ADAC Formel 4 

ADAC Formel 4·23.12.2019

Facts and figures: The 2019 ADAC Formula 4 in summ: 29 contestants from 20 different countries

The fifth ADAC Formula 4 season was again dominated by US Racing CHRS. The Kerpen-based outfit managed by joint team principals Ralf Schumacher and Gerhard Ungar celebrated the treble, just as they had done in 2018, lifting all three championship trophies.

Even so, the championship was an extremely tense affair, because Dennis Hauger (16, Norway, Van Amersfoort Racing) also had an excellent season, running the ultimate champion Théo Pourchaire (16, France, US Racing CHRS) close right up until the end. In terms of victories, Hauger even came out ahead, but Pourchaire triumphed because of his superior consistency.

Fascinating facts and figures from the 2019 ADAC Formula 4

Diversity: No fewer than 29 talented youngsters from 20 different countries lined up for the 20 races of this year’s ADAC Formula 4 campaign, four of them coming from Germany. The average age in the season finale at the Sachsenring was exactly 17 years.

European representation: The contestants drove for nine teams based in five countries. Italy was represented by four teams, Germany by two. France, the Netherlands and Switzerland contributed one each.

Honours all round: There were ten different winners in the 2019 season, with Norway’s Dennis Hauger on six being the most frequent occupant of the top rung of the podium. France’s Théo Pourchaire claimed four victories, while the Prema Powerteam rookies Roman Stanek and Paul Aron (15, Estonia) each won twice. Arthur Leclerc and Michael Belov (17, Russia, R-ace GP), Prema drivers Gianluca Petecof (16, Brazil) and Alessandro Famularo (15, Venezuela), as well as the Van Amersfoort drivers Niklas Krütten (16, Germany) and Sebastian Estner (17, Germany) each got their name in lights once.

Consistency: Theo Pourchaire finished in the Top Three twelve times and was thus the most frequent trophy recipient. Dennis Hauger made ten podium appearances. Leclerc ascended the podium eight times, Stanek and Petecof on five occasions.

Highest echelon: The highlight of the year for the youngsters of the ADAC High-Speed Academy was the Hockenheim weekend when they shared the billing with Formula 1 and had the opportunity to showcase their talent in front of a full house. The winners on that occasion were Dennis Hauger and Arthur Leclerc, the brother of Formula 1 superstar Charles, who was among the first to congratulate Leclerc junior on his result.

Record chasing: Dennis Hauger’s six victories in a single season put him sixth in the all-time winners list on level pegging with Mick Schumacher (20), the son of record world championship winner Michael Schumacher. The most successful ADAC Formula 4 driver remains the 2016 champion, Joey Mawson (23, Australia), who recorded 15 victories. In second and third place respectively are two German drivers, namely last year’s champion Lirim Zendeli (13 victories) and the 2015 champion Marvin Dienst (eight).

Clean sweep: Dennis Hauger takes the honours again, achieving what no ADAC Formula 4 contestant has managed since 2015. On the penultimate weekend at the Hockenheimring, the Norwegian teenager won all three races and scored the maximum 75 points.

Top newcomers: Roman Stanek won the Best Rookie trophy. The Czech youngster claimed ten victories and scored 412 points in the classification exclusively for drivers without previous motor racing experience. Runner-up in the category was Paul Aron (5 wins, 323 points).

Qualifying specialists: Eight different drivers booked pole position during the course of the campaign. Champion Pourchaire came out top in six qualifying sessions, runner-up Hauger in five and Best Rookie Stanek in three. Petecof took pole on two occasions, Krütten, Leclerc, Estner and Rasmussen on one each.

High profile: This year’s ADAC Formula 4 races once again enjoyed great popularity. 24 TV stations in 118 countries carried reports on the ADAC High-Speed Academy. There were more than 1.1 million video views on the ADAC Formula 4 Facebook page.

Narrowest, widest: In the tightest finish of the season, Alessandro Famularo hung on to first place across the line at Zandvoort by just 0.157 seconds ahead of US Racing driver Arthur Leclerc. Gianluca Petecof had the widest margin of any race winner in 2019: in the first round of the season at Oschersleben, the Brazilian took the chequered flag 14.132 seconds ahead of Roman Stanek.

Speed merchants: Dennis Hauger posted the highest average speed: in the second qualifying session at the Red Bull Ring, the Norwegian clocked an average speed of 171.7 km/h. The highest measured top speed in a race was achieved by a Van Amersfoort trio at Zandvoort: Lucas Alecco Roy, Ido Cohen and Dennis Hauger were each clocked at 235.8 km/h.

Dominance: Dennis Hauger also comes out top in terms of leading laps. The Norwegian led the field for 92 of the total 354 laps raced. Despite winning the title, Pourchaire is some way behind on 53 leading laps. Krütten and Stanek are equal third on 36 laps ahead of Petecof (26), Famularo (10), Aron and Belov (both 21). Estner (16), Leclerc and Dürksen (both 15) got into double figures, while Ghiretti (6), Rasmussen (3), Cohen (3) and Saucy (1) also feature in the statistics.

Fastest race laps: The distinction of having clocked more fastest race laps than any other contestant also goes to Dennis Hauger who was the fastest driver on eight occasions. Runner-up in the category was Petecof on three fastest laps. Stanek, Leclerc and Pourchaire each posted two. Also registering their presence were Lucas Alecco Roy (22, Monaco, Van Amersfoort), Belov and Dürksen with one each.

Distance: Over the course of the 20 races, 354 laps were completed on the tyres supplied by exclusive series partner Pirelli. This is equivalent to a total distance of 1,436.33 kilometres.