Photo: ADAC
Germany will again have its own national Formula 4 championship in 2027, with a seven-round series to be organized by Gedlich Racing in cooperation with the German Motor Sport Federation, the DMSB.
Gedlich Racing aims to build on the growing status of its Iberia-based Formula Winter Series, held since 2023 as a pre-season alternative to F4 UAE, but, unlike the FWS, German F4 will run as an FIA-certified championship, the 14th globally.
“We are grateful for the excellent support from the DMSB, which worked with us – and in cooperation with the FIA – over a long period to bring this arrangement to fruition,” said Robin Selbach, Gedlich Racing’s Managing Director.
The seven events will run predominantly on the DTM support package, although “a small number of additional events will be held within the framework of the ADAC Racing Weekend,” according to Stefan Lehner, Gedlich’s Head of Racing Series.
Six events are scheduled for German tracks, starting at Hockenheim and then venturing to Lausitzring, Norisring, Oschersleben, Nurburgring and Sachsenring, while a seventh will take place at either Spa-Francorchamps, Zandvoort or the Red Bull Ring. A final calendar is due to be released in September. All races will be streamed live.
Each round will feature three races and two qualifying sessions. In addition to gaining super licence points, drivers will compete for €500,000 prize money, which, unusually, will be paid in gold.
F4 Germany will follow the model used elsewhere in Europe, except for France, with multiple teams running Tatuus chassis, powered by Autotecnica Motori’s Abarth engine and using Pirelli tyres. This should also enable teams to run concurrent campaigns in Italy, Central Europe, Spain or Britain.
The F4 category currently boasts extremely healthy grids across Europe, with both the Italian and the Central European championships running heats and a final to cater for the number of entries, so the demand would appear to be there for another series.
The previous ADAC-run championship ran from 2015 to 2022 until increasing costs and the growing dominance of the Italian F4 championship led to its demise, and the end of a national junior single-seater championship in Germany.
In its heyday, ADAC F4 rivalled Italy to be the strongest championship in Europe, with its list of champions including Theo Pourchaire, Oliver Bearman and Kimi Antonelli.
A round of the French F4 championship was held at the Nurburgring in 2024 as part of the cooperation between the ADAC and the FFSA in France, while attempts to run a round of F4 CEZ at Oschersleben have failed to get off the ground.
One of the teams’ main criticisms of ADAC F4 was the lack of pre-event testing, particularly compared to Italy. To redress that while keeping an eye on budgets, F4 Germany will provide to 20 test days throughout the season, including two pre-season tests.
The new series was welcomed by FIA Single-Seater Commission President, Emanuele Pirro: “There has been a clear gap in the market between Germany’s thriving karting scene and the international single-seater pyramid. The F4 German Championship certified by FIA bridges that gap.
“Germany’s single-seater championships were always strong in the past, creating many champions of the future. The return of F4 to the country will revive that tradition and promote the new generation of talent.”