Brilliant season start for Ugochukwu
The winter brake officially came to an end last week, as 37 drivers joined the first racing weekend of the 2023 F4 Italian Championship, held in Imola.
A very successful first round saw Prema Racing’s Ugo Ugochukwu claim pole position for Race 1 and 2, after a brilliant qualifying session, and take victory in the first race. Unfortunately, a mechanical clutch issue prevented him from getting off the starting line in Race 2. That did not however stop the McLaren Racing Junior Driver from racing in the third round, started from a solid 5th position and concluded in 3rd, earning a very much deserved podium finish.
“Overall it was a pretty solid weekend for me. In Race 1, the pace was really good. Unfortunately in Race 2 we had a mechanical issue, and I was hit from behind. The car had a lot of damage, but the Prema team worked really hard to repair my car for Race 3, and I was able to pick up a podium starting from P5. I want to thank the whole team and the mechanics for their hard work over the weekend.”
After a first round, Ugochukwu sits in third place in the overall championship standings, with a total of 40 points earned, behind Brit Lindblad and fellow Prema driver Locorte.
The American will be committing to the championship on a full-time base after partaking to two events in the same series last year putting additional experience in car racing under his belt, scoring total of 84 points and stepping four times on the podium, concluding therefore 60% of the races in the 2022 Italian series in the Top 3.
A brilliant start to the 2023 season for the young American star, who debuted in car racing the day of his 15th birthday last year, claiming third place in the 2022 F4 British Championship and the Rookie title in the same series, in his first ever year in the formulas. A third place in the 2023 F4 UAE Championship followed shortly after, taking the total up to 49 podiums, 8 wins and 7 pole positions scored since leaving karts behind.
Ugochukwu’s journey is surely one not to miss out on, as the 15-year-old continues to confirm his exceptional talent and determination on and off track, making him one of the most promising racers of his generation.
We will see Ugochukwu and fellow Italian F4 drivers take on round two of the Series, held in Misano, between the 5th-7th of May 2023. In case you’ve missed it, check out the live streams of the first round of the 2023 Italian F4 Championship.
