2020 was one of the best years in Mari Boya’s racing career. Throughout the year, the young Spaniard talent jumped from karting to single seater racing, achieved race wins in Formula 4, fought for the title and tested a Formula 3 Regional car for the first time. Learning, adaptation, and good results coming from effort have been the key factors of a successful year for the driver from Les. 

Boya is already established as one of the brightest young racing talents in from Spain but, how did he achieve this reputation? The following paragraphs contain a review of everything about Mari Boya’s 2021 season, including the key moments of his progression and growth as a driver.

His Racing season began in February. Boya raced in the IAME Winter Cup, his last race as a karting driver. The Catalan driver had just been fourth in the Spanish Karting Championship and he was already focused on the jump to single seaters. However, he said goodbye to karting with this race, where some of the best young talents, both local and international, raced al the Kartódromo Internacional lucas Guerrero, in Chiva (Spain).

The Formula 4 Spanish Championship season was due to start in April, but the pandemic broke out. The world stopped and Boya, just like all racing drivers, had to wait. The lockdown left him unable to test the car and announce his plans, but he kept working out to stay physically fit and drove in the simulator, so he did not lose his training routine.

The months went by and there was absolute uncertainty about the season. On June 1, the Spanish Federation (RFEdA) announced the new, revised calendar. The season would finally begin on July 18 in Navarra Circuit. One month before the start of the championship, Boya announced he would be racing with MP Motorsport.

The Dutch squad was an undoubtedly winner choice. They were involved in the championship since it was created and were successful in every year. Moreover, Boya had already tested with them in several occasions, including one on the same week of the announcement.

Finally, July came. The moment to see where Boya really was compared to his rivals had arrived. The first race in Navarra cleared all doubt if there was any: Boya finished second after starting fourth. The good sensations were starting to be confirmed, as he finished his very first F4 race on the podium. The weekend ended with a fourth place in Race 3 and a lot to learn ahead of the season that had just started.

This good weekend was not exceptional, and the results and sensations did nothing but improve throughout the season. In Paul Ricard, he finished all three races on the podium and achieved his first Pole Position on the series. The expectations put on him started to be accomplished.

The definitive confirmation arrived in Jerez. There, Boya had one of his best moments of the season as he took victory in Race 1. He would leave the Andalusian track in second place of the championship after a great weekend. He stayed in that position until the end of the season.

The season went by and Boya saw himself on the podium at least once in every single round. His best weekend was in Aragon, where he took two wins, two Pole Positions and finished all three races on the podium. In Barcelona, his home event, his season came to an end with three podium finishes, saying goodbye to the series in good fashion.

The hard work had paid off. Boya had just stepped up to Formula 4 and his main goals were learning, being consistent, and growing as a driver. In one of the biggest leaps in a drivers’ career (from karting to formula racing), his ability to adapt was once again determinant and allowed him to obtain good results, which improved as the season went by. 2020 turned Boya into a smarter and better driver. His efforts were converted into good results.

Mari started to prepare for 2021 season in the last month of the year. The Spaniard had his first testing session at the wheel of a Formula 3 Regional car. He was firstly invited by Renault Sport to the Formula Renault ‘rookie test’, held in Paul Ricard. He had his first laps there with R-Ace GP.

The French squad is not, however, the only team he tested with. Throughout an extensive testing week in Motorland Aragon and Barcelona-Catalunya Circuit, the young talent lapped with MP Motorsport, M2 Competition and Arden Motorsport. All of them are competitive teams, with experience on the series and a successful record. It was, to sum up, a productive month to gain his first experiences with the new car. 

In conclusion, 2020 was a year of growth and learning in which Mari Boya established himself as one of the most promising racing talents from Spain. The driver is ready for the upcoming season and for every challenge 2021 will bring him on this new phase of his career.