My First F4 Weekend Experience

My First F4 Weekend Experience is Part 2 of Luca Day’s journey into F4 racing from karts. You can read Part 1 here.

Coming into this weekend, I knew I was nervous because there were many competitive drivers and cars. However, I made sure to train and prepare for the weekend. I arrived at the Nola Motorsports Park track in New Orleans late Wednesday night. The next morning, I had a seat fit and reviewed data with the team. Then, I went to the first session of the day to adjust the car. In my opinion, this session didn’t go well because we had many issues with our new car.

The next session, FP2, seemed to be going better, but unfortunately, we were still slow. We had some pace, but we were still at the bottom of the standings. I pushed myself to drive the car as fast as possible, but unfortunately, my line had changed over the past two weeks.

The next day, Friday, was FP3. I made sure to correct my lines and fix the car to make it ready and fast for that session. I was pretty nervous throughout the session, but I felt a lot of improvement. We cut down our previous time by about four seconds and were now only about three seconds slower than everyone else. However, these were issues that we needed to improve and I had to focus on my driving. 

The next step was qualification. I qualified a solid P9. At the end of the day, there were some unfortunate penalties to other drivers, so we finished in a really solid P6. So, I finished the day feeling very confident for race 1 the next day. 

In the first race, we had a fantastic start. I managed to pass a few cars and secure a fourth-place position for the first few laps. However, our luck took a turn for the worse as the track was damp, catching me off guard in the initial corners. This caused me to spin and lose several positions, resulting in a disappointing fall to the back of the pack. Despite this setback, I made a remarkable comeback and started gaining ground, but unfortunately, another spin due to unexpected rain caught me off guard, and I ended up in the gravel, resulting in a DNF.

Since it was the final lap of the race, we managed to secure a P11 finish, thanks to two other DNF’s. While I was disappointed, I was also pleased with the result. We had several areas to improve for the next race, so I prioritized mental preparation and visualized the track.

Race two began with a poor start, and I was forced off the track in the first corner. Despite this setback, I persevered and managed to climb up the pack, eventually securing a P9 position, which earned us some valuable points for the weekend. I was thrilled with my performance, especially since it was my second race. I had finally achieved some points! While I may have made some mistakes, I was grateful for the points we had earned, which was the primary objective.

Sunday morning marked the final race, race three. We had a decent start and managed to complete the first few laps without any major issues. However, as with the previous races, I encountered a spin due to contact with the painted rumble strips. Since the track was still damp, this caused me to lose control and spin again, resulting in a slip to last place. Despite this setback, I fought hard to regain my position and managed to secure a P11 finish. Unfortunately, with a safety car deployed on the final laps due to another spin, my race was compromised, and we finished under the safety car. With my pace, we had the potential to secure a P8 position, which left me feeling frustrated.

Overall, this weekend was a learning experience. I recognized areas where I could improve, such as my driving lines and track awareness. While I was happy with my performance in race two and our qualifying, the conditions on the track could have been better. I’m excited to share more details about my next race at Road America in May!

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