F3: Vesti moves into second in the championship after beating Hauger in Race 3 at the Red Bull Ring

The Mercedes vs Red Bull academy battle in Formula 3 intensified at the Red Bull Ring, with Frederik Vesti beating Dennis Hauger to victory in Race 3 to move into second place in the championship behind the PREMA Racing driver.

Mercedes academy driver Vesti’s win was his first for ART Grand Prix and secured him a second podium of the weekend, after he finished second in Race 2 on Saturday.

READ MORE: Ralf Schumacher's son David takes maiden series win in commanding Race 2 display

Red Bull junior Hauger took his third successive podium, but had to recover from a tough opening stint, with the polesitter briefly dropping to third behind Alex Smolyar.

Hauger’s PREMA team mate Olli Caldwell took the final podium position after a brave late move on Smolyar. The ART Grand Prix had looked likely to take the lead at one point after passing Hauger, but struggled for pace in the closing laps and fell to fourth.

READ MORE: Hauger thunders to Race 1 victory from P12 in dramatic fashion at the Red Bull Ring

Hauger increased his lead at the top of the championship to 115 points, with Vesti now in second on 74, after Hauger’s two main title rivals going into Round 3, Victor Martins and Jack Doohan, failed to take points.

The duo were fighting in the top 10 before getting taken out of the race due to separate collisions.

For the full report, results and more news, visit the official F3 website.