Race Report

FIA FORMULA 4
ITALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP, Rounds 10/11/12

Circuit: Mugello (I), Length 5.245 km, 10^th/11^th/12^th July 2015
www.mugellocircuit.it

JENZER MOTORSPORT 2015:
Marcos Siebert (ARG), Lucas Mauron (CH) and Nico Rindlisbacher (CH)

First win for Siebert at Mugello

The fourth of seven meetings in the Italian FIA Formula 4 Championship took place at the demanding Mugello circuit with 26 drivers in attendance, all very keen to take on the latest challenge. The races can be followed live on sporttube tv.

Qualifying

Friday, 10/07/15, 17.40 – 18.20, Weather: Sunny, 30°C

The rules of the championship allow for two qualifying sessions, each 15 minutes long, with a break of just ten minutes in between. Results from qualification 1 determine the grid for Race One, while results from qualification session 2 determine the grid for Race Three; the grid for Race Two is based on the results of Race One, with the first ten finishers starting in reverse order.

After two free practice sessions qualifying was held at the end of Friday afternoon when temperatures were still very high. Marcos managed to qualify 7^th and 5^th. Lucas was in a good 12^th place at the end of the first session but couldn’t improve in the second session and ended up 18th. Nico, who was in the car for the first time since Monza, drove well, but couldn’t managed to slot all the sectors together successfully and was 20^th in both sessions.

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship

Race One (28 minutes + 1 lap)

Saturday, 11/07/15, 14.20, Weather: Sunny, 30°C

The race was run in the main heat of the day. Marcos held onto 7^th place and Lucas improved to 10^th place within the first two laps. Nico on the other hand didn’t make a good start and fell back to 25^th. He fought his way up the order with a series of determined overtaking manoeuvres and set some very good lap times on his way to a 17th place finish. Marcos defended 7^th place for a long time before he came under pressure from Baruch, Baruch managing to overtake Marcos. Marcos kept pace with Baruch and finished in an untroubled 8^th to secure 3^rd place for race 2. Lucas had several faster drivers behind him and was fighting to hold on to his position, but he had to give way to some of them as the race went on. He crossed the finishing line in 13^th.

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship

Race Two (18 minutes + 1 lap)

Sunday, 12/07/15, 09.00, Weather: Sunny, 25°C

This race was also run in warm conditions under a brilliant blue sky. Marcos held onto his 3rd place and then started to pressure Guzman. Positions changed on the second lap when Marcos moved into 2^nd place. For several long laps he followed Bertonelli closely, attacking when he could. The move didn’t work out immediately but five laps before the end of the race he had enough momentum to carry him through the next corner successfully and to claim the lead. Marcos managed to pull away immediately from Bertonelli and also set the fastest lap of the race to claim his first win in this category very convincingly! Lucas first held his position and then fought it out successfully with Shwartzman, Kanayet and Aron. He had already worked his way forward to 10^th place and shortly before the end he managed to catch Raucci. As a result he took the chequered flag in a very good 9^th place and set the 2^nd fastest lap of the race. Nico also got a good start this time and again overtook Desideri much as he had done yesterday. Later on he also overtook Sato, setting the 7^th fastest lap of the race and coming home in 16^th.

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship

Race Three (28 minutes + 1 lap)

Sunday, 12/07715, 17.05, Weather: Sunny, 32°C

The race started in even hotter conditions on Sunday afternoon. Marcos made a good start but lost two places in one of the corners. However shortly afterwards he managed to gain back both positions and then drove well in 5^th place. Nico also made a super start and gained several positions and was soon up in 13^th, a position he was able to maintain for a number of laps. Lucas didn’t get away as well, but then started to make up ground. While Nico was fighting with Peroni, Lucas managed to get between them to snatch 13^th. Then there was an accident involving two cars and while they were being cleared the marshals hung out the yellow flags. The drivers had been told that if this happened they must slow down considerably through the affected sector. 12 drivers were immediately handed Drive Through penalties for not complying with this rule. It took several laps until they had all served their penalties, which shook the order up enormously. Marcos certainly benefitted and moved up to 3rd as a result, on the podium once again! Nico also moved up the order considerably and came home just behind Marcos in 4^th place. Lucas unfortunately was one of the group of drivers who were handed the penalty. After having served the penalty Lucas finally reached the finishing line in 15^th, a somewhat unexpected result.

The next race meeting for Formula 4 Italy takes place after the summer break in eight weeks’ time, on the weekend of 6^th September at Adria (I).

Championship Standings

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship 2015 after 12 races out of 21:
1^st Ralf Aron (EST), 206 points; 2^nd Guan Yu Zhou (CIN), 156 points; 3^rd David Beckmann (D), 101 points; 4^th Joao Vieira (BRA), 79 points; 5^th Robert Shwartzman (RUS), 78 points; 6^th Bar Baruch (ISR), 72 points; 7^th Marcos Siebert (ARG), 70 points; 8^th Lucas Mauron (CH), 30 points; 15^th Nico Rindlisbacher (CH), 22 points; 20^th Arlind Hoti (D), 4 points

2015 FIA FORMULA 4 ITALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP - CALENDAR

More info:

• www.acisportitalia.it/F4/
• www.italiaracing.net