Ahead Rashid Al Dhaheri had an impressive start to his single-seater car racing career. The Abu Dhabi 15-year-old finished in the points for Prema Racing at Imola in the first two rounds of the highly competitive blue-chip Italian 2023 Formula 4 (F4) Championship.
The Italian F4 series attracts the world’s best young drivers who fight it out for the coveted crown. Contested over seven rounds, at iconic motorsport venues, F4 is an important first step for drivers aiming to become F1 superstars. With three points scoring rounds each race weekend, making it a 21-round series, the racing is extremely competitive.
Al Dhaheri, in his number 14 Huawei, FAB and Yas Heat sponsored car, was one of the youngest competitors on the grid, packed with up-and-coming talented drivers from the sons of F1 drivers to experienced single-seter competitors. Big name drivers to have emerged from the Italian F4 Championship since it began in 2014, include F1 Young Guns such as Lando Norris, Guanyu Zhou, Mick Schumacher with others, on the fringes, such as Felipe Drugovich, Marcus Armstrong, Yuri Vips and Robert Shwartzman.
At Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, on Friday (21st April 2023) during free practice, Rashid’s limited but intense F4 testing experience managed by Prema came to good use, his transformation from multiple-Karting champion to single-seaters, meant the UAE driver was able to adapt rapidly and be on the pace from day one.
After qualifying seventh for his first car race, Rashid got an early reality check when swamped at the start by the older and more experienced drivers who pushed him out of the top ten. Undeterred and unflustered he soon found his rhythm, battling among a posse of half a dozen cars, swapping positions until he was back in a points scoring position.
Using smart race craft, and maturity belying his rookie status, Rashid bided his time and picked his battles, before attacking late in the race, to reclaim his qualifying position, finishing seventh. This was an impressive and solid debut and he was the second best finisher out of the very strong Prema team.
The race was won by Poland’s Kacper Sztuka from second placed Brando Badoer, son of Italian ex-F1 driver, with fellow Italian, Nicola Lacorte, taking the final podium place.
For the second race of the day Rashid kept out of trouble at the start but again dropped down the order. As in the first race he kept his head, knowing he had the pace to fight back when things calmed down, and was able to execute a series of strong moves which saw him cross the line in eighth.
After penalties were handed out, he was promoted to seventh position meaning he had achieved strong top-ten finishes in his first two races, which was very notable as he is one of the only series rookies with no previous single-seater experience. Rashid’s Prema teammate, McLaren young driver Ugo Ugochuwu, from the USA, won the second race; followed by Briton Arvid Lindblad in second and Maltese racer Zachary David taking the final podium spot.
Rashid’s final race of the weekend saw 36 cars take to the grid, with Rashid lining up on the sixth row. Less than ten seconds separated the top dozen cars, as they jostled for position for much of the 13 lap race, which was shortened by two safety car periods. After the first restart Rashid was in a massive battle with half a dozen drivers targeting the top ten, when there was contact which resulted in a broken wing on the #14 car, at which point he decided to retire the damaged car.
At the front, Arvid Lindblad won the race, followed home by Alfio Spina in second and Ugo Ugochokwu third.
Al Dhaheri summed up his race weekend at Imola, and first as a F4 racer: “Nothing really prepares you for your very first car race. I will work on the standing starts which are very different to the rolling starts used in karting, but overall, I am very happy with the way the races went. Many experienced drivers crashed or had incidents while I did my best to avoid them but in the final stages of the final race on Sunday, unfortunately I had to retire the car, after the front wing broke. This was my first experience of intense single-seater, wheel-to-wheel racing, and I am learning from every minute I have on track.”
“I want to thank my team for giving me a great car for my first race, and I hope they are happy with my performance this weekend. And to my family and sponsors: without you I would not be here, living my dream. Thank you for the support!”
“Finally, I must say I was relieved to watch my teammate Ugo and Andrea walk away from a big crash, and also the incidents during the weekend showed how much safety has improved under the FIA,” added Al Dhaheri.
Rene Rosin, Prema Team Principal, commented: “A solid weekend from Rashid, as a rookie without any car experience; this was always going to be a learning curve. Two strong results and then the reality of competing in such a strong field, with so many talented young drivers from all over the world. He is really the best of the best in this age group, and Rashid can be proud, but also knows there is work to do, and the Italian F4 Championship is a long one with another 18 races to go. His first race, his first mission, in formula racing, was well accomplished.”
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