The first race of the opening round of the F4 CEZ championship at the Balaton Park Circuit featured a close battle between last year’s champion, Ethan Ischer, and newcomer Oscar Wurz, both from Jenzer Motorsport. Although Ischer led from start to finish, it was not an easy race for him.
Ethan Ischer maintained the lead with Oscar Wurz closely trailing. The first few turns were particularly tight in the middle of the grid, resulting in several contacts between drivers. However, everyone safely navigated through the critical moments of the race.
Kirill Kutskov from Maffi Racing moved up to third place, ahead of Miroslav Mikeš from JMT Racing Team, while Luca Savu from Renauer Motorsport rounded out the TOP 5.
Max Karhan was the second best-placed driver from Jenzer Motorsport after Ischer, as their team mates Shimo Zhang and Andrija Kostic encountered issues in the first corner after the start and both had to recover lost positions. Shimo Zhang successfully overtook Karhan and soon passed Savu, who suffered front wing damage. The Romanian driver could not maintain a reasonable pace with his damaged wing and also lost a place to Kostic before heading to the pits.
Zhang was the fastest driver on the track, setting the best lap of the race. He overtook fourth-placed Mikeš and began to challenge third-place Kirill Kutskov. Zhang was unable to pass Kutskov, who defended his line well. Mikeš soon joined them, but eventually, Zhang moved up to third place and a few laps later, Andrija Kostic overtook Kutskov for fourth. Now Kutskov was under pressure from Mikeš, who eventually remained in sixth place until the finish.
Meanwhile, leaders Ischer and Wurz raced very closely, setting similar lap times and staying well ahead of the rest of the field. They raced almost as one, with a consistent one-second gap between them most of the time. However, Wurz couldn’t find a way to pass Ischer, and the previous year’s F4 CEZ champion scored another win in the championship.
Due to F4 rules, a driver cannot score points in the championship he won in the previous year, so Ischer won, but did not collect any points, making Oscar Wurz the first scoring driver.
Max Karhan crossed the line seventh, Jonathan Correrella eighth, Marek Mičík ninth, and Michalina Sabaj tenth, emerging as the top young woman in the F4 CEZ. There was a tense battle for position in the Women’s Cup among Kornelia Olkucka, Michalina Sabaj, and Michelle Jandová. It seemed that they would finish in that order, but in the closing stages of the race, Olkucka encountered trouble, and Sabaj went on to win, with Jandová finishing second.
Results update: Andrija Kostic received 10 seconds penalty for track limits and dropped to sixth place. Same penalty, but for incorrect starting position, was handed to Franciszek Halatnik. He dopped to 13th place. Michalina Sabaj received 10 seconds penalty for false starting position and dropped to 12th position behind Michelle Jandova, that´s means Jandove became the eventual winner of Woman Cup.
COMMENTS