As the first ever round of the Formula 4 Spanish Championship got underway at Navarra last weekend (10-11 June), there were 11 drivers gunning for glory. All of them took to the circuit in qualifying as soon as the clock started its countdown on Saturday, with Roope Markkanen holding the lead for the two first laps before Drivex driver Alexander Vartanyan set the fastest time. Behind them, Richard Verschoor was coming strongly and preparing himself for a fast lap, as Xavier Lloveras, Jarno Opmeer and Juuso Puhakka of MP Motorsport also set times. The young Red Bull Junior driver Verschoor ended the session fastest, becoming the first pole-sitter of the F4 Spanish Championship. Completing the top five were Vartanyan, Roope Markkanen, Lloveras and Opmeer.

The afternoon saw the historic beginning of Race 1 – held under a blazing Spanish sun. Verschoor made a decent start to keep the lead, while Roope Markkanen, Double R’s fast-starter, flew into P2 with Opmeer going up to P3. Vartanyan had a slow getaway and found himself down to P6 after turn one, while the unfortunate Juho Valtanen got involved in an tussle with Rasmus Markkanen and was forced to retire by turn six. The race was full of action, with Xavier Lloveras fighting to defend his position over a charging Vartanyan, but eventually the Russian got the upper hand and took P4.

Tuomas Tujula was the early pace setter, catching Nikita Volegov, but the Finn never got the chance to pass Drivex’ driver. As the race went on, Opmeer tried a move on Roope Markkanen but couldn’t make it stick, alloweding Alexander Vartanyan to catch them. The three drivers arrived on the main straight wheel-to-wheel and it was a fantastic Vartanyan who overtook both cars on the inside for P2, with Roope Markkanen keeping his position in P3. But on the final lap of the dramatic race, Opmeer saw an opportunity on Roope Markkanen and the Dutchman transformed his second try into a success and took P3. In front, Verschoor took a lights to flag victory, with a 4.1s gap.

The day ended with the second qualifying session, and it was Drivex’ driver Vartanyan who set the fastest time to snatch Race 3 pole position and his first pole position ever in an F4 championship certified by FIA.

The surprise performer of the session was clearly Nikita Volegov who qualified fourth. Roope Markkanen, who scored a podium in race one, could not do better than P6 right in front of Lloveras and Valtanen, followed by Rasmus Markkanen, Tuomas Haapalainen and unfortunate Juuso Puhakka who got penalties for exceeding track limits. 

The last day of competition started with a very early Race 2, with quite different temperatures than had been seen over the past two days of running. The starting grid of the 18 minutes + 1 lap, was decided by the Race 1 classification, therefore Richard Verschoor was the one on pole with Alexander Vartanyan second and Jarno Opmeer in third. Vartanyan had a bad start, dropping him out of the top 3, which started his campaign to gain back positions.

Tuomas Tujula found himself in P2 after a jump start and the Finn had to serve a drive-through penalty, bringing him out at the back of the field while Rasmus Markkanen made contact with another car and spun at the end of the first lap.

As the race went on, Juho Valtanen got into a fight with Haapalainen and managed to overtake his Finnish teammate while MP Motorsport driver Juuso Puhakka, took advantage of the move to follow Valtanen and grab seventh.

At the chequered flag, Roope Markkanen claimed his first ever win in a single-seater category, while Verschoor took second and Jarno ended third.

 “It’s awesome!” said race winner Markkanen. “The race was very good, and it’s my first win ever in an F4 Championship. It is a crazy feeling”

Race 3 came at the end of the afternoon, with Vartanyan sitting in pole position. Unfortunately, for his first time ever on pole, the Russian driver stalled on the grid. Verschoor took the lead of the pack, but suffered a puncture which led to his retirement. That meant Tujula was promoted to top spot, with Opmeer behind him, fighting to defend his position to Xavi Lloveras. But at the end of the main straight, the Spaniard tried an overly-ambitious move which led to the Dutchman to drop P4 and Lloveras to retire. Finally, Tuomas Tujula was crowned Race 3 winner, with Roope Markkanen second and Juuso Puhakka third.

The next round of the F4 Spanish Championship will be held on Circuito de Motorland on 25th and 26th of June.