Three youngsters from the Maranello Academy are competing in this year’s Italian series. It will be Maya Weug’s second year in Formula 4, while James Wharton and Rafael Camara are making their debut in the category.
The Italian Formula 4 championship gets underway this weekend at Imola’s Enzo e Dino Ferrari circuit, with three Ferrari Driver Academy students taking part. The trio of Rafael Camara, James Wharton and Maya Weug have been hard at work getting ready for the Italian series, rounding off their preparation by taking part in the opening round of the ADAC F4 series at Spa-Francorchamps a fortnight ago.
Good start. The Belgian weekend went well for Camara and Wharton, with the former winning Race 3 and the latter taking a solid third place to make it to the podium in Race 2. It was a good omen for the very competitive Italian championship, that features the best teams and drivers in Europe in this category.
First signs. “Camara’s European debut was more than satisfactory,” commented Marco Matassa, the head of the FDA. “We are very happy with what Rafael did on a far from straightforward track like Spa-Francorchamps. This is only the start of the journey for Camara and Wharton and both these rookies are up against more experienced drivers, but that is all part of the learning process. Maya has worked hard over the winter, aiming to profit from the experience gained last year and she faces a season that, while still demanding, will have less unknowns than last year.”
Programme. The action starts on Saturday morning in Imola, with two qualifying sessions at 9.00 and 9.25, each lasting 15 minutes. The first race of the weekend takes place in the afternoon at 14.55. Sunday also sees plenty of action, with Race 2 at 10.30, with the third and final race of the opening round of the season taking place at 17.30.