Photo: F4 CEZ
Formula 4 Central European Zone’s season got underway at the Red Bull Ring with a 21-car field.
Drivers learned the track in a session on Friday, and Jenzer Motorsport’s Bart Harrison led Real Racing Team’s Luca Viisoreanu by a third of a second. Jenzer’s Javier Herrera was over half a second behind in third.
Harrison remained on top in qualifying on Saturday morning, setting a 1m32.156s to beat team-mate Gino Trappa to race one pole by 0.313 seconds. Viisoreanu was 0.422s back, and AS Motorsport’s Chase Fernandez beat Herrera to fourth.
Trappa made a very slow start to race one, and Fernandez slid down the inside of him at turn one as Harrison held onto the lead. There was a clash between Renauer Motorsport’s drivers, with Simon Schranz eliminated immediately while Hady Mimassi retired in the pits. Mathilda Paatz pitted too for a new front wing.
Varying levels of confidence under braking meant many passes through the first few corners before the safety car appeared.
Racing resumed on lap five, and Fernandez was right behind Harrison before darting to the outside at turn one and getting ahead, albeit off-track. Harrison moved back past on the inside at turn three as Fernandez exceeded track limits again.
Trappa went down the inside of Fernandez at turn four, and Harrison pulled away. He won the 15-lap race by 8.56s. Fernandez was a further 0.626s back.
Viisoreanu was fourth, a position he had to recover after falling to sixth on lap six following a lock-up while battling with Herrera. Jenzer’s Max Karhan and Nico Cortes were sixth and seventh, and Zengo Motorsport’s Benett Gaspar won a lengthy multi-car battle for 11th.
The results set the grid for race two on Sunday, and Fernandez again made a better start than Trappa. The inside line meant Trappa could hold him off at turns one and three, where Harrison went off but remained ahead.
Viisoreanu overtook Fernandez at turn four, and although he got back past down the inside at the penultimate corner they both then went off. By lap three the safety car was out, with Fernandez, Paatz, Schranz and Viisoreanu having retired.
Racing resumed on lap four, and Harrison kept Trappa a comfortable distance behind thereon to win.
Herrera was third until he began battling with Maffi Racing’s David Walther mid-race. They traded places multiple times, then Herrera dropped two wheels into the gravel at turn four. His team-mate Teo Schropp went past and had a similar fight with Walther, but could not get past.
After further offs and more fighting, Herrera finished sixth behind Karhan. Mimassi held off Cortes until the final lap when both he and Maffi’s Teodor Borenstein got past.
Rain fell before race three, which the slick-shod Viisoreanu had pole for. Fernandez started alongside on wet tyres.
Fernandez stalled as the safety car led the field away, and after being wheeled into the pits he rejoined a lap down. Herrera pitted for slicks at the end of lap one, and Frantisek Nemec crashed late in lap two.
The field was set free, and Viisoreanu lost three places into turn one. He dropped three exiting it, as the safety car returned. Walther pitted at the end of the lap for a new front wing and slicks, but his new wing got broken so he required another.
Racing resumed on lap six, with Trappa leading Harrison, Karhan, Viisoreanu and Cortes. It was wet at turn three but dry everywhere else, and on lap seven Viisoreanu picked off the cars ahead to take the lead.
Borenstein crashed and the safety car was needed again, then in the two laps left of racing (after the wet-shod runners had tried cooling their tyres) Viisoreanu ran away, Trappa established himself in second and most other positions were decided in three-wide fights.
Harrison took third by 0.033s over Karthan, with Herrera and Mimassi within 0.066s of the podium 0.023s as Cortes beat Walther to seventh by 0.004s.
Results round-up
Race 1 (15 laps)
1 Bart Harrison Jenzer Motorsport 26m06.897s
2 Gino Trappa Jenzer Motorsport +8.560s
3 Chase Fernandez AS Motorsport +9.186s
4 Luca Viisoreanu Real Racing Team +11.208s
5 Javier Herrera Jenzer Motorsport +12.025s
6 Max Karhan Jenzer Motorsport +14.346s
7 Nico Cortes Jenzer Motorsport +16.276s
8 David Walther Maffi Racing +17.919s
9 Bautista Acosta Jenzer Motorsport +19.610s
10 Teodor Borenstein Maffi Racing +23.885s
Pole: Harrison, 1m32.156s
Fastest lap: Harrison, 1m32.371s
Race 2 (16 laps)
1 Harrison 25m54.021s
2 Trappa +1.316s
3 Walther +8.902s
4 Teo Schropp Jenzer Motorsport +9.852s
5 Karhan +14.551s
6 Herrera +15.992s
7 Cortes +20.387s
8 Borensrein +21.017s
9 Hady Mimassi Renauer Motorsport +22.067s
10 Acosta +22.502s
FL: Walther, 1m33.350s
Race 3 (12 laps)
1 Viisoreanu 25m40.261s
2 Trappa +8.430s
3 Harrison +11.853s
4 Karhan +11.886s
5 Herrera +11.896s
6 Mimassi +11.919s
7 Cortes +16.045s
8 Walther +16.049s
9 Benett Gaspar Zengo Motorsport +17.253s
10 Mathilda Paatz Mathilda Racing +19.923s
FL: Viisoreanu, 1m36.818s
Championship standings
1 Harrison 65 2 Trappa 54 3 Viisoreanu 37 4 Karhan 30 5 Herrera 28 6 Walther 23 7 Cortes 18 8 Fernandez 15 9 Schropp 12 10 Mimassi 10