Championship leader Oliver Bearman and ADAC Stiftung Sport driver Tim Tramnitz were fastest in ADAC Formula 4 qualifying at the Hockenheimring, securing pole position for races one and two respectively.

Qualifying in ADAC Formula 4 at the Hockenheimring was a really thrilling affair. In the first session the drivers in the ADAC high-speed school battled it out for the best grid positions in race one. Championship leader Oliver Bearman of Van Amersfoort Racing had the edge. The Brit set the fastest time of 1:41.143 minutes for a lap of the 4.574-kilometre track near Heidelberg.

“I am obviously very happy with pole position. We had had a tough day up to then, but we were able to put it all together in qualifying. I had a superb slipstream. That may be what made the difference, as it was really close in the end. But that’s motorsport for you,” said Bearman after qualifying.

It certainly was close: second-placed Tim Tramnitz of US Racing was just 0.001 seconds behind Bearman. Third place in Q1 went to rookie Alex Dunne, 0.117 seconds off the pole time. In fourth place, 0.172 seconds slower than Bearman, was Luke Browning, ahead of Vlad Lomko (all US Racing).

In the second qualifying, ADAC Stiftung Sport driver Tramnitz went one better than in the previous session. The German took pole position for race two, which takes place on Sunday, with a time of 1:40.911 minutes. “I would obviously have been even more pleased with two pole positions, but this result is obviously excellent,” said a beaming Tramnitz. “I made a slight mistake in Q1, but was able to continue. I am super happy with pole for race two. Qualifying has certainly been a good start to the weekend,” Tramnitz added.

Second in Q2, 0.216 seconds slower, was Van Amersfoort Racing driver Bearman. He was followed by Alex Dunne, 0.220 seconds off the pole time, and Joshua Dufek (Van Amersfoort Racing).

Bearman and Tramnitz were rewarded for securing their places at the front of the grid for races one and two with the Pirelli Pole Position Award, for which they also received a high-quality Teufel speaker. The grid positions for race three of ADAC Formula 4 in Hockenheim will be determined using the results from race two, with the top eight starting in reverse order.

“I am obviously very motivated going into the race,” said Tramnitz, looking ahead. “I would like to make up one place in race one, and then simply hold my position in the second race. We’ll then have to see what happens in race three.” The ADAC Formula 4 races at the Hockenheimring Baden-Württemberg can be seen in a livestream at adac.de/motorsport and on youtube.com/adac. Race one gets underway at 12:45 on Saturday.