Enzo Fittipaldi and PREMA Theodore Racing win the 2018 Italian Formula 4 Championship
PREMA Theodore Racing gave its 2018 F4 season a perfect ending this weekend at Mugello. In the final round of the Italian Formula 4 Championship, 17-year-old Brazilian Enzo Fittipaldi delivered an outstanding performance and was eventually able to secure the series title, taming the challenging Italian venue in every condition. Already in qualifying, Fittipaldi impressed for his brilliant form, scoring three pole positions out of three and putting himself in the best possible position for the remainder of a weekend that was set to be conditioned by the weather.
After being put out of contention in race 1 by a contact with his main contender, he cruised to a spectacular victory in race 2, which was interrupted due to a crash and run in two aggregate parts. Then, Fittipaldi dominated a heavily rain-affected race 3 without making the slightest mistake. He completed the season with nine pole positions, seven wins this and a total of 12 podium finishes to his name.
Ending up third in the championship standings was 16-year-old British racer Olli Caldwell, who posted two podium finishes and a fourth place throughout the weekend, and did his utmost to keep his championship hopes alive in an extraordinary final part of the season.
Gianluca Petecof was not less impressive. The 15-year-old Brazilian scored his maiden win in the series, taking two more podium finishes in race 2 and 3 (which was a Prema Theodore 1-2-3). With a great comeback run, he climbed up to fourth place overall in points despite missing a full round for precautionary reasons, making huge gains in his first season in single seaters. Amna Al Qubaisi recorded two top-20 placings in an extremely tight pack. The Emirati female racer gained valuable experience by racing in rainy conditions.
As a result of a spectacular collective run, PREMA Theodore Racing was able to bring home the 2018 team title, the fourth in the last five years.
Gianluca Petecof, Car #5
“What a weekend! I got my first victory in the championship and I’ve been the only rookie to get an overall win this year. It was a clean sweep for the team especially in race 3 with an all-Prema podium, plus winning the championship with Enzo, I’m very very happy with how it went. I ended up fourth in the series, the best rookie in the overall ranking, and I want to thank the team for the massive job over the year.”
Olli Caldwell, Car #64
“Good last weekend of the year here in Mugello, getting 3rd in the championship but fighting for the win of it until the last race was a great effort. A massive thank you to PREMA Theodore Racing for the entire year, it’s been amazing.”
Enzo Fittipaldi, Car #74
“The weekend was really positive. In practice, I was holding the brakes and getting ready for qualifying, and it went really good with a triple pole position which was great for me. When I drove, I didn’t really feel a lot of pressure and I was fully focused. The was just the pressure to win the championship, but everything came as I wanted it to come. In race 1 I was taken out, but after that, everybody in the team came together and we worked to get the car ready for the day after. They stayed until 1 AM working on the car and I can’t thank the team enough. We won as a team and that’s what’s most important. In addition, we won both race 2 and race 3, so I’m really happy especially because driving in the rain was actually fun. Fighting for the championship this weekend was very fun too and we won, we are the 2018 Italian F4 Champions!”
Amna Al Qubaisi, Car #88
“Today’s race was a whole new experience for me! I had the chance to race in wet conditions for the first time and I really enjoyed it. This season was just an experience for me to gain and hopefully next year we will see the results come.”
