Liam Lawson (16, New Zealand, Van Amersfoort Racing) clinched his first double pole of the year to round off the 2018 ADAC Formula 4 season at the Hockenheimring. The New Zealander from Van Amersfoort Racing set the fastest time at the circuit in both qualifying sessions on Friday evening. Posting a 1:56.042, Lawson consigned champion Lirim Zendeli (18, Germany, USA Racing CHRS) to second place and Enzo Fittipaldi (17, USA/Brazil, Prema Theodore Racing) to P3 on a track that was still wet in Q1. The circuit gradually dried out during second qualifying, and Lawson did best in the conditions, setting the fastest time of 1:53.709. Enzo Fittipaldi, grandson of two-time Formula 1 World Champion Emerson Fittipaldi, finished ahead of Zendeli this time around.
The Top Three in the overall standings were neck-and-neck in the first qualifying session, and the deadlock was only decided on Lawson’s last lap when he found a reply to Zendelis and Fittipaldi’s hot times to take a slim lead and nose ahead. Gianluca Petecof (15, Brazil, Prema Theodore Racing) was best rookie and will start out from seventh position in the opening race on Saturday at 11:20 am.
David Schumacher (16, Germany, USA Racing CHRS) and Niklas Krütten (15, Germany, ADAC Berlin Brandenburg e.V.), who are battling it out this weekend to win the title of best newcomer, will start from ninth and 14th place respectively. Schumacher will be in P9 on the grid and Krütten in P14 on Saturday evening at 5.30pm. Caio Collet (16, Brazil, Prema Theodore Racing), who finished fifth, was best rookie in the second qualifying.
Having notched up 284 points, Schumacher leads the Junior classification in the ADAC Formula 4 series from Krütten, who has taken 20 points fewer than him from this season’s previous 17 races. Things are also still pretty exciting at the Hockenheimring in the fight for the position of runner-up. Enzo Fittipaldi has the best chance of finishing second behind Zendeli, who secured the championship title in early August at the Nürburgring. Lawson, who finished twelfth and Fittipaldi’s team-mate, Frederik Vesti (16, Denmark, Van Amersfoort Racing), who came home in P4, are still within striking distance.
The weekend is set to get serious for the Formula 4 drivers on Saturday at 11:20 am when the first of three races gets underway. SPORT1 will broadcast the final three races of this ADAC Formula 4 season live on TV on Saturday at 11.00 am and 5.15 pm, on Sunday at 3.40 pm and online on SPORT1.de. All races will also be made available as live stream with German and English commentary at adac.de/motorsport, on the Facebook page of the ADAC Formula 4 and at youtube.com/adac.