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In Formula Regional Middle East Round 4 there were a couple of podiums, but in the fourth round of Formula 4 UAE there was none. Meanwhile Australia had a winner in the Formula Winter Series opener.
From sixth on the grid, Costa Toparis was the first to break through with third in the first FRMEC race on the Yas Marina Grand Prix circuit. He scored the first points of the series for his Evans GP race team. James Wharton (Mumbai Falcons) who won F4 UAE last year, finished fifth while Noah Lisle (Xcel Motorsport) was 11th.
The second race began with the top 10 from the first reversed. There were two safety cars during the race, and it finished behind a third. Wharton was fourth, Lisle seventh and Toparis was nineth before a penalty for the eighth-placed finisher elevated him a spot.
In the last, on a drying track, Wharton qualified second and through two safety cars, finished second. As high as sixth, Toparis finished ninth. Lisle started 18th and was able to finish just out of the top 10 in 11th.
Race one of F4 UAE was under lights with Zack Scoular 21st leading the way, the dual Australian/New Zealand national, local resident well off his previous performances. Jack Beeton (AGI Sport) 25th and his teammate Nicolas Stati 30th. PHM AIX Racing’s Kaleb Mrad was off the back row after his time was deleted.
There were two safety cars, the second when Scoular was turned around. He spun again in the Chicane and retired. Beeton whose grandfather passed away during the week, placed 14th in front of Mrad with Stati 21st.
It was a wet second race with the start delayed and ultimately started after four laps behind the Safety Car. In a chaotic race, Beeton was delayed when a rival spun in front of him, Scoular was 15th when he lost places after a couple of off-road excursions. He ultimately finished 18th, three places ahead of Stati and Beeton who was behind his teammate.
Predicting the weather for the last would be important. With the choice of wets or dry tyres, those who chose the former lost out. Scoular was able to make up numerous places to finish 14th, Beeton was 19th and Stati 25th. Mrad pitted when his engine went off song.
In Spain at the Jerez circuit, the Formula Winter Series began. Griffin Peebles for the Dutch team MP Motorsport was the best of the three Aussies. He qualified second for Race 1 and finished runner up, then won the second before a fifth in second qualifying and ninth in Race 3.
His teammate Peter Bouzinelos, fresh from racing F4 in the Middle East, had a best result of 19th in two of the races and a 23rd. US Racing’s Gianmarco Pradel had a sixth in Race 1, was unclassified in Race 2 and 13th in the third.
