Joshua Dufek (born 13 December 2004) is an Austrian-Swiss racing driver of German descent who last competed in the FIA Formula 3 for AIX Racing. He previously drove for Van Amersfoort Racing in F4 and FRECA and for CryptoTower in the Euroformula Open, achieving a pair of victories.[1]

Joshua Dufek
Dufek at the Red Bull Ring in 2023
NationalitySwitzerland Swiss
Austria Austrian
via dual nationality
Born (2004-12-13) 13 December 2004 (age 19)
Camden Town, London, United Kingdom
FIA Formula 3 Championship career
Debut season2023
Current teamAIX Racing
Car number28
Former teamsCampos Racing
Starts22 (22 entries)
Wins0
Podiums0
Poles0
Fastest laps0
Best finish28th in 2024
Previous series
2023
2023
20222023
2022
2021
2021
2020
Euroformula Open
FR Middle East Championship
FR European Championship
FR Asian Championship
ADAC Formula 4
Italian F4 Championship
F4 Spanish Championship

Career

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Lower formulae

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2020

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Having started kart racing at the age of seven,[2][3] Dufek followed up his karting career with a move into single-seaters in 2020, competing in the F4 Spanish Championship with MP Motorsport.[4][5] His season would start out slowly compared to his teammates Kas Haverkort and Mari Boya,[6] with just one podium and pole position scored in race three in Navarra to show for his efforts.[7] Dufek's results would improve afterwards, getting two back-to-back third places in the third round at Jerez, and followed that up by finishing second twice at the following event in Valencia, crossing the finish line less than a second after teammate Haverkort.[8] The Swiss driver scored three more podiums in the latter half of the campaign, finishing the season in fourth position in the standings, tied on points with fellow rookie Thomas ten Brinke.[9]

2021

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Dufek racing in the 2021 Italian F4 Championship at the Red Bull Ring.

In 2021 Dufek moved to Van Amersfoort Racing, partnering Oliver Bearman and Nikita Bedrin in the Italian and ADAC Formula 4 series.[10] His campaign in the former championship began in similar fashion to his 2020 season, having to wait for a podium until the eighth race of the season at Vallelunga.[11] He scored another podium in Imola, and went on to make a bold call to switch to rain tyres during the final race at the Red Bull Ring, which allowed him to charge to second place. His weekend of the season would come in Mugello: after having taken all three pole-positions of the event in qualifying,[12][13] Dufek finished second in the first race and came out victorious in race 2, having lost the lead at the start but taking it back after overtakes on Oliver Bearman and Sebastián Montoya.[14][15] The Swiss ended his season in the Italian championship in seventh place after amassing 154 points.[16]

 
Dufek racing in the 2021 ADAC Formula 4 Championship at the Red Bull Ring.

In the German championship Dufek would get his first podium in a VAR podium lockout in race 2 at Zandvoort, finishing second.[17] Dufek then went on to have two further races in which he narrowly missed out on taking victory, losing out in back-to-back races at the Hockenheimring and Nürburgring to Luke Browning and Tim Tramnitz respectively.[18][19] His ADAC F4 season also ended with him sat in seventh, having skipped the fourth round at the Sachsenring.[20]

Formula Regional

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2022

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Dufek racing in the 2022 Formula Regional European Championship at the Red Bull Ring.

Having taken part in post-season testing with MP Motorsport and Van Amersfoort Racing at the end of 2021, Dufek signed for the latter team to compete in the Formula Regional European Championship, driving alongside Levente Révész and Kas Haverkort.[21][22] Before the season, the Swiss driver competed in the first three rounds of the Formula Regional Asian series for Hitech Grand Prix, amassing two rookie podiums, ending 18th in the standings.[23][24][25] The start to his campaign in the European championship would prove trickier, as Dufek scored just two points in the first ten races, far from teammate Haverkort. However, a sudden upturn in form at the Hungaroring round with strong points finishes, followed by a double podium at the Red Bull Ring after the summer break, propelled the Swiss driver into the top 10 in the standings and rookie title contention.[26][27] Dufek arrived at the season finale at Mugello tenth in the standings, 11 points off rookie leader Leonardo Fornaroli. He put pressure on the Italian with a podium in race one and a front row start in race two,[28] but a late mistake fighting with Hadrien David saw him drop three positions and eventually miss out on the rookie championship by 4 points. This was, however, enough of a points haul for Dufek to leapfrog MP Motorsport's Mari Boya and secure ninth place in the final overall standings.[29]

2023

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At the start of 2023, Dufek raced in the 2023 Formula Regional Middle East Championship with PHM Racing.[30] He would go on to take his first Formula Regional victory at Kuwait Motor Town, only to have it stripped away due to a technical irregularity.[31][32] He finished the season sixth in the standings with two podiums to his name.

Dufek remained with Van Amersfoort Racing for the 2023 Formula Regional European Championship.[33][34] Despite a maiden pole position at the Hungaroring,[35][36] Dufek experienced a drop in speed due to what he described as a "recalcitrant engine", and opted to pull out of his contract during the summer break. He sat 9th in the standings at the time.[37] By the end of the season, Dufek had dropped to 13th in the overall standings, having scored 52 points.[38]

Euroformula Open

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After leaving Formula Regional midway through 2023, Dufek joined the Euroformula Open with CryptoTower Racing Team starting from the fifth round at the Red Bull Ring.[39] He scored a pair of podiums in his first round at the Red Bull Ring,[40] before achieving a maiden win in Monza.[41] He continued his podium streak in Mugello, making it seven rostrums in eight appearances, allowing him to place seventh in the overall standings.[42]

FIA Formula 3 Championship

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2023

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Dufek was called up by Campos Racing for the final round of the 2023 FIA Formula 3 Championship at Monza, replacing Hugh Barter.[43][44] After spinning out of qualifying, he finished 14th in both races, enough to propel him to 29th in the standings, ahead of six other drivers.[45][46] He then tested for PHM Racing during the post-season test.[47]

2024

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Dufek driving the Dallara F3 2019 during the 2024 Spielberg Formula 3 round.

For 2024, Dufek stepped up to FIA Formula 3 full-time, joining PHM AIX Racing for his first full Formula 3 season.[48] It would be a difficult season for Dufek, often fighting towards the rear of the field. However, he had a standout qualifying in Hungary with sixth, only for him to be disqualified for being below the minimum weight.[49][50] His sole point came in the season finale in the Monza feature race, classifying tenth after post-race penalties.[51] Dufek was ranked 28th in the standings, behind teammates Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak and Nikita Bedrin.[52]

Formula One

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At the start of 2019 Dufek joined the Sauber Junior Team along with Dexter Patterson and competed with their karting team in the CIK-FIA Karting European Championship and the Karting World Championship.[53][54] He left the academy before the start of his single-seater career in 2020.

Karting record

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Karting career summary

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Season Series Team Position
2013 LO Schweizer Kart Meisterschaft — Mini JD Racing Team 1st
2014 LO Schweizer Kart Meisterschaft — Super Mini JD Racing Team 7th
2015 WSK Final Cup — 60 Mini Spirit Racing NC
2017 ADAC Kart Masters — X30 Junior 4th
IAME Euro Series — X30 Junior 10th
CIK-FIA World ChampionshipOKJ Birel Art Racing Srl 73rd
IAME International Final — X30 Junior NC
2018 WSK Champions CupOKJ Forza Racing 17th
South Garda Winter Cup — OKJ 44th
German Karting Championship — Junior 19th
WSK Super Master SeriesOKJ 12th
WSK Open Cup — OKJ 34th
CIK-FIA European ChampionshipOKJ 19th
CIK-FIA World ChampionshipOKJ 21st
IAME International Final — X30 Junior 117th
WSK Final CupOKJ 37th
2019 Italian ChampionshipOK 5th
WSK Super Master SeriesOK KR Motorsport 21st
Championnat de France — OK 8th
WSK Euro SeriesOK Sauber Karting Team 9th
CIK-FIA European ChampionshipOK 20th
CIK-FIA World ChampionshipOK 16th
WSK Final CupOK NC
Sources:[55][56]

Racing record

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Racing career summary

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Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
2020 F4 Spanish Championship MP Motorsport 21 0 1 1 8 187 4th
2021 ADAC Formula 4 Championship Van Amersfoort Racing 18 0 0 0 4 127 7th
Italian F4 Championship 21 1 3 2 5 154 7th
FIA Central European Zone Formula 4 2 1 1 1 1 25 7th
2022 Formula Regional Asian Championship Hitech Grand Prix 9 0 0 0 0 12 18th
Formula Regional European Championship Van Amersfoort Racing 19 0 0 0 3 79 9th
2023 Formula Regional Middle East Championship PHM Racing 15 0 0 3 2 105 6th
Formula Regional European Championship Van Amersfoort Racing 12 0 1 0 0 52 13th
FIA Formula 3 Championship Campos Racing 2 0 0 0 0 0 29th
Euroformula Open Championship CryptoTower Racing Team 8 1 0 0 7 138 7th
2024 FIA Formula 3 Championship PHM AIX Racing
AIX Racing
20 0 0 0 0 1 28th

* Season still in progress.

Complete F4 Spanish Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 DC Points
2020 MP Motorsport NAV
1

11
NAV
2

7
NAV
3

3
LEC
1

Ret
LEC
2

6
LEC
3

5
JER
1

3
JER
2

3
JER
3

5
CRT
1

2
CRT
2

2
CRT
3

Ret
ARA
1

3
ARA
2

4
ARA
3

10
JAR
1

2
JAR
2

2
JAR
3

5
CAT
1

4
CAT
2

6
CAT
3

4
4th 187

Complete ADAC Formula 4 Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Pos Points
2021 Van Amersfoort Racing RBR
1

11
RBR
2

4
RBR
3

Ret
ZAN
1

8
ZAN
2

2
ZAN
3

7
HOC1
1

Ret
HOC1
2

5
HOC1
3

8
SAC
1
SAC
2
SAC
3
HOC2
1

4
HOC2
2

7
HOC2
3

2
NÜR
1

2
NÜR
2

3
NÜR
3

12
7th 127

Complete Italian F4 Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Pos Points
2021 Van Amersfoort Racing LEC
1

9
LEC
2

22
LEC
3

8
MIS
1

28†
MIS
2

9
MIS
3

6
VLL
1

5
VLL
2

3
VLL
3

10
IMO
1

3
IMO
2

6
IMO
3

4
RBR
1

5
RBR
2

Ret
RBR
3

2
MUG
1

2
MUG
2

1
MUG
3

Ret
MNZ
1

22
MNZ
2

9
MNZ
3

8
7th 154

Complete Formula Regional Asian Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate the fastest lap of top ten finishers)

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Pos Points
2022 Hitech Grand Prix ABU
1

9
ABU
2

6
ABU
3

16
DUB
1

12
DUB
2

16
DUB
3

10
DUB
1

16
DUB
2

27†
DUB
3

10
DUB
1
DUB
2
DUB
3
ABU
1
ABU
2
ABU
3
18th 12

Complete Formula Regional European Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Pos Points
2022 Van Amersfoort Racing MNZ
1

18
MNZ
2

13
IMO
1

12
IMO
2

10
MCO
1

DNQ
MCO
2

22
LEC
1

Ret
LEC
2

25
ZAN
1

23
ZAN
2

10
HUN
1

5
HUN
2

6
SPA
1

10
SPA
2

21
RBR
1

2
RBR
2

3
CAT
1

8
CAT
2

Ret
MUG
1

3
MUG
2

7
9th 79
2023 Van Amersfoort Racing IMO
1

8
IMO
2

Ret
CAT
1

6
CAT
2

5
HUN
1

6
HUN
2

4
SPA
1

14
SPA
2

21
MUG
1

5
MUG
2

25
LEC
1

23
LEC
2

20
RBR
1
RBR
2
MNZ
1
MNZ
2
ZAN
1
ZAN
2
HOC
1
HOC
2
13th 52

Complete Formula Regional Middle East Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 DC Points
2023 PHM Racing DUB1
1

6
DUB1
2

16
DUB1
3

13
KUW1
1

3
KUW1
2

DSQ
KUW1
3

10
KUW2
1

9
KUW2
2

7
KUW2
3

7
DUB2
1

4
DUB2
2

6
DUB2
3

3
ABU
1

5
ABU
2

4
ABU
3

5
6th 105

Complete FIA Formula 3 Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 DC Points
2023 Campos Racing BHR
SPR
BHR
FEA
MEL
SPR
MEL
FEA
MON
SPR
MON
FEA
CAT
SPR
CAT
FEA
RBR
SPR
RBR
FEA
SIL
SPR
SIL
FEA
HUN
SPR
HUN
FEA
SPA
SPR
SPA
FEA
MNZ
SPR

14
MNZ
FEA

14
29th 0
2024 PHM AIX Racing
AIX Racing
BHR
SPR

24
BHR
FEA

27
MEL
SPR

22
MEL
FEA

22
IMO
SPR

16
IMO
FEA

22
MON
SPR

Ret
MON
FEA

20
CAT
SPR

17
CAT
FEA

17
RBR
SPR

25
RBR
FEA

Ret
SIL
SPR

23
SIL
FEA

Ret
HUN
SPR

22
HUN
FEA

22
SPA
SPR

24
SPA
FEA

14
MNZ
SPR

Ret
MNZ
FEA

10
28th 1

Complete Euroformula Open Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Pos Points
2023 CryptoTower Racing Team PRT
1
PRT
2
PRT
3
SPA
1
SPA
2
SPA
3
HUN
1
HUN
2
HUN
3
LEC
1
LEC
2
LEC
3
RBR
1

3
RBR
2

4
RBR
3

3
MNZ
1

2
MNZ
2

2
MNZ
3

1
MUG
1

3
MUG
2

2
CAT
1
CAT
2
CAT
3
7th 138

References

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  1. ^ "JOSHUA DUFEK | Winning in F4, Joining Sauber F1 and An Issue of Nationalities!", YouTube, retrieved 27 March 2022
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