The ACI Racing Weekend has officially kicked off at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola. The drivers of the Italian F.4 Championship opened the day with the first free practice session, launching the fifth of the season’s seven rounds. The session lasted forty minutes and gave the drivers a chance to familiarize themselves with the technical layout of the circuit, known for its elevation changes and high-speed corners.
At the end of the session, it was Gabriel Gomez who clocked the fastest time with US Racing, setting a benchmark of 1’47.046 just over ten minutes before the checkered flag. The Brazilian edged out his teammate Andrija Kostic, who finished second with a gap of only 0.041 seconds. The margins remained tight with David Cosma-Cristofor, driving for PHM Racing, taking third just 0.096 off the lead.
Maksimilian Popov with Van Amersfoort Racing was fourth, only 0.
107 behind, followed by Salim Hanna of Prema Racing in fifth at 0.162.
Singaporean driver Kabir Anurag, representing the Alpine Academy with US Racing, finished sixth with a gap of 0.170, ahead of Enea Frey from Jenzer Motorsport, seventh at 0.198.
Completing the top 10 were three drivers who had featured near the top of the standings in the early stages of the session: Luka Sammalisto, also with US Racing, eighth at 0.260; Italian driver Emanuele Olivieri with R-ace GP, ninth at 0.267; and Kean Nakamura-Berta of Prema Racing, tenth at 0.306.
Preparations for qualifying will continue this afternoon, Friday, August 1, with Free Practice 2 scheduled for 1:20 PM, again over a 40-minute session. The qualifying sessions will then take place in the evening: Q1 will run from 6:10 PM to 6:25 PM, followed by Q2 from 6:35 PM to 6:50 PM. The two sessions will define the starting grids for Race 1 and Race 2, while the Race 3 grid will be determined by each driver’s second-best lap time.
On Saturday, August 2, Race 1 will get underway at 11:40 AM (30 minutes + 1 lap), with Race 2 scheduled for 6:40 PM (30 minutes + 1 lap). The weekend will conclude on Sunday, August 3, with Race 3 starting at 12:00 PM (30 minutes + 1 lap).
The first two races will be broadcast live on ACI Sport TV (Sky channel 228 and Tivùsat channel 52), while Race 3 will be shown later on Sunday evening. All races will also be streamed live at live.acisport.it and on ACI Sport TV’s official Facebook and YouTube channels. English-language commentary will be available via the international broadcasters airing the Italian F.4 Championship and on the series’ official social media platforms.