The F4 CEZ series experienced its largest-ever field of participants last weekend at the Red Bull Ring. Despite the increased competition, one team dominated the victories – PHM AIX Racing. It’s worth noting that each win was achieved by a different driver, who had to fight hard for their triumph.
The F4 CEZ series was only established a year ago, and as is typical with new series, it takes time to fill the starting grid. The lineup for the opening event of this season in Hungary was already promising, with fourteen cars on the grid at Balaton Park. Then came the Red Bull Ring, where 24 Formula 4 cars took to the track – a significant increase.
It’s important to mention that many foreign teams and drivers, who usually focus on the Italian F4 and other series, participated only in the Red Bull Ring race. For many, it was just one race weekend within the F4 CEZ, and the next event at Slovakia Ring is expected to have around fourteen cars again – still impressive for only the second season.
The weekend at Red Bull Ring was remarkable, especially for the PHM AIX Racing team, which fielded five cars for young drivers: Andrej Petrović, Maksimilian Popov, Kamal Mrad, Davide Larini and Everett Stack. The first three each claimed a victory, although Davide Larini accumulated the most points overall. Larini led for 18 laps in total but was ultimately beaten to the win by teammates Petrović and Popov in the first two races. The gap between Petrović and Larini at the end of the first race was just 0.010 seconds, the closest finish in the championship’s history.
Petrović, Larini and Popov took the top three podium spots in the first race. In the second race, PHM AIX Racing was represented on the podium by Popov, Larini and Mrad. It wasn’t until the final third race that someone outside of PHM AIX Racing made it to the podium. Local driver Oscar Wurz from Jenzer Motorsport, who fielded six cars, took a podium spot. Wurz had team mates Enea Frey, Ethan Ischer, Matus Ryba, Andrija Kostić, and Max Karhan in the Swiss team.
All three races at the Red Bull Ring were marked by yellow flags and the deployment of the safety car. The unluckiest driver of the weekend was Kirill Kutskov from Maffi Racing, who had won at Balaton Park and was second in the standings, but failed to finish any of the races in Austria.
The second event of the F4 CEZ series provided an exciting spectacle. Regular F4 CEZ drivers had the opportunity to compare their speed with competitors from other series, and many performed exceptionally well. Oscar Wurz, competing in the full F4 CEZ season, extended his lead in the standings and looks set for the title. Will anyone be able to challenge his dominant position? We’ll find out at the next event at Slovakia Ring.
RACE RESULTS:
F4 CEZ Qualifying
F4 CEZ Race 1
F4 CEZ Race 2
F4 CEZ Race 3
STANDINGS:
Standings
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