For every young single-seater racer Formula One is the ultimate dream and last weekend at the Sochi Autodrom, 20 young racers got the chance to get close to the object of their ambition as the 2016 Formula 4 North Eastern Zone championship kicked off in the company of F1 at the Russian Grand Prix. 

The seven-round championship, one of 12 national F4 series organised around the world, began with two races in front of a 60,000-strong crowd at the Sochi Autodrom, and in front of the 11 F1 teams.

For drivers making the transition from karting to single-seaters the weekend was a daunting prospect, but according to the series’ Sporting Director, former F1 driver Mika Salo, it was a test the young racers, aged between 15 and 17, passed with flying colours. 

“Most of these guys have never raced anything, some of them have done karts, which might have a couple of hundred spectators and suddenly they’re here in front of a huge audience and also all the F1 teams, it’s a big task for them,” said the former Ferrari and Toyota driver. “They were incredibly nervous but they were great. They did really well given the pressure. They put on a pretty good show actually!”

The show saw a first-race victory on Saturday for 15-year-old Richard Verschoor and the youngster, who was making his single-seater debut after graduating from the European and World Karting Championships, was thrilled to have been given the chance to race on the same bill as Formula One.

“It’s the first grand prix I‘ve ever been at and it’s amazing to get this close to F1,” he said after his win. “It’s incredibly professional. You can learn from everything you see here.”

The Dutch teenager is also sure that his decision to make the step to single-seaters in the F4 championship is the right one as he begins to tackle the long road to the top of motorsport. “F4 is just a great driving school. They really teach you how to drive in a correct way. It’s a really good championship to go from karting,” he says. 

The weekend wasn’t just about racing on the same bill as F1, however. The drivers also had the chance to quiz some of their F1 idols, as Alexandra Consani of F4 NEZ explained. 

“The weekend was a fantastic opportunity for them,” she said. “The FIA has built this ladder from F4 to Formula One and I think it was really good that the F4 drivers had the chance to get close to their dream. They were able to meet Daniil Kvyat and Max Verstappen for example and it really gave them some added inspiration.”

For Salo, whose role with the NEZ championship sees him mentor the drivers, the F4 category provides young drivers the perfect platform from which to begin their racing journey.

“It’s all about teaching them to drive,” he said. “It’s about testing and giving them the right tools to use. We have 20 cars and they can use data from all the cars and they can compare themselves to all their rivals. We have driver coaches; we have really good people like Kevin Korjus, Miki Weckström and Matt Parry, who are going through the data with them and telling them where they can improve, rather than going into set-up. 

“That’s what Formula One teams want from a driver. When you come to F1 you explain what you feel, they have engineers who can set the car up and fix the car for you.”

For Consani the strength of the F4 category comes in providing participating drivers with a clear path, as exemplified by last year’s NEZ winner Niko Kari.

“The evidence of the value of the series is that Niko is already doing well in the European F3 championship,” she said of the Finn who, after winning the 2015 championship, joined the Red Bull Junior Team and recently scored his first F3 European Championship podium finish at that championship’s round at the Hungaroring. 

“The value is also clear in how F4 is expanding,” she added. “Last year we started with 13 drivers, this year we have 20 on the grid. That’s a massive improvement. We don’t have a huge pool of drivers in the northern zone, but we have good grids.”

Having had a taste of their ultimate dream in Sochi this year’s NEZ drivers will now move on to a round at Zandvoort in the Netherland before returning to Russia where at Moscow Raceway they will first appear alongside the Russian Touring Car Championship before getting another taste of the big leagues when they share the bill with the DTM series.

There might be a long road ahead for the youngsters but the sights along the way are sure to be memorable.