The second round of the E4 Championship opened this morning at Mugello Circuit with the first of three scheduled races. Kean Nakamura-Berta with Prema Racing, starting from pole position, made the most of his qualifying advantage to secure victory in Race 1 with nearly a one-second margin over Mercedes junior Alex Powell with R-ace GP. With this win, Nakamura-Berta climbs to the top of the drivers’ standings, now level on points with Gabriel Gomez with US Racing, who remains the championship leader on equal score.
Powell, starting second, attacked immediately. The opening lap was interrupted, however, by an incident that eliminated Mathilda Paatz, racing with Mathilda Racing and AS Motorsport, Emily Cotty with R-ace GP, and Payton Westcott with Van Amersfoort Racing. At the restart, the Jamaican-American driver launched another assault, but Nakamura-Berta held firm in P1 and, with flawless race management, gradually built a safe gap to the checkered flag.
The final step of the podium went to Maksimilian Popov with Van Amersfoort Racing, who overtook his Australian teammate Dante Vinci to secure third.
Kean Nakamura-Berta: “As a team we executed everything very well. Most of the hard work was done yesterday in qualifying. Starting from pole you can control the pace. The car felt really good, although I think there is still a bit to improve to make it even better. Alex kept us under pressure for quite a while. Overall it was a good race, a great way to start the weekend: double pole and the win in Race 1. We have another race later today, again from pole, and we’ll try to replicate what we did here. We’ll see what happens, but it’s great to start with a win. We’ll just keep pushing.”
Alex Powell: “It was a good race, starting from second. Most of the opportunities came in the first one or two laps and at the safety car restart. It was quite tricky to follow closely because of the dirty air. I’m still really happy for the team, they deserved it.
The last few races have been a bit tricky, so I’m glad to be back at the front.”
Maksimilian Popov: “We had good pace in qualifying. Starting from P4 I made a good start and a good restart. I overtook my teammate and then it was quite a calm race. I just kept up the pace and finished third. Honestly, it wasn’t enough to catch the leading group, but I’m happy with it. Thanks to the team and everyone.”
The fight for fourth place was decided only at the end. Dante Vinci with Van Amersfoort Racing, who was running fourth and first among the rookies, was caught and overtaken by his direct class rival Salim Hanna with Prema Racing. The Colombian closed the gap corner by corner before making the decisive move on the straight with two laps to go. Vinci still finished fifth, earning second place on the rookie podium.
Sixth place went to Gabriel Gomez with US Racing, who with the 8 points gained now sits on 76, tied with Nakamura-Berta at the top of the championship. Seventh and third-best rookie was Aleksander Ruta with Van Amersfoort Racing.
Salim Hanna: “The race was pretty good. We didn’t stress the tyres too much, unlike others. I had a decent start, I didn’t try to be a superhero, and that put me in a good position. I gained a place on the first lap, then I tried to save the tyres while staying behind the guy in fourth. I knew that at the end of the race I would have a chance, and it worked out. We have decent tyres left for the next races, I’m looking forward to it.”
Eighth was Williams Driver Academy member Oleksandr Bondarev with Prema Racing, finishing ahead of teammate Sebastian Wheldon, supported also by Andretti Global. The two put on a show fighting hard for points, joined in the battle by Andrija Kostic with US Racing and his teammate Kabir Anurag, representing the Alpine Academy. There was also contact between the two US Racing drivers, which was placed under investigation. Anurag was forced into the gravel, while Kostic crossed the line in tenth place but was later handed a 25-second penalty by the Stewards. Moving up to tenth was therefore Mercedes junior Andy Consani with R-ace GP. The French driver, on his debut at Mugello Circuit, thus secured the final point on offer in Race 1.
In the women’s trophy, the win went to Ginevra Panzeri with AKM Motorsport, ahead of Brazilian driver Aurelia Nobels with AS Motorsport.
Ginevra Panzeri: “It went well. There was a lot of fighting, I really pushed myself. I had good pace. It’s such a beautiful emotion, I’m happy, I don’t have words to describe what I feel… maybe the right word is ‘wow!’”
The other female drivers lost the chance to fight for the women’s win in the opening lap incident. For her role in the crash, Mathilda Paatz received a six-place grid penalty for the next race she takes part in. A penalty was also handed to Zhenrui Chi with Prema Racing, after a spectacular battle with Reno Francot with PHM Racing ended in contact that sent the Dutch driver into the gravel. Chi was given a 25-second penalty. Meanwhile, Guy Albag with R-ace GP received a 10-second penalty for a collision that forced Teo Schropp with Jenzer Motorsport into the pits.
It was also a difficult race for Tomass Stolcermanis with AKM Motorsport, whose car stalled at the start of the formation lap. Forced to begin from the pitlane, the Latvian launched a recovery that brought him up to nineteenth at the finish.
The weekend continues today, Saturday, September 13, with Race 2 at 4:40 PM, while Race 3 is scheduled for Sunday, September 14, at 10:40 AM. All races will last 30 minutes plus one lap and will be broadcast live on ACI Sport TV and the international network of broadcasters following the championship worldwide, as well as via live streaming on the social channels of ACI Sport and the E4 Championship.