Photo: KSP Reportages
Yani Stevenheydens won two French Formula 4 races at the Nurburgring this weekend to take the championship lead.
The reversed-grid race two began with a lap behind the safety car due to the track being wet, and Enzo Caldaras started in first place. Jules Roussel and Montego Maassen were second and third, and when the field was released on lap two Maassen drove straight into Roussel at turn one and spun him around.
Maassen fell to the back, and Roussell required external assistance to get going again which meant the safety car was quickly called back.
Chester Kieffer, Taito Kato, Arthur Dorison and Stevenheydens filled the top five places behind Caldaras, and Kieffer took the lead on the lap four restart. But Caldaras immediately came back at him, and they ran side-by-side several times.
Kieffer finished the lap in front, with Stevenheydens clearing Dorison but breaking his front wing with contact at the final chicane. However he, and Dylan Estre in 13th, found more pace in the worsening weather conditions and went on a charge.
Stevenheydens passed Kato on lap five and immediately pulled away from him, while Dorison cut the chicane, and on lap six the seventh placed Alex O’Grady almost spun at turn two and sent Jules Caranta off as he drove into the side of him. That put them under pressure from Estre, who shot past on lap seven. Stevenheydens began that lap with a great move for the lead around the outside of turn one, and in the remaining three laps pulled away by 5.675 seconds for a stunning win.
Kieffer spun exiting turn one on lap eight and avoided being hit, Frank Porte Ruiz did a full 360 on the last lap but remained in the points positions and Estre set the fastest lap as he made his way into fifth place. Caldaras and O’Grady ended up completing the podium, with Kato reclaiming the points lead from sixth-placed Caranta by finishing fourth.
The sun was shining for race three, and Stevenheydens had pole. Augustin Bernier lined up in second, ahead of Porte Ruiz, Dorison, Kieffer and Roussel. Kato was down in 10th place.
There was lots of wheel-to-wheel action through lap one, and Maassen had a big a collision at turn 10 with Leonardo Megna. The safety car was called, despite both driving on from the scene, and when racing resumed on lap four it was Porte Ruiz who was in second while Kato had climbed to seventh and Estre had gone from 18th to 11th.
Kato passed Roussel for sixth on that lap, then snuck past Kieffer on lap seven while Estre dropped to 13th in a close midfield battle.
Caranta was all over Bernier for third at the start of lap nine, then Bernier went off and lost two spots as he slowed once he rejoined the track. Kato was then able to attack Caranta, but could not get past and it meant the championship lead changed hands again.
Stevenheydens had managed his pace up front, and took his third win of 2024 by 2.093s to move ahead of both to the top of the points table.
Results round-up
Race 2 (9 laps)
1 Yani Stevenheydens
2 Enzo Caldaras +5.675s
3 Alex O’Grady +6.401s
4 Taito Kato +7.403s
5 Dylan Estre +8.386s
6 Jules Caranta +10.526s
7 Augustin Bernier +13.641s
8 Edouard Borgna +14.874s
9 Alexandre Munoz +15.836s
10 Frank Porte Ruiz +16.813s
Fastest lap: Estre, 2m23.435s
Race 3 (10 laps)
1 Stevenheydens
2 Porte Ruiz +2.093s
3 Caranta +4.042s
4 Kato +4.419s
5 Bernier +5.076s
6 Chester Kieffer +5.741s
7 Jules Roussel +7.172s
8 Caldaras +10.898s
9 Arthur Dorison +11.241s
10 O’Grady +11.632s
P: Stevenheydens
FL: Stevenheyden, 2m01.984s
Championship standings
1 Stevenheyden 169 2 Caranta 159 3 Kato 157 4 Kieffer 107 5 Caretti 89 6 Porte Ruiz 60 7 Bernier 52 8 Roussel 45 7 Bernier 36 9 O’Grady 34 10 Megna 32