Felipe Drugovich
Felipe Drugovich Roncato is a Brazilian racing driver who competes in Formula E for Andretti.
Drugovich is the 2018 Euroformula Open champion and the 2022 Formula 2 champion. He previously served as the reserve driver for Aston Martin in Formula One from to.
Junior career
Karting
Born in Maringá, in Southern Brazil, Drugovich competed in numerous karting championships across Brazil and Europe, taking major championship victories.Lower formulae
ADAC Formula 4
Drugovich made his single-seaters debut in 2016, joining Neuhauser Racing in ADAC Formula 4. He achieved his first and only podium of the season in third place at the Zandvoort round. He ended the season finished fourth in the rookie standings and twelfth overall, with 79.5 points. The following season, Drugovich switched to Van Amersfoort Racing, and also made his debut in Italian F4 with the team. Drugovich claimed seven wins — the most of any driver throughout the season. Ultimately, he finished third in the standings with 236.5 points, missing out by nine points to champion Jüri Vips as a technical issue in the final round at the Hockenheimring potentially costing Drugovich the title.MRF Challenge
Drugovich also competed in the MRF Challenge, claiming his maiden single-seater victory in the second race of round two and finishing fourth overall. The following year, Drugovich won the title by taking ten wins out of the sixteen races held that season with two races left.FIA Formula 3 European Championship
Drugovich stepped up to the FIA Formula 3 European Championship with Van Amersfoort Racing for the 2017 season finale at the Hockenheimring.Euroformula Open
Drugovich made his debut in the final round of the 2017 season as a guest driver with RP Motorsport, scoring a pole. Despite a mistake in the first race, Drugovich managed to take his first Euroformula Open win in the second. The following year, Drugovich reunited with RP to contest the championship full-time. He proceeded to dominate the championship finishing on the podium at all races, claiming a record fourteen wins and taking the title at Monza with two rounds to spare. In an article by Motorsport.com, Drugovich was ranked 18th in the top-20 junior single-seater drivers of 2018.Pro Mazda
Following the injuries sustained by Harrison Scott in Toronto, Drugovich was drafted in by RP to replace him for the 2018 Pro Mazda round at Mid-Ohio.GP3 Series
In November 2018, Drugovich partook in the post-season test at Yas Marina with ART Grand Prix. He would go to set the 11th and 17th fastest times on Day 1 and Day 2 respectively.FIA Formula 3 Championship
In February 2019, Carlin Buzz Racing confirmed that Drugovich would race with them in the inaugural FIA Formula 3 championship, alongside Logan Sargeant and Teppei Natori. His season proved difficult, with Drugovich scoring points only one occasion, finishing in sixth place in race one of the Hungary round. He was set for another points finish in race two before contact with Robert Shwartzman while fighting for third place resulted in a puncture, and they both ultimately retired from the race. Drugovich ended the season sixteenth in the standings with eight points, scoring more points than his two teammates combined.FIA Formula 2 Championship
2020
Drugovich was signed to MP Motorsport for the 2020 season, partnering Nobuharu Matsushita. He impressed on his debut in Austria, qualifying second. After dropping positions on the opening lap, he eventually finished eighth, which placed him on reverse pole for the sprint race. He proceeded to lead every lap and claim his maiden Formula 2 victory, despite multiple safety car interruptions. His momentum stalled in the second Austrian round, where he qualified tenth and finished outside the points in both races. In Budapest, Drugovich qualified eighteenth but employed an alternate tyre strategy in the feature race, recovering to fifth. A poor start in the sprint race left him outside the points.He secured his maiden pole position in Silverstone, but lacked race pace in the feature race, finishing seventh, while he finished sixth in the sprint. The second Silverstone round yielded a single point, with a tenth-place finish in the feature race. Drugovich qualified fourth in Barcelona but lost a place at the start of the feature race. A well-timed pit stop elevated him to second place before a safety car neutralised the field; after switching to fresh tyres, he ultimately finished seventh. He responded in the sprint race with a dominant performance, taking the lead at the start before going on to win by nine seconds. His campaign suffered a downturn starting from Spa-Francorchamps, where contact with teammate Matsushita damaged his car and resulted in a last-place finish; this was later compounded by a post-race disqualification due to pitting on the last lap.
Drugovich endured a further non-scoring weekend in Monza after qualifying outside the top eight, before being taken out of the sprint by Roy Nissany. His poor run was briefly interrupted in Mugello where he finished fourth in the feature race after losing a podium position on the last lap. In the sprint race however, a car issue slowed him whilst running in the points, and he classified fifteenth. More misfortune befell Drugovich in Sochi as he was eliminated in an opening lap collision during the feature race. Drugovich returned to form in Bahrain by qualifying second, and he eventually won the feature race by fourteen seconds after passing polesitter Ilott on-track. During the second Bahrain round, Drugovich qualified fifth and added a third place finish in the feature race following a post-race penalty for Nikita Mazepin. Drugovich concluded his rookie Formula 2 season ninth in the championship with 121 points, recording three wins, one pole and four podiums.
2021
Drugovich joined UNI-Virtuosi Racing in, alongside Guanyu Zhou. He began the year strongly in Bahrain by qualifying third. However, his race results were compromised by incidents and strategic setbacks; front wing damage in the first sprint necessitated a pit stop and he finished sixteenth, while a late safety car in the second sprint dropped him down the order after an early charge. In the feature race, Drugovich ran in the top three during the opening phase, but his pace faded following a safety car, eventually finishing ninth after a penalty for a safety car infringement. In Monaco, Drugovich secured his first podium of the season during the first sprint race after inheriting second place following Christian Lundgaard's retirement. A gamble on slick tyres during mixed conditions in the second sprint proved unsuccessful, but recovered in the feature race, executing an early pit stop to finish third after an incident for Dan Ticktum ahead.Drugovich endured a tough weekend in Baku. A first-lap collision with Oscar Piastri in the opening sprint earned him a ten-second penalty, which dropped him out of the top ten, while he also failed to score points in the second sprint despite making up positions. He rebounded in the feature race with a charge to fourth place. More consistent points followed in Silverstone, with finishes of fourth, sixth and sixth across the three races. His momentum stalled in Monza, as he crashed out of the first sprint race after taking out Dan Ticktum earlier. He made limited progress in the second sprint, while confusion over front wing damage during his pit stop in the feature race dropped him to twelfth, concluding the weekend without points.
Further misfortune befell Drugovich in Sochi, where he crashed en route to the sprint race grid and was declared unfit to compete in the remainder of the event. Drugovich returned to form in Jeddah, qualifying fifth and finishing fourth in the opening sprint race. Contact from Jüri Vips behind hindered his pace during the second sprint, though post-race penalties elevated him to tenth. He secured fifth place in a red-flagged feature race. At the Abu Dhabi finale, Drugovich qualified eighth and finished second in the opening sprint after pressuring Daruvala throughout the race. He added further points in the second sprint, before concluding the season with a third-place podium in the feature race, overtaking Robert Shwartzman late on an alternate strategy. Drugovich ended the season eighth in the drivers' standings with 105 points and four podiums, but did not win a race.
2022: Champion
Drugovich re-joined MP Motorsport for 2022, this time partnering FIA Formula 3 graduate Clément Novalak. Upon re-joining the Dutch outfit, he stated that he "felt at home". In Bahrain, Drugovich qualified tenth and started from reverse pole in the sprint race, where he had a poor start and only managed to recover to fifth. In the feature race, an early pit stop strategy saw him run as high as second before dropping back to sixth on ageing tyres. In Jeddah, Drugovich secured his first pole position of the season. He finished fourth on the road in the sprint race after numerous overtakes, but was promoted to the podium following the post-race disqualification of Jake Hughes. The next day, he proceeded to dominate the feature race to claim his first win of the year, taking the championship lead for the first time. In Imola, Drugovich qualified twelfth but recovered to fifth in the sprint race after gaining multiple positions on the opening corner, before passing Logan Sargeant on the final lap. A safety car compromised his alternative strategy in the feature race, limiting him to tenth, which dropped him to second in the standings behind Théo Pourchaire.In Barcelona, Drugovich was due to start on reverse pole for the sprint race, but was penalised three places for impeding. Despite this setback, he managed to take the lead into the first corner, and remained unchallenged for the remainder of the race to secure the victory. In the feature race, a strong pit strategy allowed him to rejoin in the top three, and he soon dispatched his rivals to take the win. His double victory marked the first time a driver won both races during a FIA Formula 2 weekend, which significantly extended his championship lead. Despite crashing in qualifying in Monaco, Drugovich inherited pole position following a penalty for Liam Lawson. A puncture in the sprint race ended his sprint prematurely on lap 20, but he rebounded in the feature race, resisting sustained pressure from Pourchaire to claim his fourth victory of the season. In Baku, he qualified fifth and finished in the same position during the sprint. In the feature race, Drugovich inherited third place after late-race incidents ahead, extending his championship advantage to 51 points.
In Silverstone, Drugovich qualified third and scored consistently across the weekend, fifth in a wet sprint race and fourth in the feature race after a last-lap pass on Frederik Vesti. In Austria, he placed fourth in the sprint race, though a strategic misstep backfired for Drugovich in the feature race after starting on wet tyres on a drying track; he finished eleventh. In France, he qualified second, but his lap time was deleted due to track limits, dropping him to sixth. He finished fourth in the sprint race, later being promoted to the podium following a penalty ahead, and concluded the weekend with fourth place in the feature race. In Budapest, despite qualifying third, tyre degradation limited him to ninth in the feature race, allowing Pourchaire to close the gap further ahead of the summer break.
Drugovich claimed pole in Spa-Francorchamps, and recovered from twelfth to fourth following a late pit stop for fresh tyres. He finished second in the feature race after being undercut by Jack Doohan during the pit stop phase. In Zandvoort, he secured consecutive poles for the first time in his career, and returned to winning form in the feature race, extending his championship lead to 69 points. In Monza, Drugovich qualified fourth, but received a grid penalty for the sprint race after breaching yellow flag regulations. Despite retiring early after contact with Amaury Cordeel, Pourchaire's non-scoring finish ensured Drugovich was crowned the 2022 FIA Formula 2 Champion. He added points in the feature race with sixth place despite limited pace. At the Abu Dhabi finale, Drugovich secured third place late in the sprint race after a move on Amaury Cordeel, and concluded the season with second place in the feature race after pressuring Ayumu Iwasa during the closing laps. Drugovich ended the year as champion with 265 points; 101 ahead of Pourchaire; recording five wins, four poles and eleven podiums.