Virtuosi Racing (previously known as Virtuosi UK, and UNI Virtuosi in Formula 2) is a British racing team currently competing in the

FIA Formula 2 Championship The FIA Formula 2 Championship is a second-tier single-seater championship organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). Held on racing circuits, the championship was introduced in 2017, following the rebranding of the lo ...

. The team previously ran in the

Auto GP Auto GP, sometimes referred to as the Auto GP World Series and formerly known as both Euro Formula 3000 and the Euroseries 3000, was a European formula racing series. The series' roots can be traced back to 1999 and the Italian Formula 3000 serie ...

series, in addition to running the

Russian Time Russian Time (previously known as RT Russian Time) was a Russian motor racing team founded by Igor Mazepa to compete in the GP2 Series, a category of open-wheel racing cars designed to prepare drivers for Formula One. From 2015 to 2018, the ...

outfit in Formula 2 and its predecessor

GP2 Series The GP2 Series was a form of open wheel motor racing introduced in 2005 following the discontinuation of the long-term Formula One feeder series, Formula 3000. The GP2 format was conceived by Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore, while Eccl ...

up until 2018. With the withdrawal of Russian Time, the team assumed its new name UNI Virtuosi Racing for the 2019 Formula 2 season.

History

In 2012, Paul Devlin and Andy Roche approached businessman Declan Lohan for financial backing and Virtuosi UK team was founded at

Carleton Rode Carleton Rode is a village and civil parish in Norfolk, England. It is situated approximately five miles south-east of Attleborough. In the 2011 Census, Carleton Rode was recorded as having a population of 785 people in 324 households. History ...

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the Nort ...

in order to participate in the

. The team signed

driver

Pål Varhaug Pål Varhaug (born 26 January 1991 in Stavanger) is a professional racing driver from Norway. Career Karting Varhaug began his motorsport career in karting in 2005, finishing fifth in the Norwegian Championship ICA Junior category. He also fin ...

. His team-mates in the first rounds was

European F3 Open The Euroformula Open Championship (formerly the Spanish Formula Three Championship, European F3 Open Championship) is a junior formula racing series based in Spain. It was one of six national and international Formula Three championships in Europ ...

driver Matteo Beretta and

Formula Renault 3.5 Series The World Series Formula V8 3.5, formerly the World Series by Nissan from 1998 to 2004, the Formula Renault 3.5 Series from 2005 to 2015 and the Formula V8 3.5 in 2016 and 2017, was a motor racing series promoted by RPM Racing (1998–2004) and R ...

driver

Sten Pentus Sten Pentus (born 3 November 1981 in Tallinn) is an Estonian racing driver. He is a former Estonian Formula 4 Champion, and a previous winner of the Formula Baltic championship in a Reynard 903. At the end of the 2008 season, Pentus tested fo ...

, before they was replaced by Auto GP veteran

Francesco Dracone Francesco Dracone (born 21 September 1983) is an Italian racing driver who currently competes in the European Le Mans Series with BHK Motorsport. Career Born in Turin, Dracone began racing professionally in the Italian Formula Three Championship ...

. Varhaug won feature race at Sonoma and reverse-grid races at

Monza Monza (, ; lmo, label= Lombard, Monça, locally ; lat, Modoetia) is a city and ''comune'' on the River Lambro, a tributary of the Po in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capital of the Province of M ...

and

Hungaroring The Hungaroring is a motorsport racetrack in Mogyoród, Pest County, Hungary where the Formula One Hungarian Grand Prix is held. In 1986, it became the location of the first Formula One Grand Prix behind the Iron Curtain. Bernie Ecclestone ...

, finishing as runner-up in the drivers' standings and bringing fourth place in the teams' standings. For

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment ...

, the team signed

FIA European Formula 3 Championship The FIA Formula 3 European Championship was a European Formula Three(F3) auto racing competition, organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). After one season of the FIA Formula 3 International Trophy, the FIA revived th ...

graduate Andrea Roda. He was partnered by

Max Snegirev Maksim "Max" Sergeyevich Snegirev ( rus, Макси́м Серге́евич Снегирёв, p=mɐkˈsʲim sʲɪrˈɡʲejɪvʲɪtɕ sʲnʲɪɡʲɪˈrʲɵf; born 12 June 1987) is a Russian racing driver. He currently resides in London. Career ...

, who previously raced for

Campos Racing Campos Racing is a Spanish motor racing team, founded by former Formula One driver Adrián Campos. The team has been successful in Formula Three and the GP2 Series. History After retiring from racing, Campos formed his own team at the end of 1 ...

. Also British team supported Comtec by Virtuosi entry. Unlike the previous season Virtuosi drivers even failed to achieve podium finish and downgraded to seventh in the teams' standings. The squad prolonged Andrea Roda for 2014 campaign. Also the team expanded to three cars for two opening rounds, fielding

Richard Gonda Richard Gonda (born 14 March 1994, in Banská Bystrica) is a professional racing driver from Slovakia. Career Karting Gonda began karting in 2003 and raced primarily in his native Slovakia for the majority of his career, working his way up fro ...

and Sam Dejonghe. At

Imola Imola (; rgn, Jômla or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical r ...

, second car was occupied by returnee Varhaug but he was replaced at

Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

Tamás Pál Kiss Tamás Pál Kiss (born 19 May 1991 in Miskolc) is a Hungarian auto racing driver. Career Karting Kiss made his karting début in 1998 when he was seven years old. During ten years he scored three titles in Hungarian Championships Formula Ren ...

, who left

Zele Racing Zele Racing is an Austrian motor racing team currently competing in the BOSS GP series via a partnership with HS Engineering. The team has raced in Auto GP claiming the series' final stand-alone championship in 2015, along with having previously ...

. Also at Spielberg Roda won a reverse-grid race, it was first win for Virtuosi since 2012. Kiss collected another two wins for the team at

Nürburgring The is a 150,000 person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long "North loop" track, built in the 1920s, around the village a ...

and

Estoril Estoril () is a town in the Municipality of Cascais, Portugal, on the Portuguese Riviera. It is a tourist destination, with luxury hotels, beaches, and the Casino Estoril. It has been home to numerous royal families and celebrities, and has ...

. The team finished as runner-up in the teams' standings. In

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

, the team signed

German Formula Three The German Formula Three Championship was the national Formula Three championship of Germany, and the former West Germany, from 1950 to 2002, then as Formel 3 until 2014. In 2003, the series had merged with the French Formula Three Championship t ...

driver Nikita Zlobin. As well the team will replace

iSport International iSport International was a British motor racing team that competed in the GP2 Series. The team was founded by Paul Jackson, Gavin Bickerton-Jones and Richard Selwin, former members of the Petrobras Junior Team in 2004, ahead of the inaugural ...

in the managing of the

team in the

. On 4 December 2018, it was announced Virtuosi would replace the outgoing Russian Time outfit in the

in under the name UNI-Virtuosi. The following day, the team confirmed

Guanyu Zhou Zhou Guanyu (, pronounced ; born 30 May 1999) is a Chinese racing driver who currently competes in Formula One for Alfa Romeo. He is the first Chinese driver to compete in Formula One. He competed in the FIA Formula 2 Championship for UNI-Vi ...

as its first driver. Day after,

Luca Ghiotto Luca Ghiotto (born 24 February 1995) is an Italian racing driver who most recently raced in the FIA Formula 2 Championship for DAMS. Career Karting Born in Arzignano, Ghiotto entered karting in 2008, when he took the title in the KF3 class of ...

filled the remained slot in the Virtuosi's line-up. On 20 October 2021, Virtuosi Racing announced its expansion to

Formula 4 FIA Formula 4, also called FIA F4, is an open-wheel racing car category intended for junior drivers. There is no global championship, but rather individual nations or regions can host their own championships in compliance with a universal set of r ...

racing by entering the

F4 British Championship F4 British Championship (full name ROKiT F4 British Championship certified by FIA, formerly known as F4 British Championship certified by FIA — powered by Ford (2016–21), MSA Formula (2015)) is a single-seater motorsport series based in ...

from the 2022 season onwards.

Current series results

FIA Formula 2 Championship

In detail

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (ma ...

) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) * Season still in progress.

F4 British Championship

Timeline

Notes

References

External links

* {{FIA Formula 2 Championship teams British auto racing teams Auto GP teams GP2 Series teams 2012 establishments in the United Kingdom Auto racing teams established in 2012 FIA Formula 2 Championship teams