 6 5 5 70 10 Pietro Fittipaldi 11 9 8 8 11† 10† Ret 7 6 Ret 11 11 11 4 9 12 7 3 60 11 Alfonso Celis Jr. 6 8 Ret Ret 10 3 11 8 Ret 11 4 7 9 10 Ret 9 Ret 13 55 12 Vitor Baptista 8 11 10 Ret 6 4 Ret Ret 8 8 10 8 8 Ret 10 11 6 Ret 51 13 Beitske Visser 10 12 7 DNS 7 9† 9 10 9 10 8 9 14 9 7 5 10 8 50 14 Johnny Cecotto Jr. 9 6 1 6 12† Ret 43 15 Jack Aitken DSQ 4 11 9 14 16 William Buller 10 7 7 17 Giuseppe Cipriani 13 13 Ret Ret 9 8 13 13 11 12 13 Ret 13 11 Ret 15 12 14 6 18 Marco Bonanomi 9 10 3 19 Artur Janosz 12 9 2 20 Thomas Randle Ret 13 Ret 11 0 Pos Driver ALC HUN SPA LEC SIL RBR MNZ JER CAT Points

Colour Result Gold Winner Silver Second place Bronze Third place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Retired (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Withdrew (WD) Race cancelled (C) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Did not arrive (DNA) Excluded (EX) Bold – Pole Italics – Fastest Lap † – Retired, but classified

Teams' Championship

Pos Team Car No. ALC HUN SPA LEC SIL RBR MNZ JER CAT Points 1 Arden Motorsport 7 Ret 14† Ret 9 1 Ret 1 3 Ret 3 Ret 5 7 1 2 1 1 7 380 8 5 1 4 3 8 5 8 4 5 5 5 1 4 Ret 4 Ret 4 12 2 Lotus 3 4 3 11 7 5 6 3 5 3 2 12 Ret 5 2 5 7 Ret 6 348 4 7 7 6 2 Ret Ret 2 2 1 1 6 13 1 6 8 14 9 2 3 AVF 15 6 8 Ret Ret 9 3 11 8 Ret 11 4 7 9 10 Ret 9 Ret 13 292 16 3 2 2 1 2 2 4 6 4 4 3 2 12 8 Ret 8 3 1 4 Fortec Motorsports 1 1 5 3 4 3 Ret 6 1 10 6 2 4 2 3 11 2 2 4 290 2 11 9 8 8 11† 10† Ret 7 6 Ret 11 11 11 4 9 12 7 3 5 SMP Racing 23 2 Ret 5 5 Ret 1 5 Ret 2 7 1 6 3 Ret 3 3 Ret Ret 245 24 12 10 Ret Ret DNS Ret 10 12 12 3 1 6 5 5 6 Teo Martín Motorsport 25 Ret 4 9 10 4 7 7 11 7 9 7 Ret 6 5 6 10 8 10 135 26 10 12 7 DNS 7 9† 9 10 9 10 8 9 14 9 7 5 10 8 7 RP Motorsport 21 9 6 1 6 12† Ret 12 9 9 10 10 7 DSQ 4 11 9 120 22 8 11 10 Ret 6 4 Ret Ret 8 8 10 8 8 Ret 10 11 6 Ret 8 Durango Racing Team 20 13 13 Ret Ret 9 8 13 13 11 12 13 Ret 13 11 Ret 15 12 14 6 9 Comtec Racing 17 Ret 13 Ret 11 0 Pos Team Car No. ALC HUN SPA LEC SIL RBR MNZ JER CAT Points

Colour Result Gold Winner Silver Second place Bronze Third place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Retired (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Withdrew (WD) Race cancelled (C) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Did not arrive (DNA) Excluded (EX) Bold – Pole Italics – Fastest Lap † – Retired, but classified

References

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External links

• Official website

• World Series Formula V8 3.5 seasons
• 2016 in motorsport
• 2016 in European sport
• 2016 in formula racing