Photo: NACAM F4

Alejandro Bobadilla started the NACAM Formula 4 season at Autodromo Miguel E. Abed with two victories.

It was his Alessandros Racing team-mate Mateo Giron who set the pace in practice, topping both sessions and leading Bobadilla by 0.431 seconds around the twisty roval track.

Ram Racing’s Fernando Rivera was third, 0.567s back, with Marco Alquicira (Santinel Racing) and Mariano Alattore (Alessandros) the only other drivers within a second of the pace.

Bobadilla came to the fore in qualifying, setting a 1m34.214s to claim race one pole by 0.173s over Giron. Alattore trailed by 0.444s in third, Rivera was 0.717s behind in fourth and Alquicira pipped Alan Zezatti (Alessandros) to fifth but both were over a second slower than the poleman.

When it came to race one later on Saturday, Bobadilla had to drive on the defensive while Alquicira made his way up into second place. He got particularly close to Bobadilla late on, but could not pull off an overtake and Bobadilla won by 0.492s. Giron was able to match the top two’s pace and was in a position to profit from any drama ahead, but none emerged and he finished 1.328s behind in third. Alattore was best-of-the-rest in fourth, 17.35s back.

Races two and three were on Sunday, and Ram’s Oliver Trejo started on reversed-grid pole for race two ahead of Alatorre, Giron, Alquicira and Bobadilla.

Giron took second at the opening corner, but could do nothing to stop Trejo pulling away through the first lap. Alatorre held third, but his defensive work against Alquicira meant they were quickly gapped.

Alquicira got very close to Alatorre on lap three, while Giron utilised clear air to find a strong pace and get onto Trejo’s tail on lap four. However he pushed too hard and crashed out on lap six, triggering a safety car period.

Alatorre inherited second, and had a gap before the safety car’s summoning as Rivera and Bobadilla had begun pressuring Alquicira.

When racing resumed on lap 10, Trejo pulled away again and Alquicira instantly attacked Alatorre. They ran side-by-side for several corners and Alquicira got ahead. Rivera also got through before the next oval section but picked the high line and dropped back behind Alatorre and Bobadilla too.

He gained a place when Alquicira spun on the next lap, and Bobadilla went around the outside of Alatorre at turn two on lap 12 to take second. There was a big gap to Trejo to make up, and at the finish he was 1.086s behind the winner.

Rivera pressured Alatorre again on laps 12 and 13 for third place, and Zezatti began closing in on the pair. Alatorre defended down the pit straight on lap 14, then under pressure he went too deep a corner and lost two places.

Bobadilla had pole again for race three, and Giron was due to start second but was absent. Alatorre and Rivera were therefore second and third but on row two.

By the opening corner there was already an insurmountable gap between Bobadilla and Alatorre, and he lapped drivers en route to a dominant victory.

Zezatti and Alcquicira got past Rivera on lap one, and there was a four-car group until Rivera was gapped on lap seven. Alquicira was dropped three laps later, but he began closing back in on Zezatti when Alatorre pulled away in second place.

Alatorre was drawn back in late on by Zezatti, with Alquicira left behind, and while he filled his mirrors an overtake was never on the cards.

Results round-up
Race 1 (17 laps)
1 Alejandro Bobadilla Alessandros Racing 29m06.761s
2 Marco Alquicira Santinel Racing +0.492s
3 Mateo Giron Alessandros Racing +1.328s
4 Mariano Alatorre Alessandros Racing +17.350s
5 Oliver Trejo Ram Racing +34.332s
6 Alan Zezatti Alessandros Racing +1m17.163s
7 Fernando Rivera Ram Racing +1m34.557s
8 Agustin Herrera Santinel Racing +1 lap
9 Emilio Martinez Ram Racing +1 lap
10 Patrick Isavi Ram Racing +1 lap
Pole: Bobadilla, 1m34.214s
Fastest lap: Giron, 1m33.566s

Race 2 (17 laps)
1 Trejo 30m54.230s
2 Bobadilla +1.086s
3 Rivera +6.196s
4 Zezatti +8.393s
5 Alatorre +11.319s
6 Moises Zagursky RRK Motorsports +21.804s
7 Martinez +24.033s
8 Herrera +55.544s
9 Jose Carlos Lezama Santinel Racing +55.759s
10 Alquicira +1m13.071s
FL: Bobafilla, 1m33.714s

Race 3 (17 laps)
1 Bobadilla 26m59.344s
2 Alatorre +4.619s
3 Zezatti +5.303s
4 Alquicira +6.709s
5 Rivera +10.728s
6 Trejo +16.990s
7 Zagursky +39.919s
8 Martinez +1m13.069s
9 Lezama +1m39.443s
10 Herrera +1 lap
FL: Bobadilla, 1m34.439s

Championship standings
1 Bobadilla 68   2 Trejo 43   3 Alatorre 40   4 Zezatti 35   5 Alquicira 31   6 Rivera 31   7 Giron 15   8 Zagursky 14   9 Martinez 12   10 Herrera 9

The post Bobadilla starts NACAM F4 season on top at Autodromo Miguel E. Abed appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Spanish Winter Championship

Keanu Al Azhari, Stefan Bostandjiev and James Egozi were the winners in round two of Eurocup-3’s winter series at Jarama.

MP Motorsport’s Gianmarco Pradel started race one on pole alongside Hitech GP’s Al Azhari, and after a turn two lock-up on lap one had to hold off the points leader for several corners.

Al Azhari attacked again through the first corners of lap two before the safety car was summoned as Thomas Strauven (Campos Racing) and Rafael Perard (Palou Motorsport) had a incident that ended in the turn one gravel while disputing ninth place.

Racing resumed on lap seven, and the slipstream effect meant Pradel ended the lap just 0.099 seconds ahead. Al Azhari set a new fastest lap and tried a move at turn one but could not get past, then again on lap 10 before the safety car returned due to Lorenzo Campos (Double R Racing) crashing out. Gianni Giovanelli (Global Racing Service) also had a big off at turn one but was able to rejoin.

The next restart was on lap 15 of 19, and Al Azhari tried the outside line at turn two. It allowed him to stay alongside to the turn four hairpin where he took the lead, then he instantly pulled away and was 1.7s ahead by the finish.

After MP’s Ean Eyckmans stalled from third on the grid, team-mate Rene Lammers and Campos’s Alex Powell held third and fourth. Fifth place went to Campos’s Enzo Tarnvanichkul, who overtook Drivex School’s Filippo Fiorentino on lap eight and Palou’s Egozi had to fight Drivex’s Christopher Feghali and Campos’s Patrick Heuzenroeder for seventh.

The top 12 from qualifying one were reversed to form the front of race two’s grid, putting Feghali on pole ahead of Hitech’s Bostandjiev, Egozi, Perard, Palou’s Heitor Dall’Agnol and Tarnvanichkul.

Feghali was slow off the line and Bostandjiev took the lead, with Egozi and Tarnvanichkul on his outside. He locked up hard approaching turn two and failed to turn in, going into Egozi and Tarnvanichkul who were sent spinning off. Feghali hit the brakes mid-corner and stopped behind them, casting Perard off as he tried avoiding the melee. He was able to rejoin at the back.

Red flags waved on lap two, then the race restarted with two laps of safety car-led action. Bostandjiev was unchallenged at the restart, as Dall’Agnol had to hold off Powell for second and Lammers did the same against Al Azhari for fourth.

Hitech’s Gino Trappa stopped on track a few laps later, but it did not interrupt racing. However on lap nine an off for Drivex’s Stylianos Kolovos triggered a safety car period that ran to the end, ensuring Bostandjiev won and casting Lammers to 14th due to a five-second penalty.

Feghali got a five-place grid penalty for race three, which he had qualified third for. Al Azhari claimed pole ahead of Lammers by less than 0.1s after they traded fastest laps in qualifying on Sunday morning, with Egozi and Powell filling row two. Dall’Agnol and Perard were next up.

The top two locked up going into turn two for the first time and Al Azhari was intially ahead before flying off and dropping to 25th. Powell nerfed Egozi’s rear, and Feghalo climbed from eighth to sixth ahead of Hitech’s Santino Panetta. On lap two he swept past Feghali in a confident move, then both got past Perard on lap three before the safety car was summoned after Eyckmans went off.

Panetta passed Dall’Agnol when racing resumed on lap six, as Al Azhari got up to 18th. There was drama next time by as contact led to a puncture for Panetta and Trappa had an off rather than profiting. The safety car returned as Tecnicar Motorsport’s Benjamin Beckley had crashed at turn two, while Panetta and Dall’Agnol were pit-bound.

Powell took the lead before reaching turn one on the lap 10 restart, and Perard went around the outside of Egozi for third but he got back past at turn four. Campos crashed at turn two, so the safety car was needed again with Al Azhari now in 11th.

Racing resumed on lap 13, and it was a similar story. This time Feghali clipped Perard’s rear at turn one on lap 14 and bounced across the run-off before flying across turn two and into the gravel. Al Azhari got into ninth, and the safety car returned.

Two laps remained when green flags waved again, and Powell was not challenged up front. Tarnvanichkul had inherited fifth, and Fiorentio’s attempt to get alongside him through turns four and five led to a slight off that dropped him to 10th and brought Al Azhari into seventh. He attacked Trappa through the final lap but could not get past, although was lifted to fifth post-race as Powell and Lammers were penalised.

Egozi inherited victory ahead of Perard, and Powell was demoted to sixth while Lammers dropped out of the top 10.

Results round-up
Race 1 (19 laps)
1 Keanu Al Azhari Hitech GP 32m34.103s
2 Gianmarco Pradel MP Motorsport +1.704s
3 Rene Lammers MP Motorsport +2.990s
4 Alex Powell Campos Racing +4.019s
5 Enzo Tarnvanichkul Campos Racing +4.826s
6 Filippo Fiorentino Drivex School +5.947s
7 James Egozi Palou Motorsport +7.184s
8 Christopher Feghali Drivex School +9.119s
9 Yuanpu Cui Double R Racing +9.444s
10 Heitor Dall’Agnol Palou Motorsport +10.024s
Fastest lap: Al Azhari, 1m25.391s

Race 2 (12 laps)
1 Stefan Bostandjiev Hitech GP 29m54.220s
2 Dall’Agnol +1.053s
3 Powell +1.914s
4 Al Azhari +3.464s
5 Ean Eyckmans MP Motorsport +4.061s
6 Patrick Heuzenroeder Campos Racing +4.433s
7 Thomas Strauven Campos Racing +4.969s
8 Pradel +5.261s
9 Santino Panetta Hitech GP +5.544s
10 Yani Stevenheydens Global Racing Service +5.768s
FL: Bostandjiev, 1m25.597s

Race 3 (18 laps)
1 Egozi 32m02.154s
2 Rafael Perard Palou Motorsport +0.624s
3 Tarnvanichkul +1.464s
4 Gino Trappa Hitech GP +1.816s
5 Al Azhari +1.887s
6 Powell +3.361s
7 Heuzenroeder +5.012s
8 Strauven +4.688s
9 Stevenheydens +5.206s
10 Bostandjiev +5.513s
P: Al Azhari, 1m24.311s
FL: Lammers, 1m26.109s

Championship standings
1 Al Azhari 100   2 Egozi 67   3 Powell 49   4 Lammers 46   5 Tarnvanichkul 39   6 Eyckmans 24   7 Strauven 34   8 Pradel 29   9 Perard 22   10 Heuzenroeder 21

The post Al Azhari, Bostandjiev and Egozi share Eurocup-3 winter series wins appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Gavin Baker Photography

DEForce Racing’s Sebastian Garzon doubled up in the second USF2000 race on the streets of St. Petersburg.

He missed out on pole, as Pabst Racing’s Eddie Beswick second-best laptime from qualifying earned him top spot by 0.0758 seconds over team-mate and race one fastest lap-setter Brad Majman.

Garzon’s best race one laptime put him third on race two’s grid, ahead of Joao Vergara (Velocity Racing Development), Leonardo Escorpioni (Zanella Racing), Ryan Giannetta (VRD), Lucas Nanji (Pabst) and Anthony Martella (Exclusive Autosport).

Beswick held the lead into the race’s opening corner, and Escorpioni made one overtake before pulling off another at turn four on Majman who had already lost out to Garzon. Racing was then neutralised due to a turn one crash involving Jay Howard Driver Development by Ed Carpenter Racing’s Cal Peter driving over the rear of Exclusive’s Evan Cooley. Later in the lap, Martella ended his race at turn eight.

The restart was not until lap six, and it did not last long as Exclusive’s Connor Aspley had stopped on track after turn 10 and his car needed recovering. JHDD’s Liam Loiaconi pitted during the next caution period, so was at the back for the lap nine restart.

Garzon was instantly alongside Beswick and swept past on the outside before entering turn one, with Escorpioni following through at turn four. A wide moment at turn five for Escorpioni two laps later allowed Beswick back through, and Garzon began pulling away but could not get more than 1.2s ahead.

The top three held their positions through the race’s second half, and Majman was a lonely fourth. DEForce’s Brady Golan overtook Vergara on the lap nine restart for fifth, with Giannetta chasing them through the rest of the race.

VRD’s Teddy Musella climbed two spots from 13th on lap one, and another two on lap nine. On lap 11 he overtook Exclusive’s Ayrton Cahan for eighth.

Race results (20 laps)

The post DEForce’s Garzon doubles up in USF2000’s second St. Pete race appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Spanish Winter Championship

Campos Racing’s Noah Monteiro extended his Spanish Formula 4 Winter Championship lead on Sunday at Jarama with pole and a victory.

Qualifying took place in the morning, and MP Motorsport’s Rocco Coronel was first to top the timesheet. G4 Racing’s Philippe Armand Karras brought the laptime to beat down to a more representative pace, before Coronel reclaimed first place with a 1m32.138s. However he would not improve on that, and in the last four minutes dropped down to 12th.

Ty Fisher was first to beat him, by 0.019 seconds, then Campos team-mate Vivek Kanthan went quickest by 0.047s. Monteiro was just behind and outpaced him by 0.057s, then both improved on their next laps.

Kanthan crossed the line in 1m31.844s, and a second later Monteiro posted a 1m31.646s. Andrej Petrovic was third fastest, 0.382s off pole and 0.009s ahead of Tecnicar Motorsport team-mate Nacho Tunon. MP’s Kasper Schormans was 0.401s behind in fifth, denying Campos’s Daniel Kelleher by 0.006s and Drivex School’s Nathan Tye by 0.01s. Fisher ended up eighth, 0.455s back, and MP’s Reno Francot was ninth fastest. Under 0.9s covered the top 24.

Four of the drivers in the top 24 were eliminated on lap one of the weekend’s third race, in a five-car incident that led to a lengthy red flag period. Before racing was stopped, Tunon had fallen to 17th and Francot had passed Fisher to be seventh.

The safety car led the field for two laps before the field was free to race again on lap four of 18, and there was action straight away. Tye got alongside Kelleher through the first two turns, and although he looked to have taken fifth they were later side-by-side once more and contact sent Kelleher spinning.

Monteiro had a quiet race thereon, setting the fastest lap but otherwise controlling his pace until the safety car returned on lap 11 due to two drivers outside of the top 10 colliding. Only two laps remained once green flags returned, and Monteiro locked up twice but held on to win by a second.

Tye passed Schormans on lap 10, but was far behind Petrovic until the second safety car period. When racing resumed, Kanthan defended from Petrovic who in turn was defending against Tye.

Coronel took sixth on lap nine, after Fisher had lunged past Francot at turn two but left room on the inside for Coronel to overtake both. Francot got past Fisher again and almost Coronel too before racing was interrupted, then on the final lap an incident led to Fisher crashing out and Coronel finishing 21st with a damaged car.

Campos’s Jacob Micallef profited from the chaos to steal sixth, ahead of Francot and Tecnicar’s Aleix Pinera.

Race results (18 laps)

The post Monteiro grows Spanish F4 WC lead with another Jarama victory appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Penske Entertainment / Joe Skibinski

Nikita Johnson used a first corner move to take a lead he would not give up in Indy Nxt’s season-opening race in St. Petersburg.

The 18-year-old claimed his and Cape Motorsports’ maiden victory in the championship, and it was a winning start for his team’s partnership with Ed Carpenter Racing.

There was drama pre-race as radio trouble meant Chip Ganassi Racing’s Niels Koolen did not leave the pits with the rest of the field. He was able to make it out in time to join the race start, when Andretti Global’s poleman Max Taylor led the field up to racing speeds.

He covered the inside line going into the opening corner, while fellow front row starter Johnson went to the outside and had taken the lead before even reaching the apex of turn one.

The field navigated the first braking zones without issue, and HMD Motorsports’ Tymek Kucharczyk overtook Andretti’s Seb Murray and Lochie Hughes for third. Later in the lap, HMD’s Jack Beeton spun then AJ Foyt Racing’s Alessandro de Tullio drove into the rear of Andretti’s Josh Pierson, which led to a caution period.

Racing resumed on lap four of a scheduled 45, and Abel Motorsports with Force Indy’s Myles Rowe had to hold off Pierson for sixth into turn one.

Two laps later there was another caution-triggering event as Ganassi’s Carson Etter broke his front wing then drove over the top of it and into the barriers exiting turn eight.

The next restart was on lap 10, and Taylor tried reclaiming the lead around the outside of turn one but there was not enough room for him to stay alongside into turn one. Murray fought Kucharczyk twice during the lap, but could not maintain his challenge.

Everyone was setting personal best laptimes, and Taylor was mostly able to match Johnson’s pace until the next caution period when Foyt’s Nicholas Monteiro crashing out exiting turn nine on lap 17.

Murray looked to Kucharczyk’s outside approaching turn one on the lap 21 restart, and Koolen got alongside team-mate James Roe Jr on the twisty stretch between turns two and three. They rubbed wheels, then crashed, and racing was neutralised once more.

Juncos Hollinger Racing’s Alexander Koreiba and Cape’s Matteo Nannini were deemed to have violated the rules of the restart and sent to the back for the next one on lap 26. This time it took two laps for Johnson to make a 0.9-second gap, with Kucharczyk a further 0.9s back, but Taylor reduced it to 0.7s as the race became a timed encounter that would mean a 42-lap distance.

Taylor set a new fastest lap on lap 33, getting within 0.45s of Johnson, but the leader responded and had a 0.86s margin after lap 35 as he lowered his own pace. The pair continued pushing, and Johnson took the fastest lap next time by. He was now 0.971s ahead, and while Taylor did respond by lowering his own pace, both did on lap 38 and Johnson broke a second clear with another fastest lap. The debuting Kucharczyk, engineered by Tim Neff, was now 4.43s behind.

Taylor reclaimed the fastest lap on the next tour, and saving up his push-to-pass for a late-race attack. But Johnson had used it sparingly too, so as both hit the button over the final two laps it meant Johnson was still able to win by 0.699s.

Kucharczyk fell a further second behind, with Murray close behind but never attacking, and Hughes finished fifth. A lot further back was Rowe, who had continued to hold off Pierson, and HMD’s Salvador de Alba finished eighth after passing Abel’s Max Garcia on lap 26 (having conceded a place to him in a forceful turn one move on lap 11) then overtaking Cusick Morgan Motorsports’ Juan Manuel Correa on lap 31.

Beeton recovered to 11th, and Bryce Aron was Ganassi’s top driver in 18th.

Race results (42 laps)

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Photo: Spanish Winter Championship

Noah Monteiro and Boris Lyzen won the first two Spanish Formula 4 Winter Championship races at Jarama.

There was several moments of major drama that interrupted race one, which Campos Racing’s Monteiro was triumphant in. He started on pole ahead of team-mate Vivek Kanthan, MP Motorsport’s Rocco Coronel, Campos’s Ty Fisher and Drivex School’s Nathan Tye.

Kanthan looked to Monteiro’s outside at turn two on the opening lap, but lost out to Coronel a few corners later and was sent off slightly. Tye overtook Fisher, and MP’s Kasper Schormans passed Tecnicar Motorsport’s Andrej Petrovic for ninth before the safety car was called.

MP’s Louis Cochet, TC Racing’s Maria Germano Neto and Monlau Motorsport’s Miki Blascos had all got beached in the gravel at turn two, and the clean-up operation meant racing did not resume until lap 10. During the interruption, the safety car appeared to shed its own debris which Coronel drove over.

On the restart, Tye ploughed into Kanthan’s rear under braking for turn two and sent him spinning. He caught Coronel’s rear-right wheel, and both went off into the gravel but were able to rejoin at the back of the field. Monteiro was left with a sizeable lead over Fisher, and continued pulling away until the race was ended by red flags just as lap 15 began.

Tye overtook Fisher on lap 11, but a 10s penalty meant Fisher reclaimed second and Tye finished 15th. That also cost Tye the points lead to Monteiro.

TC Racing’s Beau Lowette was third, and fourth place was disputed by Tecnicar’s Nacho Tunon and Schormans until a huge crash that ended the race. Tunon was classified fourth when the results were taken from the last completed lap, while a five-second penalty demoted Schormans to 12th. Campos’s Daniel Kelleher profited to finish fifth, and MP’s Reno Francot was sixth after Petrovic was another to get a five-second penalty and dropped to 17th.

The top 12 from qualifying were reversed to form the front of race two’s grid, putting MP’s Lyzen on pole ahead of Petrovic and Schormans.

Lyzen led the 14-lap race lights-to-flag, but results were taken from lap 12 and then lap 11.

Tunon started fourth and had a half-spin on lap one that dropped him to 14th. Coronel also fell down the field as he did get off the grid until lap two. That meant the field had to be guided by the safety car through the pits at the end of lap one, and racing resumed on lap three with Lyzen streaking away.

Schormans attacked Petrovic hard, but on lap four Francot starting pressuring him. On lap 10 he started locking up, and a huge one a lap later allowed Francot to get past. He continued locking up, and after the chequered flag waved on lap 12, he lost five further places as drivers continued racing through to the end of lap 14.

The final results put him back into fourth, between Francot and Tye. Kanthan was sixth, while Kelleher and Monteiro got from row six up to seventh and eighth.

Results round-up
Race 1 (13 laps)
1 Noah Monteiro Campos Racing 24m58.257s
2 Ty Fisher Campos Racing +3.004s
3 Beau Lowette TC Racing +5.211s
4 Nacho Tunon Tecnicar Motorsport +5.523s
5 Daniel Kelleher Campos Racing +6.669s
6 Reno Francot MP Motorsport +8.155s
7 Fausto Arnaudo Monlau Motorsport +8.511s
8 Borys Lyzen MP Motorsport +8.828s
9 Jensen Burnett Drivex School +9.237s
10 Simon Bulbarella Drivex School +9.696s
Fastest lap: Monteiro, 1m32.603s

Race 2 (11 laps)
1 Lyzen 18m20.225s
2 Andrej Petrovic Tecnicar Motorsport +5.454s
3 Francot +7.461s
4 Kasper Schormans MP Motorsport +7.840s
5 Nathan Tye Drivex School +7.899s
6 Vivek Kanthan Campos Racing +8.382s
7 Kelleher +9.138s
8 Monteiro +9.538s
9 Tunon +11.402s
10 Fisher +11.977s
FL: Lyzen, 1m32.439s

Championship standings
1 Monteiro 64   2 Tye 62   3 Tunon 40   4 Francot 38   5 Petrovic 37   6 Kanthan 35   7 Kelleher 26   8 Rocco Coronel 23   9 Schormans 22   10 Fisher 19

The post Monteiro and Lyzen win first two Spanish F4 WC races at Jarama appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Chris Owens

Andretti Global’s Max Taylor claimed pole almost unopposed for the opening race of the Indy Nxt season in St. Petersburg.

Having topped both practice sessions, Taylor was then quickest in the second qualifying group as the 24-car field was split into two.

His team-mate Lochie Hughes was the driver to beat through the first half of group one’s session, bringing the pace down to 1m06.1041s.

HMD Motorsports’ Enzo Fittipaldi was initially second, then team-mate Salvador de Alba took over the position but was 1.0958 seconds off the pace.

Josh Pierson reduced team-mate Hughes’ advantage to 0.7221s with five minutes to go, at which point Cape Motorsports by Ed Carpenter Racing’s Nikita Johnson was among a group of drivers without a flying lap. Once his first effort did come in, he bettered Pierson by 0.0233s to go straight into second.

Abel Motorsports’ Max Garcia slotted into fourth at the same time, and several others set personal bests while Fittipaldi brought his damaged car back to the pits. He had got loose exiting turn three, tried to save his car but hit a wall that damaged the rear-left of his car.

Hughes lowered the pace to 1m05.9871s a minute later, leading Garcia by 0.4944s, Pierson by 0.5133s and de Alba by 0.6152s. When Johnson next crossed the line, he went from fifth to first as he went 0.0865s quicker than Hughes.

Pierson later also beat Hughes, by 0.0113s, and de Alba improved to 1m06.1391s in fourth. Johnson went even faster next time by, setting a 1m05.5418s, but Hughes responded with a 1m05.4352s. AJ Foyt Racing’s Alessandro de Tullio rose to fifth, posting a 1m06.2881s.

Johnson reclaimed provisional pole by 0.2204s with one-and-a-half minutes remaining, and Pierson improved to 1m05.8319s but remained in third. Hughes similarly found more pace but lapped 0.0957s shy of Johnson’s benchmark in the final minute, and de Tullio was 0.5283s behind in third. Pierson then reclaimed that position, getting within 0.3827s of Johnson.

While Johnson said it took a few laps for the track to rubber in, but remained pretty loose, Hughes say it did not rubber in at all and was very different to pracrtice when he lost running after being pushed into the barriers.

It did not take long for Johnson to lose pole once group two was on track. Taylor’s first flying lap was a 1m06.6478s, and on his next laps improved to 1m05.4337s then 1m04.9993s. His team-mate Seb Murray was closest at first, 0.0676s behind before the gap grew to 0.3807s and later 0.4746s.

Third place traded hands, with Juan Manuel Correa, Myles Rowe and Tymek Kucharczyk all occupying the position in the session’s first half and remaining within a second of the pole pace.

Cape’s Matteo Nannini was next to sit third, but only very briefly as Correa, Kucharczyk and Rowe all then held the position over the next 74s. In his attempt to reclaim the spot, Nannini had a huge crash that began as he exited turn two and led to debris going everywhere. That triggered a seven-minute stoppage and meant his fastest lap was deleted.

Qualifying did restart, and Correa improved at the very end to be fifth in the group. Kucharczyk was third, putting him on row three as each group fills a side of the race’s grid, which the debutant considered “a bit dissapointing”.

Qualifying results

The post Taylor untouchable in Indy Nxt’s St. Petersburg qualifying appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Spanish Winter Championship

MP Motorsport’s Gianmarco Pradel came out on top of a super close top five in the first qualifying session at Jarama for Eurocup-3’s winter series.

There was 80 minutes of pre-event testing on Friday, and MP’s drivers filled the top three places. Rene Lammers’ 1m24.986s earned him top spot by a scant 0.064 seconds over Pradel, and Ean Eyckmans was 0.348s off Lammers in third.

Hitech GP’s Keanu Al Azhari and Gino Trappa both set 1m25.349s to be joint fourth fastest, and Campos Racing’s Enzo Tarnvanichkul was sixth. His team-mate Alex Powell was quickest in the first session, putting him seventh overall and 0.43s off Lammers’ later benchmark. A second covered the top 19.

Qualifying took place the next day, and the 20-minute session began with 19 of the 28 drivers heading out. Pradel posted the first laptime three minutes in, a 1m32.787s, and led Eyckmans by 0.578s.

A minute later they were down in 10th and 11th. Powell lowered the pace to 1m28.624s, leading Double R Racing’s Lorenzo Campos by 0.35s and Drivex School’s Filippo Fiorentino by half a second. Bart Harrison (Double R) and Thomas Strauven (Campos) were also within a second of the pace.

Lammers was next to the top, setting a 1m24.985s to pip Eyckmans by 0.05s and Powell by 0.197s. Palou Motorsport’s James Egozi trailed by 0.41s, and was just ahead of Pradel. At this point a second covered the top 12, with 17 drivers having lapped at a representative pace while eight had still recorded no laptimes at all.

Eyckmans went quickest with a 1m24.547s six-and-a-half minutes in, putting him 0.327s ahead of the improving Lammers, 0.39s clear of Drivex’s Christopher Feghali and with a 0.52s gap to Pradel. Powell took fourth from Pradel a minute later, then on his next lap got within 0.06s of Eycckmans as most of the top half of the field pitted.

Tarnvanichkul and Double R’s Yuanpu Cui stayed out, and went third and seventh fastest respectively.

Hitech GP’s Stefan Bostandjiev jumped to fifth with five minutes remaining and improved again on his next lap to 1m24.923s. By that point everyone had set flying laps, and team-mate Santino Panetta was up into seventh.

Pradel was down in eighth, but with three-and-a-half minutes remaining posted a 1m24.357s to clinch pole. Hitech’s Keanu Al Azhari quickly lapped 0.099s shy of the new benchmark, and Fiorentino was 0.106s off Pradel when he crossed the line.

Lammers, Palou’s Rafael Perard, Egozi and Feghali improved in sixth, eighth, ninth and 10th respectively, while Powell and Tarnvanichkull stayed fifth and seventh with personal bests.

Al Azhari reduced Pradel’s gap to 0.042s with two minutes left, and after that third place was traded. Lammers got within 0.085s of pole, then Eyckmans was 0.044s off the fastest lap to demote Lammers to fourth.

Qualifying results

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Photo: Spanish Winter Championship

Campos Racing’s Noah Monteiro claimed pole position in the first qualifying session of the second Spanish Formula 4 Winter Championship round at Jarama.

Friday began with pre-event testing, which was topped by Rocco Coronel. He set a 1m32.125s to lead MP Motorsport team-mate Reno Francot by 0.166 seconds, Campos’s Daniel Kelleher by 0.187s and MP’s Borys Lyzen by 0.195s. A second covered the top 24 in the 32-car field.

Two free practice sessions followed later in the day, and Kelleher was quickest in both. His 1m32.231s in FP1 put him 0.078s ahead of Coronel, his closest rival in FP2, and 0.085s clear of Francot.

Nathan Tye (Drivex School), Vivek Kanthan (Campos), Monteiro and Lyzen were next up, with Lyzen improving in FP2 to be 0.205s off.  A quarter of a second split the top nine, and 23 drivers were within a second of the pace once again.

Qualifying one was on Saturday morning, and Lysen was first to the top in the 20-minute session. It was not until six-and-a-half minutes in that he was pushed off top spot, with Coronel setting a 1m32.487s to lead team-mate Kasper Schormans by 0.313s and Lyzen by 0.466s.

Fracnot lapped 0.035s shy of Coronel as Lyzen pitted, the only driver to do so. MP’s Felipe Reijs got into third place after eight minutes, 0.008s ahead of Schormans, at which point only 14 drivers had laid down representative laptimes.

That number soon increased to 20, and G4 Racing’s Jean Paul Karras went seventh fastest with a laptime 0.535s off Coronel’s benchmark and 0.015s quicker than brother Philippe Armand’s best.

Coronel headed to the pits at the end of the session’s first half, and was promptly demoted to second by Tye who set a 1m32.254s. His team-mate Jensen Burnett jumped up to fourth, before TC Racing’s Maria Germano Neto went third fastest with a 1m32.501s.

Tye lowered the pace to 1m31.999s, as team-mate Simon Bulbarella matched Germano. Everyone was now on track, and had recorded flying laps.

Kanthan trimmed Tye’s advantage to 0.286s with eight minutes to go, then Tecnicar Motorsport’s Nacho Tunon reduced it further to 0.248s. Kanthan found himself in fifth, as Kelleher and Bulbarella outpaced him. At the same time, Tecnicar’s Andrej Petrovic jumped 10 spots to sixth, while Campos’s Ty Fisher languished in 26th.

Monteiro hit the top with less than six-and-a-half minutes remaining of qualifying, posting a 1m31.839s, and half a minute later TC Racing’s Beau Lowette surprised by going third fastest after previously being in 23rd place. Fisher also improved to sit fifth, 0.411s off the provisional poleman.

Tunon took third place with five minutes to go, but failed to break the 1m32s barrier, and Petrovic set a personal best to be fourth. A few seconds later they were each demoted two places as Monteiro set a new 1m31.644s benchmark. Kanthan got within 0.234s of it, and Kelleher pipped Tunon by 0.011s to fourth.

Fisher lapped 0.027s shy of Kanthan three minutes from the end, and Coronel climbed from 17th to sixth before another improvement on his next lap put him third and just 0.001s ahead of Fisher.

Francot also re-entered the top 10 in the last two minutes, and just before the chequered flag Kelleher got into second with a laptime 0.197s off Monteiro’s best but has a five-place grid penalty to serve. The poleman was in the pits along with Germano, and no other drivers improved.

Qualifying results

The post Noah Monteiro on Spanish F4 Winter Championship pole at Jarama appeared first on Formula Scout.

Photo: Gavin Baker Photography

DEForce Racing’s Sebastian Garzon had a stellar opening day of the USF2000 season in St. Petersburg, taking pole and converting it into victory.

Pole position was only narrowly claimed by Garzon, who pipped Exclusive Autosport’s Anthony Martella by 0.0425 seconds. Pabst Racing’s Eddie Beswick and Brad Majman were 0.1212s and 0.2673s behind in third and fourth, with everyone else more than half a second off the pace. However a second still covered the top 12.

Exclusive’s Evan Cooley, who came sixth in USF2000 last year, was sixth fastest and 2025 championship runner-up Teddy Musella was only 10th on the grid in a new car run by Velocity Racing Development.

Liam Loiacono, USF Juniors runner-up in 2025, set no laptimes in qualifying due to a fuel pump failure so the Jay Howard Driver Development by Ed Carpenter Racing driver lined up 23rd and last on the grid.

Martella and Beswick got ahead of Garzon either side of him on the run down to the race’s opening corner, but Martella spun when he reached it and team-mate Cooley then drove over the top of him.

Others went deep but avoided Martella’s car, while Garzon was alone up front until a caution period was called for as Beswick fell to 12th.

At that point, Garzon led Joao Vergara (VRD) and Leonardo Escorpioni (Zanella Racing), up from fifth and seventh, with Majman holding fourth ahead of team-mate Lucas Nanji who had started 11th. After pitting for repairs, Beswick was 20th.

Racing resumed on lap four and Garzon was unvrivalled. He grew his lead on all but three of the laps, and ended the 20-lap encounter 2.5s clear of Vergara.

The top four gradually distanced themselves from Nanji, and further back was a six-car group led by VRD’s Colin Aitken in sixth. Musella was initially in that group, but after some kerb-riding on lap seven he fell to 15th behind Beswick and in a train of cars led by Enve Motorsports’ Wesley Gundler in 12th.

Gundler’s group was approaching the rear of Aitken’s by lap 15, as he faced attacks from behind. DEForce’s Brady Golan looked to get by but contact meant he had to pit, and other squabbles at the final corner led to Exclusive’s Gabriel Cahan and Sarah Fisher Hartman Racing Development’s Wian Boshoff passing Aitken.

Loiacono was now ninth, and Beswick was 12th but had damage and fell to the rear of the field again. VRD’s Ryan Giannetta overtook Loiacono and Aitken next time by, then on the last lap Boshoff and Giannetta cleared Cahan.

Gundler also made an end-of-race move, taking 10th from Loiacono after he had been gapped by Aitken ahead. Musella was right behind him at the finish, and after several laps holding off Exclusive’s Ayrton Cahan, and Golan was a lapped 19th.

Race results (20 laps)

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