In a season nobody could have predicted, Martin Molnár clinched the Rookie Championship title in British F4. Heading into the final race weekend of the season at the top of the rookie championship standings, Molnár had to keep his cool and fight also a mental battle at Brands Hatch.
Martin Molnár arrived at the season finale of British F4 at Brands Hatch with a 2.5-point lead in the rookie standings. After a nerve-wracking showdown he claimed the Rookie Championship title. Competing for Virtuosi Racing, the Hungarian driver ended the season with 5 overall podium finishes and 22 rookie podiums, recovering from a 90-point deficit to secure the championship.
Building his lead on Saturday
In the qualifying session the member of the Hungarian Motorsport Academy, run by HUMDA Magyar Mobilitás-fejlesztési Ügynökség Zrt. secured 9th position, with his second-best laps placing him in 10th. This meant he started the first race from 10th on the grid, eventually gaining one position to finish in 9th. This earned him 3rd place in the rookie classification, allowing him to stand on the podium once again, while extending his points lead over Yuanpu Cui, who finished 11th.
In the second race, based on the Silverstone qualifying results, Virtuosi Racing’s Hungarian driver started from 6th on the grid. He made up two positions during the race, battling it out with championship frontrunners Alex Ninovic and Deagen Fairclough. He impressively held off the attacks from already crowned champion Fairclough with mature and composed driving. “Ninovic came in at an incredible pace during the first three laps, launching his car from such a distance into Turn 1 that it required Martin’s calmness to avoid both of them being taken out. After that, Fairclough, who had already won 13 races this season and clinched the championship, applied enormous pressure. Twice he threw his car into Turn 1, lifting off the throttle at the last possible moment. But Martin responded with remarkable composure, putting in qualifying lap times and always pulling away just enough for Fairclough to have no chance,” praised Martin’s coach and mentor, Tamás Pál Kiss, who also supports the Hungarian driver as the operational director at MOTAM.
Since Cui finished behind Martin in this race as well, Martin increased his points lead heading into the final two races of the season.
Nail-biting finish
In the final two races of the weekend, held on Sunday, there was no room for error as Martin’s Chinese rival still had a chance to overtake him in the standings. The first race of the day, and the third of the weekend, brought the best result for the 16-year-old Hungarian driver, finishing P3 overall. It was a shortened race, the most important news being that there were no serious injuries, or worse.
“On Saturday night we reviewed the data and realized Martin needed to use a lower gear in some corners,” said Tamás Kiss Pál. “In the reverse grid race on Sunday, Martin had a great launch, positioned himself well, and drove very disciplined and smartly. Running in P4, he closed in on Ella Lloyd, and we got an epic battle between four drivers: Martin was attacking Lloyd, who defended well, while Abbi Pulling joined the fray, being pressured by champion Deagen Fairclough.”
“This four-way battle eventually split up but we didn’t get to see if Martin could pass Lloyd because Jack Sherwood, likely due to a mechanical issue, flew off at Turn 5, one of the fastest parts of the circuit, crashing into the forest. His car’s rear end broke loose at around 190-200 km/h and the front right lifted off, causing the floor to detach, sending him over the barriers. The halo likely saved his life and thankfully he was unharmed, but the race was red-flagged and not restarted.”
With Sherwood out, Martin gained a position finishing as the best rookie and securing a podium. However as the race only covered four laps, half points were awarded. Without this, the Virtuosi Racing driver would have already been crowned rookie champion with one race to spare, but now he was short by just one point for the title.
Going into the final race with a 24-point lead over second-placed Yuanpu Cui in the rookie standings, the finale was a nail-biter. Any small mistake could have cost Martin the championship.
“This was a battle of nerves,” summarized Tamás Pál Kiss. “We approached the last race knowing that if Martin finished, he would be the champion. However, if he DNF’d and Cui became the top rookie, Martin would lose the title. We ended the season with a chaotic race—rain started to drizzle before the lights went out but the track was still suitable for slicks. Then on the formation lap the rain intensified and Martin immediately reported over the radio that slicks were no longer safe, which was clear from the footage of cars leaving tire tracks on the wet asphalt.”
“Despite this the race wasn’t delayed, and the drivers started on slicks. A third of the grid went off immediately, unable to keep the car on track. Martin, however, held on, moving up to P4, while Cui pitted for wet tires at the end of the formation lap. This meant Cui had the chance to catch up and overtake everyone in the rookie battle, but a red flag was shown and a new start procedure followed.”
The tension wasn’t over yet. After the restart, Martin was running as the third-best rookie, fighting with his Chinese rival, but he didn’t want to take unnecessary risks. “We also had to worry about Bart Harrison, who was ahead of Martin and Cui. We had a feeling he might lose control of the car. Martin was sliding around, being attacked from behind, and mentally exhausted after the intense weekend,” said Kiss Pál.
Two drivers then went off and the safety car was deployed. It wasn’t clear if there would be another restart, but there was. Unfortunately, Martin didn’t nail the restart and nearly slid off track under heavy pressure. In the final two laps it became a matter of survival mode. And to make matters worse, Cui took the lead among the rookies. “As we predicted, Bart Harrison, leading the rookie classification, overcooked it and spun out at Turn 1, allowing Cui to take the lead. Martin was under constant attack but couldn’t afford to take any risks and had to focus solely on finishing.”
Martin, the first and only Hungarian driver in the series, eventually crossed the line as the fourth-best rookie and secured the rookie title. “We had another great weekend and a fantastic season. The whole team did an excellent job and this title is as much theirs as it is mine,” said Virtuosi Racing’s top driver after the season finale. “I approached the last race knowing I couldn’t make any mistakes. When my main rival took the lead it only added to the excitement, but it didn’t change my approach—I just stuck to my strategy, which eventually brought home the title. I tried not to think about the championship all weekend and it worked. After the third round at Snetterton, we were 90 points behind in the rookie standings. Looking back, it’s unbelievable that we managed to come back and take the title. It was an incredible year.”
“It’s amazing that we were able to overcome such a huge deficit,” added Tamás Pál Kiss. “It took a tremendous amount of work to achieve this result and for the last three weeks, we’ve only been focused on the final race weekend. I’m incredibly proud of how Martin handled the pressure with such maturity. Two moments stand out from this weekend: his huge improvement in the third sector from Friday to Saturday, which would normally take at least two full race weekends to achieve, and his incredible drive on Saturday, holding off the already-crowned champion Fairclough. That was world-class racing. He withstood 20 minutes of relentless pressure, showing why he deserves to be the rookie champion.”
