BRITISH F4 HAS BIGGEST GRID SINCE 2016
Junior single-seater championship hit the 20 mark at Silverstone last weekend
British Formula 4 has achieved its largest grid in six years with 20 cars competing at its Silverstone meeting last weekend.
The most recent previous time British F4 got 20 entries was in its May 2016 Thruxton round, and it last topped last weekend’s entry in August 2015 at Snetterton when 22 raced. Organiser Motorsport UK’s chief executive officer Hugh Chambers predicted to Motorsport News during the summer that British F4 would have 20-strong grids before the year’s end.
The grid number was hit with 17-year-old Isaac Barashi being added to Argenti’s line-up for the remaining rounds of 2022. Barashi has tested extensively throughout the year with the Argenti team and last weekend made his race debut in a four-car Argenti line-up alongside Mercedes junior Daniel Guinchard, Aiden Neate and Adam Fitzgerald.
Barashi said: “I’ve had a really productive year so far, bedding in with the team and getting used to the challenges of a Formula 4 car.
“The ambition is to race full-time in the championship in the future, so with the winter months ahead, these races at Silverstone and Brands Hatch will put us in a good position to keep working during the off-season.”
As reported in last week’s MN (see MN, September 22) the Fortec team returned to the championship last weekend with a two-car line-up, plus Jaden Pariat made his category debut with Chris Dittmann Racing. The championship had a grid of 15 at the start of this season and this had grown to 17 entries at the Thruxton round that preceded Silverstone.