Photo: ACI Sport
Marcos Siebert has claimed the Italian Formula 4 title after rival?Mick Schumacher sustained damage in a fraught race two at Monza won by?Sebastian Fernandez.
After his dominant win in race one, Schumacher began the second encounter with?an 18-point deficit to Siebert (with 13 available in the final race) but made a great start from sixth, vying with Prema team-mate?Juri Vips for second place through the opening corners, while Siebert made a sluggish getaway from eighth.
By the start of lap two, Siebert had fought his way to the front of a secondary pack battling over fifth behind?a four-way scrap for the lead between?polesitter?Sebastian Fernandez, Vips, Schumacher and?Raul Guzman.
This fight got very tight at the Roggia chicane on lap four, with Schumacher appearing to sustain?contact after getting alongside Vips and Fernandez under braking.?He was passed for third on the exit by Guzman, and had damage to his front wing.
Thereafter he struggled to keep pace with the front three and came under attack from Siebert – who also had?front-wing damage, albeit?less significant – and?Diego Bertonelli.
They eventually worked their way past, and Schumacher’s front wing became deranged to the point that he was shown the black-and-orange flag and forced to pit.
He rejoined just in front of the lead battle,?which had now?been settled decisively in the favour of Fernandez, the Venezuelan?slipstreaming his way back past Guzman into Turn 1 after the Mexican had worked his way to the front.
Fernandez – who switched from RB Racing to Mucke Motorsport for this event and promptly claimed a surprise double pole – finished 1.7 seconds clear of Guzman, while Vips ended up third after also spending a stint in the lead.
Bertonelli took fourth, with Siebert holding off?Ian Rodriguez?for fifth.?Kush Maini, Leonard Hoogenboom,?Yifei Ye?and?Marino Sato?rounded out the top 10.