MACAU GRAND PRIX DELIVER CHAOTIC QUALIFYING SESSIONS
Qualifying delivered its verdict on the legendary Guia Circuit, and one thing is certain: the day was as intense as it was chaotic. With the favourites up front, a string of mistakes, and repeated red flags, both the F4 and Formula Regional sessions provided their share of surprises.
FIA Formula 4 World Cup: Sebastian Wheldon snatches a hard-fought pole
After a very disrupted session, Sebastian Wheldon secured pole position for the FIA F4 World Cup in Macao. The American driver, already seen as one of the strongest contenders of the weekend, finished ahead of Kean Nakamura-Berta and Emmanuele Olivieri, completing a top three made up of the three main favourites.
Behind them, however, the session turned into a festival of errors. Many drivers brushed the walls, missed their braking points, or lost control in the narrowest sections of the track. This caused several interruptions, breaking the rhythm and putting pressure on the final flying laps. In those conditions, Wheldon’s composure made the difference.
There were four red flags in all the session, with the following drivers having retired: French F4 champion Alex Munoz, Rayan Caretti, Tiago Rodrigues, who made contact with Jules Roussell, Gino Trappa and Rintaro Sato.
As a result of the crash at turn 3 with the home hero Tiago Rodrigues, Jules has been given a 3-place grid penalty and will start tomorrow’s race from 9th instead of 6th.
Formula Regional World Cup: Théophile Naël secures a majestic pole
In Formula Regional, the tension was not lower. Freddie Slater had been the fastest in Q1, but his lap from the previous day ultimately wasn’t enough to secure pole position. It was Théophile Naël who finally claimed pole for Saturday’s qualifying race. Behind him, Slater took second place, while Evan Giltaire delivered one of the standout performances of the day: despite a particularly difficult Q1, the Frenchman managed to recover and set the third-fastest time.
As in F4, the session was marked by several red flags, disrupting the attempts and making session management even more complicated. Charlie Wurz, Jose Garfias and Tymek Kucharcyzk have crashed during the session, whereas Oscar Wurz and Zhenrui Chi were not able to take part in the session due to a massive crash in Free Practice 2.
On the way to exciting races
With Wheldon and Naël taking pole for the qualifying race, and strong challengers ready to pounce on the slightest mistake, the races promise to deliver. On a circuit where no mistake is forgiven, every metre could decide the winner!
Share this content:
