Photo: SMP Karting
SMP Formula 4 returned to Moscow Raceway for round four of the season last weekend, and Artem Severiukhin won all three races.
Pre-event testing kicked off the action at the track, then there were three official practice sessions. Wet weather impacted a lot of the running.
Severiukhin set a 1m36.606s to lead Egor Stepanov-Kim by 0.378 seconds in FP1, and he did not stay on top in FP2 as he ran on used tyres. Yaroslav Shevyrtalov used fresh rubber to set a 1m36.386s, earning top spot by 0.351s over Platon Kostin.
The pace was lowered to 1m36.141s by Severiukhin in FP3, and he was 0.171s up on Shevyrtalov. Vladimir Verkholantsev was a further 0.061s behind.
A new name came to the fore in the first qualifying session on Saturday morning, as Egor Nosov claimed race one pole. He posted a 1m36.635s that Severiukhin got within 0.045s of, and Verkholantsev was only 0.096s off in third.
Shevyrtalov was 0.154s behind in fourth, with Kostin 0.24s slower than Nosov in fifth and 0.027s quicker than Vladislav Ryabov. The top 13 were covered by 0.807s.
It was also super close in Q2, with Severiukhin beating Shevyrtalov to pole by 0.056s. Ryabov was 0.189s behind in third, ahead of Verkholantsev and the closely matched Nosov, Stepanov-Kim and Kirill Kutskov.
Race one had two formation laps, and at the start Kutskov leapt from seventh to third. Severiukhin went side-by-side with Nosov into turn seven, and Verkholantsev did the same with Kutskov into the final corner.
Kutskov blocked him there on lap five, and it brought Shevyrtalov and Kostin onto their tail.
Up front, Nosov was weaving his way to that corner too, and Severiukhin dived down his inside at the end of lap seven. He went deep and was now on the outside heading to turn one, where he was forced off but remained alongside Nosov after rejoining.
They almost touched wheels at turn three, where Nosov relinquished the lead. After that, the top three spread out.
Shevyrtalov dived past Verkholantsev into the last corner on lap eight, and had caught Kutskov by lap 14. He buckled under pressure on the penultimate lap, running wide at turn one and losing third. Verkholantsev almost got past too but then had Kostin attacking him.
Ryabov was suddenly involved on the final lap, and it resulted in Kostin taking fourth and Verkholantsev finishing seventh behind Ryabov in a three-wide photo finish. Stepanov-Kim retired mid-race.
Severiukhin was very defensive at the start of race two the next morning but Shevyrtalov found room on the inside to take the lead into the opening corner. A few corners later, Nosov dived past Kutskov for fifth.
The race was calm thereon, although kerbs sent Gerasim Skulanov skyward briefly on lap two. Severiukhin went around Shevyrtalov’s outside at the final corner of lap three and they stayed wheel-to-wheel until turn four where Severiukhin regained the lead and never looked back.
Verkholantsev held off Nosov on lap seven, and was very close to third-placed Ryabov late on.
The top six were reversed for race three’s grid, putting Kutskov on pole ahead of Nosov. Anatoly Khavalkin spun off on the formation lap, but was able to rejoin and start.
Severiukhin got up to fourth on lap one, slipstreamed past Verkholantsev down the back straight on lap two, then went around the outside of Nosov at turn three a lap later for second. Ryabov overtook Verkholantsev at the same time, and passed Nosov on lap four.
At that point Kutskov was five seconds up the road, and Severiukhin had his own five-second gap to Ryabov. He began reducing Kutskov’s lead in the race’s second half, and went off twice with his first attempts at overtaking him on lap 15.
Kutskov weaved all the way down the back straight a lap later then forced Severiukhin off at the final corner. Despite this, Severiukhin was able to inch ahead after rejoining and in the last two laps built a 2.353s lead.
There was a midfield train of cars most of the race, and Shevyrtalov held off Kostin for sixth by 0.078s.
Texol Racing TMS Racing Prima Racing NI Racing ITeCo Racing
Results round-up
Race 1 (18 laps)
1 Artem Severiukhin Lada Sport
2 Egor Nosov SMP Racing +4.567s
3 Yaroslav Shevyrtalov Lada Sport +10.105s
4 Kirill Kutskov Prima Racing +14.015s
5 Platon Kostin NI Racing +14.156s
6 Vladislav Ryabov Texol Racing +16.381s
7 Vladimir Verkholantsev Formula K Russia +16.487s
8 Mikhail Kaurov TMS Racing +16.508s
9 Marko Markozov Formula K Russia +16.988s
10 Mikhail Yushenkov NI Racing +24.141s
Pole: Nosov, 1m36.635s
Fastest lap: Severiukhin, 1m36.454s
Race 2 (19 laps)
1 Severiukhin
2 Shevyrtalov +2.418s
3 Ryabov +7.446s
4 Verkholantsev +7.865s
5 Nosov +8.606s
6 Kutskov +9.241s
7 Kostin +9.585s
8 Egor Stepanov-Kim SMP Racing +13.584s
9 Markozov +14.474s
10 Kaurov +15.031s
P: Severiukhin, 1m36.260s
FL: Severiukhin, 1m36.445s
Race 3 (18 laps)
1 Severiukhin 29m44.215s
2 Kutskov +2.353s
3 Ryabov +10.299s
4 Nosov +10.887s
5 Verkholantsev +16.248s
6 Shevyrtalov +17.388s
7 Kostin +17.466s
8 Anatoly Khavalkin Prima Racing +18.351s
9 Stepanov-Kim +23.052s
10 Kaurov +23.215s
FL: Severiukhin, 1m36.865s
Championship standings
1 Shevyrtalov 262 2 Severiukhin 226 3 Nosov 173 4 Kutskov 146 5 Stepanov-Kim 138 6 Verkholantsev 132 7 Kostin 116 8 Ivan Pigaev 112 9 Ryabov 102 10 Markozov 67