Race Report
FIA FORMULA 4
ITALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP, Rounds 04/05/06
Circuit: Misano (I), Length 4.226 km, 5th – 7th May 2023
www.misanocircuit.com
JENZER MOTORSPORT 2023:
Ethan Ischer (CH), Hwarang Kim (KOR), Ariel Elkin (ISR)
Getting closer to the points in Misano
The second of seven meetings in the Italian FIA Formula 4 Championship took place at the Misano World Circuit near Rimini (I). With 33 competitors present for the meeting, their expectations were as high as could be ahead of the start.
Qualifying
Friday, 05/05/23, 17.45 – 18.00 Q1, Weather: Sunny, 20°C
Friday, 05/05/23, 18.10 – 18.25 Q2
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 time of each driver in either of the two qualifying sessions.
In Q1, Ariel achieved 14th place, while Ethan qualified 18th and Hwarang 23rd. In Q2, Ethan qualified in 17th place with Ariel in 19th place and Hwarang in 24th position.
| Results Qualifying 1 & Grid for Race One | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Tuukka Taponen (FIN) | Prema | 1:34.870 |
| 2nd | Arvid Lindblad (GBR) | Prema | 1:34.883 |
| 3rd | James Wharton (AUS) | Prema | 1:34.955 |
| 14th | Ariel Elkin (ISR) | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:35.702 |
| 18th | Ethan Ischer (CH) | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:35.107 |
| 23rd | Hwarang Kim (KOR) | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:35.372 |
| Results Qualifying 2 & Grid for Race Two | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Arvid Lindblad (GBR) | Prema | 1:34.362 |
| 2nd | Ugo Ugochukwu (USA) | Prema | 1:34.386 |
| 3rd | James Wharton (AUS) | Prema | 1:34.423 |
| 17th | Ethan Ischer (CH) | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:35.081 |
| 19th | Ariel Elkin (ISR) | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:35.105 |
| 24th | Hwarang Kim (KOR) | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:35.481 |
| Grid for Race Three | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Arvid Lindblad (GBR) | Prema | 1:34.417 |
| 2nd | Ugo Ugochukwu (USA) | Prema | 1:34.519 |
| 3rd | Zachary David (AUS) | US Racing | 1:34.585 |
| 15th | Ariel Elkin (ISR) | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:35.132 |
| 16th | Ethan Ischer (CH) | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:35.180 |
| 23rd | Hwarang Kim (KOR) | Jenzer Motorsport | 1:35.529 |
FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship
Race One (30 minutes + 1 lap)
Saturday, 06/05/23, 12.10, Weather: Sunny, 22°C
The first race of the weekend got underway on Saturday at noon in very warm temperatures. With a remarkable start, Hwarang moved up to 17th place already by the end of the opening lap. Ariel and Ethan lost some ground at the start but immediately fought back. Everything was set for a great battle when, unfortunately, Ariel had to pit to change a damaged tire but was ablt to rejoin in 29th place. A brief safety car period neutralized the race and gave our Israeli rookie the chance to catch up with the field. As the race restarted, the battles for positions got very close. Hwarang showed an impressive pace and quickly moved up to 12th position. Points were on sight but disaster happened when he suffered a puncture. Hwarang entered the pits and retired his car, such a shame! As the race was coming to a close, Ethan and Ariel were giving it all in the final laps. Ethan crossed the line in 17th place, while Ariel managed to finish the race in 23rd position despite having lost the front wing in the last lap.
| Race One Results | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Tuukka Taponen (FIN) | Prema | 32:02.072 | |
| 2nd | Arvid Lindblad (GBR) | Prema | Gap | 0.413 |
| 3rd | James Wharton (AUS) | Prema | Gap | 1.780 |
| 20th | Ariel Elkin (ISR) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| 22nd | Ethan Ischer (CH) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| 25th | Hwarang Kim (KOR) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| Fastest lap: Kacper Sztuka (POL) in 1:35.281 | ||||
FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship
Race Two (30 minutes + 1 lap)
Saturday, 06/05/23, 17.35, Weather: Sunny, 22°C
Later in the afternoon, the lights went out on what turned out to be a clean and well fought race two. Ethan started in 17th place and got away well, moving up to 15th place by the end of the opening laps. Ariel also had a good getaway, snatching the 18th spot followed by his teammate Hwarang in 19th position. Lap after lap, Ethan found his rhythm and quickly climbed up the order. Halfway through the race, the Swiss driver was comfortably in 13th place and pushing for more. Behind him, Ariel was also busy making moves and finally settled in 14th position. Hwarang did his best to catch up and was fighting for 16th place, unfortunately he went wide and dropped down a few positions. When the checkered flag waved, Ethan crossed the line in a good 13th place followed by Ariel in a nice 14th position. Fighting hard, Hwarang brought his car safely to the finish line in 20th place.
| Race Two Results | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Arvid Lindblad (GB) | Prema | 31:58.059 | |
| 2nd | James Wharton (AUS) | Prema | Gap | 3.555 |
| 3rd | Ugo Ugochukwu (USA) | Prema | Gap | 4.436 |
| 13th | Ethan Ischer (CH) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| 14th | Ariel Elkin (ISR) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| 20th | Hwarang Kim (KOR) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| Fastest lap: Arvid Lindblad (GB) in 1:34.958 | ||||
FIA Formula 4 Italian Championship
Race Three (30 minutes + 1 lap)
Sunday, 07/05/23, 09.00, Weather: Sunny, 18°C
The last race of the weekend got underway on Sunday morning under sunny skies. As the lights went out, Ariel and Ethan had a difficult start and lost a few positions. On the other hand, Hwarang got off well and managed to move up several places. By the end of the opening laps, Ariel was in 17th place followed closely by his teammates Ethan in 18th position and Hwarang in 19th. Nose to tail, a big group of drivers was fighting for the 10th place, including our three drivers. Unfortunately, a contact left Ariel with some damage and the Israeli driver had to retire his car in the pits. Ethan was now up to 14th position and Hwarang the 17th. The battle for positions was quite intense and when the race reached it’s final stages that’s when disaster struck. In the final lap of the race, our Swiss driver Ethan was battling closely with Kluss. With not enough space left, Ethan got pushed off the track and went through the gravel losing some precious ground. At the same time, Hwarang was also trying an overtaking maneuvre that resulted in our driver spinning. At the end, Ethan managed to reach the finishline in 17th place, while Hwarang closed the weekend in the 22nd position.
| Race Three Results | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Arvid Lindblad (GB) | Prema | 31:56.478 | |
| 2nd | Ugo Ugochukwu (USA) | Prema | Gap | 2.731 |
| 3rd | Zachary David (USA) | US Racing | Gap | 3.252 |
| 17th | Ethan Ischer (CH) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| 22nd | Hwarang Kim (KOR) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| DNF: | Ariel Elkin (ISR) | Jenzer Motorsport | ||
| Fastest lap: Zachary David (USA) in 1:35.149 | ||||
Ethan Ischer (CH)
Hwarang Kim (KOR)
Ariel Elkin (ISR)
© Photo Pellegrini
Championship Standings
FIA F4 Italian Championship 2023 after 6 races:
1st Arvid Lindblad (SWE), 129 points; 2nd Ugo Ugochukwu (USA), 81 points; 3rd Nicola Lacorte (ITA), 60 points; 4th Zachary David (USA), 56 points; 5th Tuukka Taponen (FIN), 51 points; 6th Kacper Sztuka (POL), 49 points
Rookie-Standings:
1st Arvid Lindblad (SWE), 136 points; 2nd Nicola Lacorte (ITA), 98 points; 3rd Zachary David (PHL), 81 points; 12th Ariel Elkin (ISR), 10 points
2023 Italian FIA Formula 4 Championship
| 21/22/23 April | Imola (I) | |
| 05/06/07 May | Misano (I) | |
| 26/27/28 May | Spa (B) | |
| 23/24/25 June | Monza (I) | |
| 21/22/23 July | Paul Ricard (F) | |
| 29/30 Sept – 01 Oct | Mugello (I) | |
| 13/14/15 October | Vallelunga (I) |
More info:
