Motorsport Games: Mercedes F1 junior Antonelli dominates in F4 for Italy

The Mercedes F1 junior lined up on pole after winning Saturday’s qualification race and immediately pulled clear at the start.

Dario Cabanelas was slow away from the second row was challenged on the run to Turn 1 by Pedro Clerot and Bruno Del Pino Ventos, but contact with Clerot put the Swiss driver out immediately with right-rear suspension damage, his car pirouetting multiple times before coming to a halt.

UAE F4 champion Charlie Wurz, who retired in the qualification race after first-lap contact with Germany’s Valentin Kluss, made up 12 positions on the opening lap from 24th on the grid, despite the Austrian going off the track and almost making contact with another car as he rejoined.

Following a brief safety car period to retrieve Cabanelas’ car, Antonelli broke clear once more, controlling the remainder of the 30-minute contest to win by 6.902 seconds and give Italy its third gold medal of the games.

Portugal’s Manuel Espirito Santo ran second throughout, finishing 4.6s clear of Bruno Del Pino Ventos, who took bronze for Spain despite late pressure from Danish F4 champion Julius Dinesen.

Clerot ran fourth early on before being challenged by Dinesen, who was squeezed wide by the Brazilian before completing the move into Signes, with Lorens Lecertua following him through into fifth, where the Belgian driver remained until the finish.

#23 Belgium: Lorens Lecertua, Formula 4

Photo by: SRO

Wurz made up further ground during a frenetic battle inside the top 10, coming home sixth ahead of Clerot, who was placed under investigation at the finish for exceeding track limits.

Kluss also climbed through the order to finish eighth ahead of Ukraine’s Oleksandr Partyshev and Panama’s Valentino Mini.

Korea Republic’s Michael Shin was involved in the battle for fourth during the early stages, but eventually tumbled down the order after damaging his front wing.