2010 World Series by Renault
| Company type | Motorsport championship |
|---|---|
| Industry | Motorsport |
| Founded | 2005 |
Area served | Europe |
| Products | Formula Renault 3.5 Series, Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0, Eurocup Mégane Trophy, F4 Eurocup 1.6 |
| Website | www |
The 2010 World Series by Renault marked the sixth edition of Renault Sport's comprehensive motorsport initiative, encompassing four principal championships: the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0, Eurocup Mégane Trophy, and F4 Eurocup 1.6. Hosted across eight circuits, the event provided complimentary admission to spectators, aiming to foster closer connections with the brand.
Commencing on 17 April at Ciudad del Motor de Aragón in Alcañiz, the championship concluded on 10 October at the Circuit de Catalunya near Barcelona. In a change from previous years, the opening and closing rounds were reversed, with Catalunya staging the final event and Aragón initiating the series. The schedule featured rounds in Belgium, the Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Additionally, the Formula Renault 3.5 Series included a standalone race supporting the Grand Prix in May.
While the F4 Eurocup 1.6 made its debut within this framework, it did not participate at Brno, resulting in a seven-event calendar. Concurrently, the Eurocup Mégane Trophy began its campaign at Spa-Francorchamps.
Formula Renault 3.5 Series
The opening round of the 2010 season at Motorland Aragón saw a high attrition rate, leaving only nine drivers to finish. Returning from the FIA Formula Two Championship, Russian competitor Mikhail Aleshin claimed victory in race one, ahead of newcomer Daniel Zampieri and pole-sitter Daniel Ricciardo. Race two was won by Sten Pentus, followed by Jan Charouz and Ricciardo; however, Charouz was subsequently disqualified due to a technical violation, promoting Ricciardo to second place and Nathanaël Berthon to third. Aleshin secured his second win at Spa-Francorchamps, while Esteban Guerrieri delivered ISR Racing’s inaugural victory in race two after penalties affected his rivals. Zampieri finished second again, with Stefano Coletti completing the podium. Ricciardo achieved his first win during the Monaco round; Guerrieri was absent due to budget constraints and was replaced by GP3 leader Alexander Rossi.
Guerrieri returned for Brno, winning both races despite teammate Filip Salaquarda taking pole positions. This performance narrowed Guerrieri’s deficit to leader Aleshin to seven points. At Magny-Cours, Aleshin triumphed once more, while Berthon claimed his sole victory of the season in race two, extending Aleshin’s championship lead to 75 points over Ricciardo’s 66 and Guerrieri’s 59. ISR Racing was forced to miss the Hungaroring round due to chassis damage, allowing Ricciardo and Aleshin to score significant points while Pentus earned his second win of the year and overtook Guerrieri in the standings.
Following the summer break at Hockenheim, both Ricciardo and Guerrieri secured race wins as Aleshin’s advantage shrank to ten points over Ricciardo, with Guerrieri trailing by sixteen. At Silverstone, Guerrieri initially crossed first but was disqualified for a technical breach, handing victory to Jean-Éric Vergne of Tech 1 Racing. Despite an early crash involving Ricciardo, Guerrieri claimed his fifth win in race two, reducing his gap to Aleshin to sixteen points. In Barcelona’s opening race, Ricciardo’s victory brought him level with Aleshin at 128 points ahead of the final contest, effectively ending Guerrieri’s title hopes. Although Guerrieri won the final race, Aleshin’s late overtaking maneuver secured third place and clinched his first major championship crown. Tech 1 Racing dominated the teams’ championship by a margin of 72 points over ISR Racing.
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0
The 2010 season of the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 saw the introduction of the Barazi-Epsilon chassis, replacing the Tatuus model that had been in use for ten years. At the season's opening round in Motorland Aragón, newcomer Kevin Korjus, who had progressed from the Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup, claimed victory in both races. Following this weekend, Korjus held a 12-point advantage in the championship standings, while four other drivers also achieved podium finishes. Arthur Pic earned his inaugural Eurocup victory at Spa, finishing just behind Korjus and thereby widening Korjus's lead over Luciano Bacheta. Korjus secured a third triumph at Spa before Pic dominated the Brno event with two wins from pole position; during this time, Korjus finished outside the podium twice, allowing Bacheta—who consistently placed third—to close the gap.
At Magny-Cours, Korjus regained momentum by winning one race and finishing third in another, increasing his championship lead to 30 points over Bacheta, with Pic trailing closely in third place. Giovanni Venturini took his only win of the year at this venue. The Hungaroring rounds saw Pic and Bacheta each taking a race win; Pic moved up to second in the standings after Bacheta dropped to 18th due to an accident involving Korjus, who suffered his only retirement of the season. Despite this, Korjus maintained an 11-point lead over Pic, with Bacheta a further ten points behind.
Korjus dominated the final three rounds by amassing 87 out of a possible 90 points, including five victories and one second-place finish. Although Bacheta claimed another win—finishing second on track behind guest driver Javier Tarancón—the battle for runner-up was not settled until the last race. Prior to that event, Pic held a five-point advantage over Bacheta but was disqualified for ignoring a drive-through penalty after cutting a chicane while attempting to overtake teammate Carlos Sainz Jr.who participated as a guest, which resulted in Bacheta securing second place in the championship.
Eurocup Mégane Trophy
The opening round was cancelled due to technical difficulties, reducing the season schedule to 13 races. Dimitri Enjalbert, who had been the most successful driver in 2009, took victory in the only race held that weekend—his sole win of the campaign. Early in the season at Brno, Stefano Comini established himself as championship leader with strong performances but was later surpassed by Pierre Thiriet and Nick Catsburg, both of whom won races at Magny-Cours and Hungaroring. Catsburg dominated the latter portion of the season by winning four out of six remaining races, securing TDS Racing’s first drivers’ title since 2008. Thiriet finished as runner-up, trailing Catsburg by 27 points, while Comini ended third. Additionally, TDS Racing clinched the teams' championship comfortably, nearly doubling the points total of second-placed Oregon Team.
F4 Eurocup 1.6
During its sole season within the World Series framework, the 1600cc Formula Renault category featured two wet-weather races in Spain where Stoffel Vandoorne and Norman Nato each recorded victories. Vandoorne expanded his championship advantage through multiple wins—including two at Spa and a double victory at Hockenheim—and ultimately secured the title with one event remaining. Franck Matelli and Mathieu Jaminet also achieved race wins during the campaign. Late-season performances by Paul-Loup Chatin included two wins at Silverstone, propelling him into third place overall. Nato and Jaminet completed the top three positions in the final standings.
Race schedule
- Races marked with light blue shading are excluded from the World Series but contribute points to the Formula Renault 3.5 Series standings.
Formula Renault 3.5 Series
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Template:Country data RUSTemplate:Namespace detect showall Mikhail Aleshin | Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Carlin | 138 |
| 2 | Template:Country data AUSTemplate:Namespace detect showall Daniel Ricciardo | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Tech 1 Racing | 136 |
| 3 | Template:Country data ARGTemplate:Namespace detect showall Esteban Guerrieri | Template:Country data CZETemplate:Namespace detect showall ISR Racing | 123 |
| 4 | Template:Country data ESTTemplate:Namespace detect showall Sten Pentus | Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Fortec Motorsport | 78 |
| 5 | Template:Country data ESPTemplate:Namespace detect showall Albert Costa | Template:Country data ESPTemplate:Namespace detect showall Epsilon Euskadi | 78 |
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Template:Country data ESTTemplate:Namespace detect showall Kevin Korjus | Template:Country data FINTemplate:Namespace detect showall Koiranen Bros. Motorsport | 187 |
| 2 | Template:Country data GBRTemplate:Namespace detect showall Luciano Bacheta | Template:Country data AUTTemplate:Namespace detect showall Interwetten Junior Team | 124 |
| 3 | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Arthur Pic | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Tech 1 Racing | 123 |
| 4 | Template:Country data FINTemplate:Namespace detect showall Aaro Vainio | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Tech 1 Racing | 101 |
| 5 | Template:Country data ITATemplate:Namespace detect showallGiovanni Venturini | Template:Country data ESPTemplate:Namespace detect showallEpsilon Euskadi | 76 |
Eurocup Mégane Trophy
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Template:Country data NLDTemplate:Namespace detect showallNick Catsburg | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showallTDS Racing | 161 |
| 2 | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showallPierre Thiriet | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showallTDS Racing | 134 |
| 3 | Template:Country data CHETemplate:Namespace detect showallStefano Comini | Template:Country data ITATemplate:Namespace detect showallOregon Team | 107 |
| 4 | Template:Country data NLDTemplate:Namespace detect showallBas Schothorst | Template:Country data NLDTemplate:Namespace detect showallMcGregor by Equipe Verschuur | 88 |
| 5 | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showallDimitri Enjalbert | Template:Country data BELTemplate:Namespace detect showallThierry Boutsen#Boutsen Energy Racing – Boutsen Energy Racing | 67 |
F4 Eurocup 1.6
| Position | Competitor | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Template:Country data BELTemplate:Namespace detect showall Stoffel Vandoorne | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Autosport Academy | 159 |
| 2 | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Norman Nato | Autosport Academy | 123 |
| 3 | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Mathieu Jaminet | Autosport Academy | 112 |
| 4 | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Paul-Loup Chatin | Autosport Academy | 103 |
| 5 | Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Franck Matelli | Autosport Academy | 96 |
References
- Additional citations can be found in the linked articles.