Race Report

FIA ADAC FORMULA 4
GERMAN CHAMPIONSHIP, Rounds 01/02/03

Circuit: Oschersleben (D), Length 3.696 km, 15^th/16^th/17^th April 2016
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JENZER MOTORSPORT 2016:
Jan-Erik Meikup (EST), Fabio Scherer (CH), Kevin Kratz (D), Job van Uitert (NL)

No luck despite potential at Oschersleben

The first of eight race events featuring the new FIA ADAC Formula 4 German Championship took place on the technical track at Oschersleben (D). There were 38 drivers ready to start the much anticipated season. The races can be followed live on Sport1 tv.

Qualifying

Friday, 15/04/2016, 15.20 – 16.05, Weather: Cloudy, 14°C

Under the series regulations the enormous field is split into two groups, each of which has a 20 minute qualifying session. The 11 fastest drivers from each group qualify directly for the races. After that a qualification race takes place, in which the remaining drivers qualify for the last available places for the official races, according to the capacity of each circuit.
The fastest lap time per driver is used to set the grid for Race One and the second fastest lap time is used to set the starting positions for Race Two. The grid for Race Three is determined by the results of Race One, with the first ten finishers starting in reverse order.
Qualifying took place after two short free practice sessions in the morning, which enabled drivers to prepare for the upcoming race.

FIA ADAC Formula 4 German Championship

Qualifying Race (20 minutes)

Saturday, 16/04/2016, 08.55, Weather: Cloudy, 11°C

Fabio suffered wheelspin at the start and got away somewhat later than the others. He dropped back to 9th and took a few laps to find his rhythm. He was then able to start putting pressure on the driver ahead of him. He later managed to pass him and was able to keep pace with the lead group very successfully. When Soderstrom made a mistake and fell off, this meant Fabio took the chequered flag in 7^th. Jan-Erik had a similar experience at the start and lost two positions but then held onto his position for the rest of the race, crossing the line in 11^th. Both our drivers gained useful racing mileage and experience in the qualifying race.

FIA ADAC Formula 4 German Championship

Race One (30 minutes)

Saturday, 16/04/2016, 14.40, Weather: Rain, 12°C

Job started from 6^th, Kevin from 17^th, Fabio from 29^th, and Jan-Erik from 33^rd. Just as the F4s lined up on the grid there was a heavy downpour. The start procedure was delayed, and most teams used the time to mount wet weather tyres. When the race started it was behind the Safety Car. Job initially held his position, but then went off track and bounced over the grass before slotting back in in 18^th. Kevin also went off and dropped back to 30^th. Meanwhile Fabio and Jan-Erik first held their positions, then steadily began moving up the order. Correa got stuck on the kerbs and unfortunately that meant the Safety Car has to be deployed. At the restart there was much movement in the pack and Job made significant progress to claim 9^th place. Fabio was already in 16^th, Kevin was 21^st and Jan-Erik was right behind him in 22^nd but then the rain started to fall even more heavily and two cars ended up stranded in the gravel. The Safety Car was deployed again. At the restart there wasn’t much time left. Even so Job managed a determined move to claim 8^th place after a good race. If only he hadn’t had the off-track incident earlier in the race! Fabio also managed to overtake well and secured 15^th place in the end, putting in a good chase for positions despite the two Safety Car phases. Kevin took the chequered flag in 20^th and Jan-Erik was 22^nd despite the difficult and challenging conditionsl.

FIA ADAC Formula 4 German Championship

Race Two (30 minutes)

Sunday, 17/04/2016, 10.10, Weather: Cloudy, 8°C

The track had not completely dried out so the race again started under the Safety Car. Even so right after the start an accident happened in the second corner and the race had to be red flagged. The field set up on the grid again and the Safety Car took over for a new start. Soon another incident happened and the Safety Car was redeployed for several laps. Finally the race was restarted with a total of eight racing laps left. Our drivers started as follows: Job was 18^th, Kevin 19^th, Fabio from 21^st and Jan-Erik 31^st. They all managed to keep out of trouble and Job even put in some decisive overtaking manoeuvres as he worked his way forward to 13^th. Kevin followed his lead and managed to move up the order to 15^th. Not far behind them Fabio was improving his position steadily and crossed the finish line in 17^th. Jan-Erik also worked his way forward finally ending up in 22^nd.

FIA ADAC Formula 4 German Championship

Race Three (30 minutes)

Sunday, 17/04/2016, 16.40, Weather: Cloudy, 12°C

It was dry for Race 3 and the sun was shining. Immediately after the start the trouble started regardless. Kevin was collected by another driver and the resulting accident involved several drivers. The Safety Car had to be deployed, and Kevin’s race was sadly over. At the restart Job was 3^rd, but Schumacher soon passed him. Next the leader, Vips, was awarded a stop/go penalty for jumped start, and Schumacher passed Flörsch for the lead. Job was 3^rd for a short time, but then Mawson passed him, and then Flörsch. Job was close to Flörsch and tried to overtake but it went all wrong and he ended up in the barriers, costing him what would have been an excellent result and valuable points. Fabio started well and moved steadily up the order. He was up to 10^th and was in the points, but when he attempted to move in 9^th he got involved in a last corner tangle and dropped back to 18^th, which was a real pity!

The next race meeting in the ADAC Formula 4 series takes place in 2 weeks’ time, on the week end of 1^st May 2016 at the Sachsenring (D).

Championship Standings

FIA ADAC Formula 4 German 2015 after 3 races out of 24:
1^st Joey Mawson (AUS), 68 points; 2^nd Mick Schumacher, 49 points; 3^rd Kim Luis Schramm (D), 44 points; 4^th Jannes Fittje (D), 31 points; 5^th Mike Ortmann (D), 15 points; 6^th Thomas Preining (AUT), 23 points

2016 FIA ADAC FORMEL 4 GERMAN CHAMPIONSHIP - AGENDA

More info:

• www.adac-motorsport.de/adac-formel-4/de/