Race Report

FIA FORMULA 4
ITALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP, Rounds 13/14/15

Circuit: Adria (I), Length 2,702 km, 04^th/05^th/06^th September 2015
www.adriaraceway.com

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

Rindlisbacher and Siebert shine at Adria

The fifth of seven meetings in the Italian FIA Formula 4 Championship took place at the popular Adria (I) circuit with 26 competitors present for the initial meeting, their expectations high in advance of the start. You can follow the races live on sporttube tv.

Qualifying

Saturday, 05/09/15, 16.40 – 17.20, Weather: Overcast, 20°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.

At the start of the session black clouds were threatening and the wind started blowing. However the track stayed dry, lap times tumbled and the classification changed every lap. Nico finished in a good 8^th place, Lucas was 14^th, Marcos 15^th and Moritz 20^th. The drivers came in to the pit lane for the 10 minute break and tyres were changed. As soon as the lights went green the cars rushed on to the track again. Just four minutes into the session the first raindrops started falling which meant everybody was keen to get a good lap in. Nico was on a run and dived to the inside in one corner. Bertonelli however closed the door, and the resulting crash was unavoidable leading to a red flag stoppage. More rain fell, and just as everyone came back to the pit lane a real storm broke over the track. The session did not restart. At the time the red flag came out, Nico was in 2^nd, Marcos was 5^th, Moritz 16^th and Lucas 19^th and that was how they stayed.

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship

Race One (28 minutes + 1 lap)

Sunday, 06/09/15, 09.00, Weather: Sunny, 22°C

There was bright sunshine and the race started bang on time. Raucci and Vieira went off, and the other drivers had to try to get past the accident site without hitting anything. Nico made up places and was 5^th, Lucas also got past without damage and was 8^th after the first lap. Moritz improved his position and was already up in 12^th place. Marcos was progressing well when he got hit from behind and spun off the track. Luckily his car was not damaged and he slotted back in in 20^th. The Safety Car was deployed, and the order consolidated. Nico held onto 5^th place at the restart and was able to put pressure on Shwartzman but they were pretty evenly matched for speed, and Nico wasn’t about to take unnecessary risks with what could be his best result of the season. He was proud to cross the finish line in 5^th place. Lucas had the battling pair of Kanayet and Sato in front of him and then Baiz got involved as well, leading to some very hair raising fighting for positions. In the end Lucas managed to get in front of Kanayet and to finish in a very good 8^th. Moritz had worked his way up to 10^th and was now in an ideal position to watch the fierce battle going on ahead of him. When Lucas overtook Kanayet, Moritz also managed to go through and took the flag in a good 9th place. Marcos had made up places lap after lap and had done some great overtaking to finish 13^th. Adria had proven to be quite a challenging circuit technically, but it also offered some great overtaking opportunities.

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship

Race Two (18 minutes + 1 lap)

Sunday, 06/09/15, 12.30, Weather: Sunny, 22°C

Moritz and Lucas, who started 2^nd and 3^rd respectively, had plans for this race. Moritz managed to overtake Kanayet for the lead, but then ran wide, which allowed Kanayet and Lucas to get past again. The fight was of course not over though. Moritz and Lucas went side by side into the corner and unfortunately tangled and the possibility of a pair of podium finishes was now history. Moritz slotted back in in 8^th, and Lucas was also able to continue but much further back in 21^st place. The Safety Car was deployed because of another accident, this one involving Pankiewicz. Nico was 6^th at the restart, but was outbraked by Zhou shortly afterwards putting Nico 7^th behind Aron, Beckmann and Zhou. The quartet were fighting hard and Nico stuck close when Beckmann and Zhou slipped past Aron. Several corners later Nico also took to the inside and held his line to emerge in front of Aron a few corners later. With this super manoeuvre Nico was back in 6^th place and he crossed the finish line in this excellent position. Moritz had an off moment on the grass at the restart and dropped back to 11^th place. Later on he managed to gain back a place and thus finished the race in a good 10^th place. Marcos, who had moved up to 10^th after the start was overtaken by Zhou under the Safety Car. At the restart Marcos moved up to 8^th place directly behind Nico and managed to keep this position, despite several attacks from other drivers, all the way to the end. Lucas moved up to 18^th place at the restart, and from then on improved his position with some courageous manoeuvres. He drove decisively and managed to finish the race in a good 14^th place.

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship

Race Three (28 minutes + 1 lap)

Sunday, 06/09/15, 17.25, Weather: Sunny, 26°C

It was still hot at the end of the afternoon when the third race took place. The race was equally heated at the start and there were several incidents. Marcos was 7^th, and Nico, who first appeared in 4^th, then fell back to 12^th. Moritz and Lucas meanwhile were 16^th and 17^th. Marcos had to give way to Beckmann as the race wore on and was now 8^th. Nico overtook Shlom and Sato, and soon appeared in Marcos‘ mirrors but Marcos was busy battling with Kanayet, eventually going up the inside and not giving in until he was through. Nico didn’t wait long and followed suit which put the two of them 7^th and 8^th. When, shortly before the end of the race, Vieira made a mistake and dropped back, Marcos was promoted to finish 6^th with Nico just behind him in 7^th. Lucas had made up some places and finished the race in 13^th, while Moritz fell back after contact with another driver and crossed the finish line in 21^st.

The next race meeting for Formula 4 Italy takes place in two weeks’ time, on the weekend of 20^th September at Imola (I).

Championship Standings

FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship 2015 after 15 races out of 21:
1^st Ralf Aron (EST), 244 points; 2^nd Guan Yu Zhou (CIN), 189 points; 3^rd David Beckmann (D), 149 points; 4^th Robert Shwartzman (RUS), 129 points; 5^th Joao Vieira (BRA), 80 points; 5^th Marcos Siebert (ARG), 80 points; 10^th Nico Rindlisbacher (CH), 43 points; 12^th Lucas Mauron (CH), 38 points; 20^th Arlind Hoti (D), 4 points; 21^st Moritz Mueller-Crepon (CH), 2 points

2015 FIA FORMULA 4 ITALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP - CALENDAR

More info:

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