Formula 4 – A win and series lead for Camara

Last weekend at Misano-Adriatico, the Brazilian won Race 3 to take the series lead. James Wharton finished on the podium and Maya Weug also had a good event.

The second round of the Italian Formula 4 championship was action-packed and went very well for the three Ferrari Driver Academy students in the field. Rafael Camara was runner-up in the first race, came fourth in the second and won the third at Misano Adriatico, to lead the championship on 102 points. “It was a very closely contested weekend and I think I gave it my best shot,” commented Camara. “In Race 3, I made the most of the last Safety Car period to make the attacking move that brought me the win and it was a perfect end to the weekend. It was important to score as many points as possible, as it’s a long season and the aim is to always be in the fight for the title.”

James and Maya. James Wharton also made it to the podium at Misano, thanks to a third place at the end of a very closely fought race. Maya Weug also showed clear signs of progress, running consistently in the top ten in qualifying and in the three race, finishing twice in the points with a seventh and an eighth place.

Race-1. Camara, Wharton and Weug started from second, third and ninth respectively on the grid. When the lights went out, Camara got away well, pulling alongside the pole sitter, Andrea Kimi Antonelli going into turn 1 and then getting ahead. The Safety Car was required immediately and stayed out for ten of the 30 minutes race duration because of several crashes on the opening lap. Once racing resumed, the positions stabilised with Wharton third, while Weug moved up to seventh with a nice move on Marcus Amand. In the hectic closing stages, Camara went head to head with Antonelli for a while before passing him with two laps remaining. Now second, Rafaele managed the position to the chequered flag, while Wharton came home fifth, coming off worse in the final scrap. Weug finished a strong seventh after racing well. having made progress in qualifying too.

Race-2. The second race at Misano was far more straightforward than the first. Wharton and Camara were third and fourth respectively on the grid and in the 20 laps to the chequered flag, the order remained unchanged. Weug had more of a fight, starting seventh and then getting caught up in first lap chaos to drop out of the top ten. She fought her way back to eleventh, just 2 seconds off the points.

Race-3. For the final race, Camara, Wharton and Weug lined up second, fourth and seventh on the grid. The three FDA representatives maintained position after the start for a few laps and then, at half-distance, Wharton battled with Alex Dunne and Marcus Amand to move up to sixth. The Safety Car came out with eight minutes remaining and the race resumed with three laps to go, producing a sprint to the flag. Once the race resumed, Camara did a good job of slipstreaming the leader Antonelli down the main straight, then taking the lead with a nice move into turn 3. Behind the leading pair, chaos ensued, with Wharton having to retire and Weug suffering a broken wing after a collision with another car. Her bad luck did not end there as, on the last lap, she was also hit by another car, which brought out the red flags and so, as per the regulations, the result was declared at the end of the previous lap, so that Weug was classified eighth.