Formula 4 as a part of the FIA ETRC weekend
Orechová Potôň, May, 13th 2024 - The FIA ETRC European Truck Racing Championship as one of the main events of the season at the SLOVAKIA RING will be held on June, 7th-9th June. In addition to it, the top racers from Central Europe will fight for points during prestigious TCR Eastern Europe, but also during FIA Formula 4 Central European Trophy (F4 CEZ). The racing weekend will also be spiced up by a GT car races within the ESET CUP.
The F4 CEZ series is growing year by year. The recent race at the Balaton Park circuit featured fourteen Formula 4 drivers and the number will grow. Among them is even the son of former F1 pilot Alex Wurz - Oscar Wurz. F4 is an important category for the future stars of motorsport. They are usually preceded by a career in go-karts, after which they continue into the more powerful F3. With a dose of luck, talent and money also in Formula 2. F4 single-seaters can be found in various regional series.
Let's talk about the car itself: The Tatuus F4 T-421 is powered by a turbocharged 1.4-liter Abarth engine with a max power of 180 hp and max speed exceeding 240 km/h. The engine is paired with a six-speed sequential gearbox with shift paddles behind the steering wheel. Juniors compete as well - boys and girls aged 15 and over.
Min. weight of the car is 500 kg without the driver (converted to 360 hp per 1000 kg car) - which is the weight of single-seater Formula 1 cars in the early 90s. Pirelli is the official supplier of tires and the price for one set is 960 euros (plus VAT).
A typical F4 racing weekend consists of 30min. practice, 20min qualifications and three 25 min races. The starting grid of the 1st race will determine the qualification, the grid of the 2nd race will determine the results from the 1st race. The grid of the 3rd race will be determined by the results from the 1st race, but the first 4-8 places will start in the opposite order, according to the draw after the 1st race.
There are four classifications in total: F4, F4 Rookie Rocket (rookie of the year), F4 Woman Trophy (women), F4 Team Trophy.
Kirill Kutskov won the first trophies this season at the opening event in Hungary, and last year's champion Ethan Ischer won two. The Swiss Ischer took the race only as a practice before Italy F4, where he is going to race this year. As the reigning F4 champion, CEZ cannot score points in this championship (so that others get a chance - the ambition is not to stay in F4 longer than winning the first title).
The calendar of the F4 CEZ series is copied by TCR Eastern Europe:
27.–28.4. – Balaton Park
18.–19.5. – Red Bull Ring
8.–09.6. – Slovakia Ring
3.–04.8. – Most
7.–08.9. – Brno
21.–22.9. – Salzburgring
Find more info here: www.slovakiaring.sk or here www.f4-cez.com.
