Three youngsters were in action at Vallelunga on Friday, their prize for success in various race series this season.

Daniel Juncadella, winner of the Formula 3 European Series and the new FIA European Formula 3 Championship, got his first taste of F1, courtesy of the (2009) F60, as did Riccardo Agostini and Eddie Cheever Jnr, who finished first and second in the Italian Formula 3 Championship.

The prize, which has been awarded since 2008, by the Ferrari Driver Academy and the ACI -CSAI, is aimed at promoting young talent in Italian motorsport.

Juncadella was first on track, the 21-year-old from Barcelona completing five runs as planned. The youngster took both titles after a tight year long battle with his Prema Power team-mate Raffaele Marciello, also a Ferrari Driver Academy student.

Next out was Eddie Cheever Jnr, born in '93 and the son of former F1 and Indy Racing League racer Eddie Cheever, while in the afternoon it was Italy's Riccardo Agostini who tackled the Roman track.

"This was a really interesting day that confirms the worth of this initiative," said Luca Baldisserri, head of the Ferrari Driver Academy. "I hope this programme will continue for many years, helping with the development of young drivers.

"It's the first time we have given this prize also to the winner of the FIA European Formula 3 series, in the hope that this championship will become a reference point among the junior formulae leading to F1."