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Race Report

FIA FORMULA 4
ITALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP, Rounds 16/17/18

Circuit: Mugello (I); Lenght: 5.245 km, 6th/7th/8th October 2017
www.mugellocircuit.it

JENZER MOTORSPORT 2017:
Kush Maini (IND), Job van Uitert (NL), Giorgio Carrara (ARG), Giacomo Bianchi (CH), Federico Malvestiti (I) & Gregoire Saucy (CH)

Podiums for Van Uitert and Carrara

The sixth and thus penultimate event in the Italian FIA Formula 4 Championship took place on the demanding circuit of Mugello (I), set in the hills near Florence. A race weekend had already been run here in July, so everyone was already familiar with the track. To add to the challenge though the weather was very changeable. You can follow the races live on sporttube tv.

Qualifying

Friday, 06/10/17, 16.30 – 17.10, Weather: Overcast, 16°C

The rules allow for two qualifying sessions of 15 minutes, with a 10-minute break in between. The Qualifying 1 times determine the grid for Race 1 and the times from Qualifying 2 determine the grid for Race 2. The starting order for Race 3 is based on the 2nd best lap times of each driver in either qualifying session.

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Results Qualifying 1 & Grid for Race One
1st Sebastian Fernandez (VEN) Bhaitech 1:47.396
2nd/sup> Marcus Armstrong (NZL) Prema 1:47.665
3rdtd> Leonardo Lorandi (I) Bhaitech 1:47.674
4th Job van Uitert (NL) Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.706
7th Kush Maini (IND) Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.860
11th Gregoire Saucy (CH) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.193
13th Giacomo Bianchi (CH) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.415
15th Giorgio Carrara (ARG) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.643
16th Federico Malvestiti (I) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.717

 

Results Qualifying 2 & Grid for Race Two
1st Marcus Armstrong (NZL) Prema 1:47.153
2nd Job van Uitert (NL) Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.300
3rd Leonardo Lorandi (I) Bhaitech 1:47.452
5th Kush Maini (IND) Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.541
11th Gregoire Saucy (CH) Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.806
13th Giacomo Bianchi (CH) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.102
15th Federico Malvestiti (I) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.311
17th Giorgio Carrara (ARG) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.429

 

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship

Race One (28 minutes + 1 lap)

Saturday, 07/10/17, 13.25, Weather: Sunny, 20°C

Job, who had started from 4th place, was sandwiched between two other cars which cost him a few places, but he was able to slot back in in 8th, immediately in front of Kush, who was running in 9th place. Gregoire, who had gained a place at the start, was in 10th and was able to put Kush under pressure, pulling alongside him several times. He just couldn’t quite make the move stick. Despite that Gregoire should be proud at scoring his first points! Giacomo started well and then got into a fight with Rodriguez. He had to give way in the end which put Giacomo 13th. Next thing Federico was behind him and applying pressure. Federico had overtaken Giorgio at the start and was on a good run but he couldn’t get past Giacomo. That meant Federico crossed the finish line in 14th. Giorgio, who had fallen back at the start, soon caught up and started to regain the places he had lost. Shortly before the end of the race he also managed to overtake Branquinho, which was important in terms of the Rookie Championship. Giorgio was on the rookie podium once again, this time in 3rd position!

Race One Results
1st Sebastian Fernandez (VEN) Bhaitech 30:45.777  
2nd Marcus Armstrong (NZL) Prema Gap 3.572
3rd Lorenzo Colombo (I) Bhaitech Gap 4.994
8th Job van Uitert (NL) Jenzer Motorsport    
9th Kush Maini (IND) Jenzer Motorsport    
10th Gregoire Saucy (CH) Jenzer Motorsport    
13th Giacomo Bianchi (CH) Jenzer Motorsport    
14th Federico Malvestiti (I) Jenzer Motorsport    
15th Giorgio Carrara (ARG) Jenzer Motorsport    
Fastest lap: Sebastian Fernandez (VEN) in 1:47.700

 

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship

Race Two (28 minutes + 1 lap)

Sunday, 08/10/17, 09.00, Weather: Sunny, 17°C

 

Job managed a very good start and immediately settled in in 2nd place. Kush was 4th, Federico 8th, Gregoire 10th, Giorgio 13th and Giacomo 14th when Colombo crashed out and the Safety Car had to be deployed. After the restart Job came under pressure from Lorandi, but he soon managed to break away and opened up a gap. Job was on a great charge and came home safely to claim a great 2nd place. Rodriguez managed to overtake Kush, but later on Kush was able to reclaim 4th before closing the gap on Lorandi and beginning to pile pressure on him. However, he didn’t take any risks and reached the finish line in an excellent 4th place. Gregoire overtook Federico at the restart and drove very well. He was already up in 7th and managed to bring this very good position home. Federico seemed to be set in a good 8th place, but then he encountered a problem with his car, ran wide and shot off into the gravel, which was a real pity. Giorgio had a race long battle with Fittipaldi, who finally passed him under yellows. Fittipaldi was later excluded from the results for this action, which meant Giorgio finished the race in a good 12th place. Giacomo dropped back after the start and then spent a long time in 17th place, improving to 15th in the closing stages.

Race Two Results
1st Marcus Armstrong (NZL) Prema 30:54.604  
2nd Job van Uitert (NL) Jenzer Motorsport Gap 2.117
3rd Leonardo Lorandi (I) Bhaitech Gap 6.285
4th Kush Maini (IND) Jenzer Motorsport    
7th Gregoire Saucy (CH) Jenzer Motorsport    
12th Giorgio Carrara (ARG) Jenzer Motorsport    
15th Giacomo Bianchi (CH) Jenzer Motorsport    
DNF: Federico Malvestiti (I) Jenzer Motorsport    
Fastest lap: Lirim Zendeli (D) in 1:48.071

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Grid for Race Three
1st Marcus Armstrong (NZL) Prema 1:47.211
2nd Job van Uitert (NL) Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.427
3th Leonardo Lorandi (I) Bhaitech 1:47.504
5th Kush Maini (IND) Jenzer Motorsport 1:47.557
11th Gregoire Saucy (CH) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.017
13th Giacomo Bianchi (CH) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.155
14th Federico Malvestiti (I) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.398
17th Giorgio Carrara (ARG) Jenzer Motorsport 1:48.623

 

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship

Race Three (28 minutes + 1 lap)

Sunday, 08/10/2017, 15.55, Weather: Sunny, 20°C

Job again settled in in 2nd place just as he had in the morning race and started in pursuit of Armstrong. He was soon very close, but then the message appeared, that Job had been given a drive through penalty because of a jump start. He served the penalty and with that any chance of a podium position was gone. He finished the race in 16th. Kush made a good start and was 4th, although a few laps later Petrov managed to pass him, the Russian’s tyres obviously much better than Kush’s at this stage. Kush gave it everything to try keep 5th, but then he was given a 25-second penalty because his mechanic had taken tape off his car after the five-minute board had been shown on the grid. That meant he was finally classified 18th. Giorgio was feeling very good in this race and managed to work his way forward into the top ten. He finally reached an excellent 9th place and also stepped onto the rookie podium once more, this time in 3rd place. Federico, Gregoire and Giacomo all drove well and reached the chequered flag one behind the other, in 11th, 12th and 13th respectively.

 

Race Three Results
1st Sebastian Fernandez (VEN) Bhaitech 30:59.116  
2nd Artem Petrov (RUS) DR Formula Gap 5.411
3rd Marcus Armstrong (NZL) Prema Gap 9.948
9th Giorgio Carrara (ARG) Jenzer Motorsport    
11th Federico Malvestiti (I) Jenzer Motorsport    
12th Gregoire Saucy (CH) Jenzer Motorsport    
13th Giacomo Bianchi (CH) Jenzer Motorsport    
16th Job van Uitert (NL) Jenzer Motorsport    
18th Kush Maini (IND) Jenzer Motorsport    
Fastest lap: Artem Petrov (RUS) in 1:47.797

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Championship Standings

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship 2017 after 18 races:
1st Marcus Armstrong (NZL), 267 points; 2nd Job van Uitert (NL), 214 points; 3rd Lorenzo Colombo (I), 187 points; 4th Sebastian Fernandez (VEN), 181 points; 5th Leonardo Lorandi (I), 161 points; 6th Artem Petrov (RUS), 142 points; 9th Kush Maini (IND), 85 points; 16th Federico Malvestiti (I), 9 points; 17th Gregoire Saucy (CH), 7 points; 18th Giacomo Bianchi (CH), 6 points; 21st Giorgio Carrara (ARG), 4 points

Rookie-Classification:
1st Leonardo Lorandi (I), 428 points; 2nd Enzo Fittipaldi (BRA), 257 points; 3rd Giorgio Carrara (ARG), 227 points

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2017 FIA FORMULA 4 ITALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP - CALENDAR

31st March/2nd April Misano (I)  
5th/7th May Adria (I)  
23rd/25th June Vallelunga (I)  
14th/16th July Mugello (I)  
8th/10th September Imola (I)  
6th/8th October Mugello (I)  
20th/22nd October Monza (I)  

 

More info: