Lammers cruises to Spanish F4 winter win in reversed-grid Jerez race

Photo: MP Motorsport

MP Motorsport’s Rene Lammers cruised to victory in the reversed-grid race Spanish Formula 4 Winter Championship race at Jerez.

The top nine from qualifying were reversed to form the grid, but the top four qualifiers were all handed three-place grid penalties due to infractions during the delayed start procedure of race one so that race’s winner Jan Przyrowski started down in 12th.

Niklas Schaufler had pole, ahead of team-mate Rene Lammers, Rodin Motorsport’s Nathan Tye and Campos Racing’s Vivek Kanthan. A slow start meant Schaufler was immediately passed by Lammers, and Kanthan also got by before turn one.

Tye soon got by too, and MP’s Hudson Schwartz wanted to but almost went off on the way to the hairpin and ended lap one in ninth behind Miguel Costa (Campos), Filippo Fiorentino (Drivex School), Yani Stevenheydens (MP) and Przyrowski (Campos).

Lammers had a one-second gap after three laps, and with a small pace advantage over Kanthan was able to eke out his lead to three seconds by the end of the 12-lap race. Tye shadowed Kanthan throughout, and Schaufler was left behind.

Przyrowski ensured he retained the points lead by fighting past Stevenheydens early on lap four, overtaking Fiorentino at the end of lap six then chasing down Costa. From almost nowhere he dived past him at the hairpin on lap nine, and finished 1.2 seconds shy of Schaufler.

Stevenheydens was under race-long pressure, and finished over five seconds behind Fiorentino. On lap seven Schwartz and MP’s Ean Eyckmans (one of the penalised drivers) got alongside him at the hairpin, and Eyckmans was able to pass Schwartz at turn eight as he got boxed in behind Stevenheydens. The train of cars went down to 14th place, and kept their order to the finish.

Campos’s Thomas Strauven and Drivex’s Christopher Feghali were the other two penalised drivers. Feghali pitted on lap one to change his nosecone and retired on lap nine, while Strauven also found himself at the back by lap two and stayed there.

Sainteloc Racing’s Jean Paul Karras spun at the final corner on lap seven and heading into the pits to retire, and ART Grand Prix’s Lia Block finished 17th on-the-road but was removed from the race results.

Race results (13 laps)