Top 10 European Formula 3 drivers of 2015

7.  Maximilian Gunther

kfzteile24 Mucke Motorsport / Prema Powerteam

8th, 152 points

Wins: 1 ( Norisring R2)

Average qualifying gap against best teammate: +0.203s

The Gunther v. Jensen title battle was a fitting send-off to the greatly underrated German series ADAC Formel Masters, one in which the latter came out on top. But stepping up to F3, it's Gunther who scored more points - and it's Gunther who won a race.

Just like Jensen, Gunther didn't enjoy terribly consistent form, but he was brilliant when it all came together. That said, it was a miracle that his confidence wasn't irreparably damaged by a stint where he started five races in a row from third on the grid and only claimed a maiden podium from his final attempt.

But the highlight, of course, a brilliant Norisring win from 12th on the grid, the German passing the three victory contenders in one corner.

Having been with Mucke since 2013, he left the Berlin-based team with two rounds to go and lined up with Prema for the Hockenheim finale. In what was clearly the field's best car, Gunther was one of the top drivers and he might just trouble for the title if Prema run him full-time in 2016.

6.  George Russell

Carlin

6th, 203 points

Wins: 1 ( Silverstone R2)

Average qualifying gap against best teammate: +0.413s

BRDC F4 champion Russell was already a pretty big deal heading into F3, so it was no shock when he rocked up to Silverstone and won in his very first weekend in the series.

What was a lot more surprising is that the young Brit never really troubled for the top spot the rest of the year. He could've added a win at the Nurburgring, but superb performances in the two qualifying sessions were negated by a strict engine change penalty.

After his Silverstone introduction, Russell appeared to struggle quite a bit for qualifying form, although his racecraft was impressive as he finished the first 32 races of the season before being punted off in the very final race.

He's got the whole consistency part down and, if he sorts qualifying and stays on in F3, he'll be a title favorite.

5.  Lance Stroll

Prema Powerteam

5th, 231 points

Wins: 1 ( Hockenheim II R1)

Average qualifying gap against best teammate: +0.430s

Midway through 2015, you had to feel for Lance Stroll. He was the reigning Italian F4 champion, the reigning Toyota Racing Series champion, and yet those achievements took a back seat to the spectacular crashes he caused at Monza and Spa, the latter earning him a one-race ban.

The punishment was deserved, but it didn't define his campaign, as the Canadian bounced back much stronger. By the time his long-time teammate Brandon Maisano, the only other rookie at Prema, called it quits on F3, the Frenchman had been vastly outscored by Stroll.

And when Prema became dominant in the final rounds, Stroll went from good to great, posting 11 top-five finishes in the final 15 races and eventually scoring a maiden win.

It appears that he will be staying put in F3 next year and, if Prema starts 2016 as strong as it ended 2015 and the Canadian is given the lead driver status, there's a good chance he'll dominate the year.

4.  Jake Dennis

Prema Powerteam

3rd, 377 points

Wins: 6 ( Pau R1, R2, Spa-Francorchamps R2, R3, Spielberg R1, Algarve R1)

Average qualifying gap against best teammate: +0.216s

Racing Steps Foundation protege Jake Dennis was certainly quick enough to fight for the F3 title this year. But bad luck mixed with a number of self-inflicted non-scores meant he was left playing catch-up for most of the year - and catch up he never did.

He ran the show at Pau and would've entered the title fight with hat-trick of wins if his suspension didn't break late in Race 3. He was right on the tail of the main trio after two Spa wins, but then suffered four consecutive non-scores.

He did eventually catch and pass Charles Leclerc in the standings and almost dealt with Antonio Giovinazzi, too, but Prema's late form was certainly a big help - and Rosenqvist was untouchable.

In racking up 16 podiums and finishing third overall, Dennis certainly justified his continued RSF backing. But the British talent programme will probably want to see him back in his 2011-12 title-winning form sooner rather than later.

3.  Antonio Giovinazzi

Jagonya Ayam with Carlin

2nd, 412.5 points

Average qualifying gap against best teammate: -0.202s

Wins: 6 ( Hockenheim I R1, Pau R3, Norisring R3,  Zandvoort R1, Spielberg R3,
Hockenheim II R2)

Giovinazzi's junior career has seen him go from an underrated Italian youngster to a bona fide F3 star as he kicked off his third season with a brutally impressive streak of nine consecutive podiums.

He and Carlin never seemed like the outright quickest combination on any weekend, but they were pretty much always there or thereabouts, allowing him to rack up the results.

A couple of unnecessary incidents throughout the campaign robbed him of points that could have made for a crucial cushion over Rosenqvist during the late Prema surge - and while he was the only driver to take wins away from the Italian team in the last four rounds of the season, second overall was, by that point, the best he could've done.

His impressive campaign meant he was the number one choice to replace the suspended Timo Scheider for the DTM round at Moscow - hopefully he's done enough to be considered for a full season next year.

2.  Felix Rosenqvist

Prema Powerteam

1st, 508 points

Wins: 13 ( Silverstone R1,  Hockenheim I R2,  Monza R1, R2, R3,  Zandvoort R2, Spielberg R2, Algarve R2, R3,  Nurburgring R1, R2, R3, Hockenheim II R3)

Average qualifying gap against best teammate: -0.105s

It's easy to cite the fact that Rosenqvist has been in F3 since 2010 as a criticism, but it does him a disservice - the Swede has been quick in the category from the get go and now, given his first chance with perennial champions Prema, he delivered.

Apart from a couple of weak outings on street circuits, Rosenqvist usually seemed like by far the quickest driver in the field. And while lost points early on - pretty much never of his own doing - meant he had to fight back to the top, an 11-round calendar was always going to be enough for him to catch up.

By the end of the season, he was a steamroller, going on an inspired 14-race podium streak after Norisring. There was no stopping Rosenqvist and there was no stopping Prema.

If this doesn't mean he's done enough to earn a drive in either DTM or GP2, nothing ever will.

1.  Charles Leclerc

Van Amersfoort Racing

4th, 363.5 points

Wins: 4 ( Silverstone R3, Hockenheim I R3, Spa-Francorchamps R1, Norisring R1)

Average qualifying gap against best teammate: -0.585s

Dennis, Giovinazzi and Rosenqvist are all fantastic junior drivers. But Leclerc is a superstar in the making, his sheer potential eclipsing anyone else who raced in F3 alongside him in 2015.

Succeeding his former karting rival Verstappen at VAR, Leclerc opened himself up to comparisons - but he stands up even to the brilliant Dutchman. Where Verstappen was flashy and occasionally dominant, Leclerc was consistent and reliable. The fact he managed eight podiums in his first nine races in a field as strong as this is nothing short of a miracle.

Admittedly, the Leclerc-VAR partnership seemed to lose a few tenths in the second half of the season. But he kept on banking points when he could - and, despite having two inexperienced but quite highly-regarded teammates, only once from 33 occasions was the Monegasque not the top VAR driver on the grid.

He appears ready for GP2, but it seems that GP3 or another year in F3 are his options. And that's a good thing - if he's allowed to develop at a steady pace, Leclerc will make for one hell of a racing driver.