After the thrilling weekend in Austria, featuring two races at the Red Bull Ring that crowned race winners the Brazilian from Prema Racing, Rafael Camara, and the Frenchman from G4 Racing, Alessandro Giusti, it’s time for the drivers of the Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine to hit the track once again. This weekend marks one of the most anticipated events of the 2023 season, as the circus returns to Italy to compete on the iconic track of the Autodromo Nazionale Monza. The Temple of Speed, which recently hosted the 94th Italian Grand Prix, is now ready to welcome the Renault Sport-powered Tatuus T318 cars of the series jointly directed by Alpine and ACI Sport.
At Monza, Italian driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli of PREMA Racing arrives with renewed confidence thanks to his increased lead, due to a solid performance in Austria. He now leads the Championship with a 33-point advantage over his closest rival, Martinius Stenshorne, who holds second place ahead of the weekend. The Norwegian racer from R-ace GP didn’t score any points at the Red Bull Ring, losing the podium in Race 2 due to an incorrect procedure during the formation lap, resulting in a drive-through penalty converted to a 25-second post-race penalty. Monza represents a chance for Stenshorne to redeem himself, as he secured his first podium of the season in Formula 4 on this track last year. With an excellent performance in the seventh round of the Championship, Tim Tramnitz of R-ace GP, currently third in the driver standings, is narrowing the gap to second place. Together with Camara, who is fourth, they are keeping the title fight alive and intense in the final part of the season.
Furthermore, in the upper part of the standings, an eye is certainly to be kept on Kas Haverkort, the lightning-fast Dutch driver from Van Amersfoort Racing, and Alessandro Giusti, who is in top form after achieving the highest score in the last two rounds, resulting in his first seasonal victories.
The appointment at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, with 34 cars ready to start, will also mark the debut of some newcomers in the series. Danish driver Noah Strømsted, who has already stood on the podium several times this year in the Spanish F4 series, makes his debut in the category with Team RPM. There is also news for Saintéloc Racing, which fields Tymek Kucharczyk, Polish driver from Łodygowice, who is no stranger to victory and podium finishes in his motorsport career.
Weekend Schedule:
The first taste of the track will be on Friday, September 15, with two collective test sessions of 50 minutes each starting at 10:35 and 14:40. On Saturday, September 16, it will be time for qualifying, with Group A on the track from 9:20 to 9:35, followed by Group B from 9:45 to 10.00. Race 1 will kick off in the afternoon, lasting 30 minutes plus 1 lap, starting at 15:45. On Sunday, September 17, there will be another qualifying session, this time with the group order reversed. Group B will be the first on the track from 8:30 to 8:45, followed by Group A from 8:50 to 9:05. The last race of the weekend will start at 14:15, again lasting 30 minutes plus 1 lap.