Photo: Top Speed

Mercedes-AMG Formula 1 junior Kenzo Craigie claimed his maiden car racing pole and win today in UAE4.

The R-ace GP driver was quickest in the first qualifying session at Dubai Autodrome, then a few hours converted pole into victory.

Craigie claimed top spot in qualifying by 0.199 seconds, having previously been 0.531s clear of team-mate Andy Consani before Mumbai Falcons driver Sasha Bondarev posted a last-lap improvement to snatch second.

Mumbai Falcons’ Niccolo Maccagnani was 0.759s slower than Craigie in fourth, with Scott Lindblom (Hitech GP), David Cosma Cristofor (Prema), Alp Aksoy Hasan (Mumbai Falcons) and Emily Cotty (R-ace) the only other drivers within a second of pole.

The six drivers entered by Xcel Motorsport, the fastest of which was Jarrett Clark in 12th, had their cars co-run by Virtuosi Racing. Best known for its title-winning time in Formula 2, which it dropped off the grid of last year when Invicta Watch Group bought out its entry after previously investing in the team, Virtuosi now races solely in British Formula 4.

One of their contingent, the debuting Roman Felber, was eliminated in a dramatic start to race one. He and Lindblom stalled, with Lindblom’s car being struck by Nasser Al Thani (QMMF by Hitech) whose wrecked car then went spinning.

It led to the safety car being called out mid-lap, and the field heading through the pitlane at the end of the first two laps. On lap four Emma Felbermayr (PHM Racing) and Elia Weiss (R-ace) pulled up next to the pit exit and retired, and the restart was not until lap seven.

Craigie had swept to the inside at the start, which was very dusty, and Bondarev cut the first few corners but rejoined the track in second after using the escape road. He then forced Craigie into defence down the back straight before racing was neutralised.

On the restart, Craigie weaved down the pit straight again and Bondarev had another off at turn two. He held his position once more though, soaking up pressure from Consani. They got close to each other at the end of the back straight, and Bondarev’s attention then switched to Craigie.

He had eradicated his 1.2s lead by lap nine, and his look into the inside at the end of the back straight led to Craigie locking up. Another overtaking attempt was made a few corners later, and Craigie was defensive on the back straight through the next two laps. Bondarev had another lunge on the final tour, getting right onto Craigie’s gearbox, but could not get past and the results were taken from the end of lap 10.

Cosma tried taking fourth from Maccagnani on lap eight, and two laps later Maccagnani defended against him on the run to turn one. Aksoy finished sixth, Hitech’s Theo Palmer overtook Cotty for seventh on lap eight, and Pinnacle Motorsport’s Rowan Campbell-Pilling finished ninth on-the-road but got a penalty for jumping the start.

Race results (10 laps)

The post Mercedes-AMG F1 junior Kenzo Craigie claims first F4 pole and win appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: JHR Developments

Karting graduate Lewis Wherrell has joined JHR Developments to race in British Formula 4 next year.

The 15-year-old already has some single-seater experience, making his debut in a Spanish F4 event than landing a top-five finish in a GB4 cameo.

Last month he joined Saudi Arabian F4 for two rounds, and by taking two wins and two poles he was able to come fifth in the standings despite missing over half of the season.

“I’m proud to announce that I’ll be racing for JHR Developments for the 2026 British F4 season,” said Wherrell.

“I’d like to thank everyone involved at JHR for this opportunity. I can’t wait to get started and I’m hoping for a good year ahead for both me and the whole team.”

JHR’s team principal Steven Hunter added: “We’ve had some really good test days so far with Lewis and he’s done quite a bit of running since the end of the season. He’s done a really good job so far. He’s been taking a lot of information onboard and applied what he’s learnt very methodically. With every test he’s gained in confidence and speed, so we’re looking forward to seeing Lewis out racing with JHR and I feel that he’ll be battling up the front in 2026.”

Wherrell has moved into single-seaters after an impressive karting career. In the OK Junior class he was Champions of the Future champion, won the WSK Champions Cup and Trofeo delle Industrie, was fourth in the CIK-FIA European championship, sixth in WSK’s Final Cup, eighth in its Euro Series and ninth in its Super Master Series.

After stepping up to the senior OK class, he came seventh in the European championship, eighth in WSK SMS, 11th in WSK FC and 23rd in the CIK-FIA World championship.

Also debuting in British F4 in 2026 are 16-year-old George Proudford-Nalder (Virtuosi Racing) and 18-year-old Vegard Klemetsen (Argenti Motorsport).

Australian racer Proudford-Nalder, who comes from a family of cattle farmers, switched from karting to cars this year via entry-level sportscar series Ginetta Junior. He came seventh in the standings with two podiums.

Klemetsen, from Norway, came 34th in the European championship for OK karts this year, one place behind Wherrell.

The post JHR Developments signs rising talent Lewis Wherrell for British F4 appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Hitech GP

The 2026 British Formula 4 grid is beginning to take shape, with multiple teams signing drivers for next season.

Hitech GP has just announced that it will field Red Bull junior Scott Lindblom, who is currently contesting his debut single-seater campaign in Saudi Arabian F4 where Hitech operates all the cars. He sits third in the standings with one win.

“Joining Hitech for British F4 is an exciting first step in my single-seater career,” said the 15-year-old Swede.

“I’m looking forward to learning the car and the UK circuits, and I’m ready to work hard, adapt fast, and aim for strong results from the first race.”

Lindblom already has experience of several of them, having come fourth in entry-level sportscar series Ginetta Junior this year. In 2024 he primarily raced in the OK kart class, winning WSK’s Euro Series and coming eighth in Champions of the Future.

His year started by coming 11th in WSK’s Super Master Series for OK Junior karts, and in that category he was previously third in the World championship, fourth in WSK’s Euro Series and 15th in the CIK-FIA European championship.

“Scott arrives with one of the most impressive karting resumés of his generation,” said Hitech’s British F4 team manager Dominic Stott. “His selection for the Red Bull Junior Team underlines his capability and we are looking forward to helping him develop into one of the leading contenders in 2026.”

Fortec Motorsports has announced American-Australian driver Ethan Carney will join its line-up after two seasons racing in Ginetta Junior.

The 15-year-old, who started karting aged 12, came 17th in Ginetta Junior and also contested its Winter Series as a rookie in 2024. This year he came 11th in the main championship.

Chris Dittmann Racing has gone to touring cars for its first signing, bringing in 17-year-old Daniella Sutton.

She won the inaugural BRSCC Fiesta Junior Scholarship in 2024, setting her up for a two-year spell in the BRSCC’s Formula Ford Fiesta Junior Championship. In her sophomore campaign she was a regular frontrunner. Sutton has juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Virtuosi Racing already has two drivers for next season: Joseph Smith and Jarrett Clark.

Smith was fourth in the 2024 Ginetta Junior Winter Series and 10th in the main championship this year after doing a half-season. The 16-year-old then stepped up to British F4 with Hitech, contesting the last four rounds and coming 29th in the standings.

This year British-Australian driver Clark was eighth in Ginetta Junior and fourth in its winter series, where he won a race last weekend. During his years racing OK Junior class karts preceding that, he came 12th in CotF, 19th in WSK’s Euro Series and 25th in its Champions Cup, and 26th in the CIK-FIA World championship.

The post Scott Lindblom joins Hitech as British F4’s 2026 grid starts to take shape appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Virtuosi Racing’s Martin Molnar was the driver to beat in British F4’s test day and practice sessions on Silverstone’s National layout.

Pre-event testing on Thursday consisted of two three-and-a-half hour sessions, with 25 of the drivers racing this weekend plus three additional entries.

Molnar was quickest both times, and his gap at the top was the same as what split second down to 12th place. All but Xcel Motorsport’s Yuhao Fu, who was 10th overall, set their fastest laps in the second session and Molnar’s personal best was a 54.566s.

Fortec Motorsports’ Henry Joslyn was second, 0.204 seconds behind, and Rodin Motorsport’s Dries Langendonck was 0.094s was off Joslyn’s pace as he prepared for his second weekend of car racing.

Argenti Motorsport’s Ethan Jeff-Hall was just 0.001s slower than him, and next up were Fortec’s Ary Bansal and Hitech GP’s points leader Fionn McLaughlin. Half a second covered the top 17, and 26 drivers lapped within a second of Molnar’s pace.

Practice took place over two 45-minute sessions on Friday, and there were two red flag interruptions in FP1.

Molnar was first to lap at a representative pace a third of the way through the session, and then first into the 54s. Jeff-Hall soon beat him, setting a 54.919s then a 54.82s two laps later.

Rodin’s Adam Al Azhari beat that benchmark by 0.015s not long after, and spent a few minutes on top before Molnar posted a 54.654s. The first red flag period occurred after that, and once drivers were allowed back on track he lowered the pace to 54.585s before another interruption.

His final improvement came three minutes from the end, and several drivers got close to his best effort of 54.556s.

Al Azhari came within 0.029s of it, McLaughlin was just 0.001s slower than him, and Jeff-Hall was only 0.045s off top spot.

Chris Dittmann Racing’s Tommy Harfield was 0.11s behind in fifth, and 0.5s split first and 20th place. The next five drivers were still within 0.6s of Molnar, with JHR Developments’ Haarni Sadiq being the exception as he got half of the mileage that his rivals did.

There were 10 drivers who set personal bests in FP2, which ran green throughout.

Harfield was first to reach a representative pace, then Van Langendonck traded top spot with Al Azhari before Molnar went on a run of laps that brought the pace down into the 49s.

Harfield set two 54.8s to be fastest, and Molnar’s response was a 54.687s. Harfield bettered that by 0.006s, and only 14 minutes later was that beaten by a 54.616s from Bansal.

A 54.562s late on put Harfield back ahead and into second overall, with Joslyn lapping 0.091s shy in third. Bansal and Joslyn were sixth and seventh overall.

Jeff-Hall and Molnar were both within 0.125s of Harfield, and 0.5s covered the top 20.

Free practice results

The post Molnar leads the way through British F4 test and practice at Silverstone appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Virtuosi Racing’s Martin Molnar led British Formula 4 practice at Knockhill on Friday, as two new drivers joined the paddock.

There are technically three debutants this weekend, since one of them is Rodin Motorsport’s Guy Albag who drove in the British F4-organised non-championship race event on the British Grand Prix support bill at Silverstone last month.

The 16-year-old Israeli debuted in F4 earlier early in 2025 with a Formula Winter Series cameo, and is currently 35th in Italian F4. When he signed to race with Rodin at Silverstone, his deal included British F4’s later rounds at Knockhill, Donington Park and Brands Hatch.

Hitech GP has added 15-year-old Joseph Smith to its line-up for the rest of the season. The Briton has car racing experience from entry-level sportscar championship Ginetta Junior, which he steps up from, coming fourth in last year’s winter series and making the podium several times in the main series this year.

Haarni Sadiq will also make his F4 debut at Knockhill, and the 15-year-old Pakistani plans to contest further rounds with JHR Developments as he graduates from karting.

The two practice sessions were scheduled to run for 45 minutes each, but a third of FP1 was lost to red flag periods.

First place still changed hands 15 times in the half-hour of track action that did take place, with Argenti Motorsport’s Ethan Jeff-Hall the first driver of the day to break the 50-second barrier.

Fortec Motorsports’ Ary Bansal was briefly ahead of him, before he set two sucessive improvements, then found even more pace 10 minutes later after a red flag stoppage.

His 49.125s benchmark was almost immediately beaten by Bansal and then Hitech’s Fionn McLaughlin, who went sub-49s. There were 10 drivers who surpassed McLaughlin’s 48.973s effort, but only one driver who spent time on top after him as Molnar posted a 48.911s, improved to 48.648s on his next lap then found a further 0.046s on the lap after that to maintain first place.

JHR’s Rowan Campbell-Pilling got within 0.093s of Molnar’s pace, and McLaughlin improved to 48.771s in third but reached his peak 10 laps before the end of his session.

Bansal trailed by 0.28s in fourth, and was just 0.01s ahead of Hitech’s Thomas Bearman. Jeff-Hall ended FP1 in sixth place, with Rodin’s James Piszcyk and Adam Al Azhari also within 0.4s of Molnar. Under half a second covered the top 13, and a second split the top 21.

Half of the field set personal bests in FP2, which was red flagged four times for a total of 18 minutes.

Campbell-Pilling was quickest, setting a 48.726s to lead Molnar by 0.042s. Bearman and Bansal were only 0.079s and 0.089s off the top in third and fourth, and were the top improvers as their laptimes put them fourth and fifth overall for the day.

Xcel Motorsport’s Cole Hewetson was fifth fastest in FP2, 0.133s behind, and his team-mate Chase Fernandez matched McLaughlin’s pace in seventh.

Free practice results

The post Molnar tops British F4’s Knockhill practice as two new drivers join field appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Martin Molnar won the opening British Formula 4 race of the weekend at Zandvoort to reclaim the points lead.

The Virtuosi Racing driver snatched the lead off the line and was unchallenged throughout the 12 lap race.  Championship leader Fionn McLaughlin held onto second ahead of polesitter Henry Joslyn.

From second on the grid, Molnar got the best start to dart into the lead while McLaughlin battled Joslyn for second. A few positions back, Adam Al Azhari spun before the first corner, coming to a stop on track and bringing out the safety car.

Molnar spent a lap behind the safety car before the track went green again with 16 minutes on the clock. He managed to hold onto the lead ahead of McLaughlin and was unchallenged throughout the remainder of the race.

The top three drivers slowly broke away from the rest of the field, building a gap of over three seconds to Jimmy Piszcyk. In the closing stages of the race, Molnar also separated from the two drivers behind him to finish 1.127 seconds clear of McLaughlin. Joslyn stayed on McLaughlin’s tail, but there were few opportunities to overtake.

After the opening lap, there was little movement elsewhere in the field. Piszcyk led a train of 10 cars in fourth but, despite the close proximity, there were few overtaking attempts. In the closing stages of the race, the main battle was that between Ella Lloyd and Ary Bansal over seventh. Lloyd managed to hold onto the position, taking the chequered flag just 0.357s ahead of the Chris Dittmann Racing driver. 

Ahead of them, Ethan Jeff-Hall took fifth, behind Piszcyk and ahead of Chase Fernandez.

After his difficult start, Al Azhari was able to continue, but came into the pits four laps down. Thomas Bearman was also forced to pit early. The Hitech GP driver stalled on the grid but was able to get going again. Not long after the safety car restart, Bearman slowed and came into the pits to retire. 

Theo Palmer also ran into problems while battling for position, locking up and running straight on at the first corner. He continued along the escape road but dropped down the order to finish 20th.

One of the closest battles on track was that between Yuhao Fu and Rowan Campbell-Pilling for 11th. Having managed to find a way through, Campbell-Pilling was running just outside the top 10 on the final lap when Chloe Chong spun just ahead of him. Her car hit the rear wing of Campbell-Pilling’s as he passed the incident, taking both drivers out of the race. Fu came through to take 10th, just behind Tommy Harfield.

Race results (12 laps)

The post Molnar beats McLaughlin in first Zandvoort race to retake British F4 lead appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Salim Hanna claimed a dominant victory in a frantic second British Formula 4 race at Silverstone to double up in the non-championship British Grand Prix support event.

Starting third on the grid following a penalty for team-mate Martin Molnar, the Virtuosi Racing driver would finish over five seconds clear of second-placed Tommy Harfield.

After Adam Al Azhari spun at Club during the formation lap, polesitter Fionn McLaughlin led the field from Hanna who got the jump on Harfield at lights out.

Hanna soon looked to pass McLaughlin, the Irishman defenceless as the Colombian shot passed on the inside of Becketts to steal the lead away.

Thomas Bearman looked to make progress from his fourth-place grid slot. The Hitech driver, battling with Rowan Campbell-Pilling, was forced onto the gravel at Woodcote and dropped down to seventh.

McLaughlin was struggling too, also passed by Campbell-Pilling into Abbey and shortly after found himself losing a position to Molnar. Not long after, the Red Bull junior pulled into the pits and retired with a mechanical issue.

The yellow flags briefly came out at Club following contact between Charlie Edge and Jaber Alsabah, the former spinning round at Club and re-joining at the rear of the field.

With Hanna extending his lead to over three seconds up ahead with six minutes to go, Bearman began challenging Molnar for fourth having produced an impressive recovery drive. Heading into Luffield, the Hitech driver passed Molnar on the inside to promote himself to fourth.

As the clock hit zero, Harfield found himself under pressure from Campbell-Pilling with 0.8s separating the pair going onto the final lap.

Hanna though remained untroubled, crossing the line with a 5.5-second gap to Harfield, who held second place by half a second over Campbell-Pilling.

Bearman recovered to fourth while Molnar behind rounded out the top five. Ary Bansal came in sixth with Leo Robinson in seventh, 3.1 seconds separating seventh to 11th on the line.

Race results

The post Hanna completes double at Silverstone with British F4 victory appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Salim Hanna claimed victory in the first British Formula 4 race of the British Grand Prix weekend at Silverstone ahead of Ethan Jeff-Hall.

Virtuosi Racing driver Hanna converted his pole position into the race lead as the lights went out but further back, Mercedes junior Jeff-Hall had a poor start and was jumped by Rowan Campbell-Pilling.

Further back as the field headed out of the Loop, Ella Lloyd was pitched into a dramatic spin after contact with Martin Molnar. The McLaren-backed Rodin driver retired after recovering to the pitlane.

Up front, Campbell-Polling passed Hanna into Luffield to take the lead, but exiting Becketts the JHR Developments driver spun, leaving him stranded in the middle of the track. Miraculously, he wasn’t collected by anyone else but a safety car was required to recover his car.

After 10 minutes behind the safety car racing resumed with Hanna getting the jump on Jeff-Hall, who had returned to his starting position of second after Campbell-Pilling’s error.

From fifth on the grid, Fionn McLaughlin was on a charge up to third, setting the fastest lap and moving himself within half a second of Jeff-Hall driver ahead.

Further back, Thomas Ingram Hill and Charlie Edge made contact heading out of the Loop, Ingram Hill being forced onto the grass and dropping down the order.

With just three minutes remaining, Hanna extended his lead up front to over a second with the battle at the top beginning to settle down.

A battle for eighth meanwhile was brewing between Adam Al Azhari and Molnar, Al Azhari challenging on the inside of Luffield but the Hungarian driver defended comfortably.

As the clock reached zero and the drivers embarked on their final lap, the safety car was required for a second time with Guy Albarg left stricken on the outside of Luffield following contact.

That meant that Hanna could come home and claim a comfortable victory to the delight of his mentor Juan Pablo Montoya, ahead of Jeff-Hall in second and Red Bull junior Mclaughlin an unchallenged third.

Race results

The post Hanna claims victory in British F4’s first F1 support race at Silverstone appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography

British Formula 4 has attracted six extra drivers for its non-championship round on the British Grand Prix support bill this weekend.

The two-race event at Silverstone will have a 26-car grid, and the majority of the entrants are drivers who have already raced in British F4 this year.

Hitech GP will be the largest team on the grid with five cars, having added Nina Gademan to its line-up. The 21-year-old Dutch racer previously drove for the team in the F4-based Formula Winter Series this year, coming 15th in the standings in a part-time campaign.

She raced in British F4 last year with Fortec Motorsports and failed to get a top-10 finish, and has also done five rounds of the all-female F1 Academy series so far. Last time out in Montreal she claimed her first two podiums.

Fortec will run four cars this weekend as it brings in Emily Cotty. After picking up three weekends of single-seater racing experience last year, she joined R-ace GP for a double programme in 2025. She came 21st in F4 Middle East and is currently 36th in Italian F4.

Her team-mates in Italy are Guy Albag and Alexander Savinkov, and they will be joining Rodin Motorsport and Virtuosi Racing respectively for British F4’s non-championship round.

Albag, 16, debuted in F4 earlier this year with a FWinter Series cameo and is 33rd in the Italian F4 standings. Savinkov is eight places higher, and is in his second year of single-seater racing.

He had points-free Italian F4 and FWinter Series campaigns with AKM Motorsport in 2024, but has proven more competitive with R-ace this year as he came 11th in F4 Middle East with two sixth place finishes.

Chris Dittmann Racing’s three-car Silverstone line-up is completed by Ava Dobson, who has USF2000 experience at home in America but is also familiar with the track she will race on this weekend as she is currently 22nd in Britain’s GB4 championship.

The final addition to the entry list is Jaber Al Sabah, who after testing an F4 car for the first time last month will make his race debut. He has previously karted in the United Arab Emirates.

British F4 non-championship round entry list

The post British F4 attracts six extra drivers for British GP support races appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography

British Formula 4 points leader Martin Molnar claimed his first two pole positions in the series at Oulton Park.

The Virtuosi Racing driver topped the order for fastest and second fastest lap times, putting himself on pole for both the first and third races of the weekend.

Ary Bansal set the pace early in the session, but provisional pole position would change hands multiple times over the course of qualifying. Chase Fernandez, Fionn McLaughlin and Rowan Campbell-Pilling all briefly took the top spot, before Molnar set a time of 1m20.513s. 

Molnar continued to find improvements in the second half of qualifying. Henry Joslyn briefly knocked Molnar off the top spot, but the championship leader improved again.

He ended the session with a time of 1m20.080s, 0.335s ahead of McLaughlin in second.

Fernandez took third ahead of Bansal, Thomas Bearman and Joslyn. Campbell-Pilling ended qualifying seventh, ahead of Theo Palmer, Ethan Jeff-Hall and August Raber. 

The session ended early after a red flag was thrown with less than two minutes on the clock.

Qualifying round-up
Race 1 grid (second fastest times)
1 Martin Molnar Virtuosi Racing 1m20.238s
2 Fionn McLaughlin Hitech +0.266s
3 Chase Fernandez Xcel Motorsport +0.290s
4 Henry Joslyn Fortec Motorsports +0.340s
5 Theo Palmer Xcel Motorsport +0.446s
6 Ary Bansal Fortec Motorsports +0.449s
7 Thomas Bearman Hitech +0.467s
8 Rowan Campbell-Pilling JHR Developments +0.541s
9 August Raber Argenti Motorsport +0.556s
10 Ethan Jeff-Hall Argenti Motorsport +0.610s

Race 3 grid (fastest times)
1 Molnar 1m20.080s
2 McLaughlin +0.335s
3 Fernandez +0.389s
4 Bansal +0.405s
5 Bearman +0.406s
6 Joslyn +0.420s
7 Campbell-Pilling +0.491s
8 Palmer +0.523s
9 Jeff-Hall +0.578s
10 Raber +0.618s

The post British F4 leader Molnar takes first pole positions at Oulton Park appeared first on Formula Scout.