Novinky

Marek Mičík entered the single-seater world this season with the F4 CEZ Academy team. He took part in the academy at the beginning of the year, and the next step for him was to participate in the F4 CEZ championship, where he showed great promise.

Marek Mičík has been racing in the F4 field since the season opener at Balaton Park. His first competitive experience brought him two 8th-place finishes and one 6th place—a solid debut.

“My first season was all about learning new things and gaining experience. I think I got off to a good start, but the rest of the season was really challenging,” said Mičík, who managed to finish in the top 5 at Most circuit in the second part of the season, marking his best result in 2024.

“It was in damp conditions, and I enjoyed it the most, probably also because it was my best career result,” explained Mičík, who also has fond memories of the second round at Red Bull Ring.

“My favorite track in the championship is Red Bull Ring. It’s a fantastic circuit, and I had an unbelievable weekend there, especially in the second race, where I made a great recovery after getting spun in turn 1 and then pulled off some nice overtakes.”

Mičík, of course, had to learn a lot, as Formula 4 was a completely new car for him. “The most important skill in F4 is properly managing the tires and maintaining your pace throughout the race,” said Mičík, who definitely wants to race in F4 again. “I have great plans for next season, though they depend heavily on our budget, but I’ll do everything I can to drive next year,” added Mičík, who finnished 8th in the final standings.

Five drivers from F4 CEZ participated in the FIA Motorsport Games in Valencia last weekend, and all of them demonstrated their skills, although some were unlucky in the final battle for medals.

This year’s F4 CEZ champion Oscar Wurz, third in the standings Max Karhan, along with Jean Paul Karras, Andrea Kostic, and Matus Ryba took part in the unique „Olympic Games of motorsport“ at Valencia in the F4 race.

All of them know each other from F4 CEZ this year. Wurz from Austria and Karhan from the Czech Republic raced the entire season, while Karras from Greece, Kostic from Serbia, and Ryba from Slovakia participated in selected races.

The FIA Motorsport Games took place at the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia. The Formula 4 event began with two 45-minute practice sessions. Karras won the opening practice and finished third in the second.

The Saturday´s morning qualifying session took place under wet conditions, where the last driver to cross the finish line had the best chance at setting the fastest lap. Karras set the 7th fastest time, with Ryba in 10th, Kostic in 12th, Karhan in 14th, and Wurz in 15th.

Later in the afternoon, the qualifying race was on the schedule. This race was crucial, determining the starting order for Sunday’s final medal race. Ryba had a fantastic qualifying race, moving up to 5th place in the 20-minute session, becoming the best-placed F4 CEZ participant. Karhan moved to 9th, with Karras, Wurz, and Kostic right behind him.

The final race took place on Sunday, with Ryba starting from the third row. The fifth and sixth rows included drivers familiar from F4 CEZ. Unfortunately, for three of them, the race didn’t last long.

Wurz didn’t even complete the first lap; after a collision with another car, he retired with a broken suspension. Karras, fiercely defending his position against Karhan, braked unexpectedly early in a corner, causing Karhan to collide with him. Both retired after the second lap.

Ryba was racing in the top five but eventually lost his position due to a time penalty for track limits, dropping to ninth place behind Kostic, who finished eighth and thus became the highest-placed driver from F4 CEZ.

The FIA Motorsport Games showcased the impressive pace and talent of the F4 CEZ drivers. Despite some bad luck, Karhan, Karras, Kostic, Ryba, and Wurz proved to be highly competitive among a field of over 20 cars.

The 2024 F4 CEZ season saw Oscar Wurz claim his first single seater title with consistent performances for Jenzer Motorsport. Despite facing tough competition from Kirill Kutskov and Czech talent Max Karhan, it was the young Austrian’s steady results that secured him the championship. Here’s how the top three drivers shaped this thrilling season.

Oscar Wurz
Oscar Wurz – a name familiar to long-time motorsport fans, but for his competitors in F4 CEZ, he’s just another rival. As the youngest son of former F1 driver Alex Wurz, Oscar entered this year’s F4 CEZ season with the top-tier Jenzer Motorsport team. Right from the start, he claimed the lead in the standings and stayed there until the finale at his home track, the Salzburgring. His strongest performance came at the Slovakia Ring, where he won two races and finished second in the third. He delivered consistent performances through the season, earning him his first circuit racing title.

Kirill Kutskov
Kirill Kutskov, driving for the Swiss Maffi Racing team, was Wurz’s main challenger throughout the F4 CEZ season. He lost ground to the Austrian after the second event at the Red Bull Ring, where he failed to finish any of the three races. That points deficit proved too much to recover, and soon Max Karhan began closing in on him, turning the focus from the title battle to securing second place in the standings. Aside from the unlucky weekends in Austria and Slovakia, Kutskov won at least one race at every event, and he completely dominated the season finale at the Salzburgring, winning all three races. However, it wasn’t enough for the championship, and Kutskov finished second overall in F4 CEZ.

Max Karhan
A promising talent in Czech motorsport, Max Karhan jumped into the F4 CEZ series midway through last season and this year completed a full campaign. With the support of the Jenzer Motorsport team, he had the best possible backing, and his breakthrough came mid-season with a victory at the Slovakia Ring. His appetite for success grew with his first Formula 4 trophy, and Karhan went on to triumph in Most and added two more wins in Brno. While his teammate Oscar Wurz held the championship lead, Karhan kept his title hopes alive with a strong finish to the season. He ended up third overall with four wins.News 169Kirill Kutskov 14Max Karhan 33Oscar Wurz 18

Rallycross driver Martin Knápek won the F4 CEZ Academy earlier this year. After that, we saw him on the starting grid of the Twingo Cup and Clio Cup, where he definitively proved that his talent extends to tarmac racing as well.

Martin, after years in rallycross, this year you tried circuit racing for the first time. You started with the Renault Twingo in Most, where it was raining on your debut. You started from 11th place and fought your way up to third. How do you remember that debut?

I heard people talk about the Twingo Cup as a „baby NASCAR.“ At first, I didn’t quite understand it, but now I know what they meant. Because the car doesn’t have much power, you have to get right up behind the car in front, push each other along and work together with the other drivers. It’s technically called „bumper drafting.“ Honestly, that was the most memorable part for me. During the race weekend, we had technical problems with the car, which wasn’t performing as well as it should have. Unfortunately, we couldn’t fix the issues, so we just had to fight on. The qualifying was on a dry track, where the lack of power really showed, and I finished 11th. But for the first race, it started to rain heavily, and I was confident in the wet, even from the back. They say the key to being fast is doing what you’d do in a video game – but without crashing. That’s what I focused on. I worked with other drivers, used bumper drafting to my advantage, and squeezed every bit of performance out of the Twingo. In the end, it worked out. So, to answer your question, I have fond memories of the Twingo Cup.

Then, at the final event in Brno, you moved into the fourth-generation Renault Clio. How big a difference is there between racing a Twingo and a Clio?

The difference is huge. I’d say it’s like switching from a bicycle to a motorbike. The Clio is a proper race car. It’s much faster, more fun, and with paddle shifters behind the steering wheel, you feel like a pro. Another difference is moving from rear-wheel drive to front-wheel drive, which, thanks to rallycross, suits me better personally. But the truth is, the Twingo is much easier to drive. Compared to the Clio, it’s more forgiving and gives you more time to react to mistakes. Honestly, I’m glad I got to drive the Twingo before the Clio. I think it’s the perfect car to start with and to get a feel for how circuit racing works.

On your debut in Brno, you finished second in one race and then beat this year’s Clio Cup Trophy champion, Valter Nežič, in the next. How would you rate your debut with the Clio?

My main goal was simply to finish the race, and any good result would be a nice bonus. This approach stayed with me until qualifying, where I saw we’d be fighting for tenths of a second. I managed to win pole position in qualifying, but in the first race, I didn’t rev the engine enough at the start, and the car stalled. So, I had to fight my way back, and I ended up in second place. In the second race, I got a better start, and after a few battles, I fought my way into the lead, which I managed to hold. One new thing for me was managing the tyres during the race to ensure they lasted until the end.

Is Brno a challenging track for a debut in a new car? And how did you prepare?

Brno is probably the toughest track I’ve driven on. There are long, flowing corners where you have to be very precise, significant elevation changes, and the tyres suffer a lot due to the type of tarmac. Your tyres are pretty much overheated for the entire race. But Brno was an extreme challenge, and I’m glad I had the opportunity to tackle it. As for preparation, there wasn’t really any. I only got the offer to race on Wednesday, so the only thing I managed to do was a couple of laps in Assetto Corsa, watched some onboard videos before bed, and then the next day, I was already logging my first race kilometres in the Clio.

You’ve got plenty of experience in rallycross. Have you brought any habits from that which helped you on the tarmac?

Definitely. Rallycross may seem like a completely different discipline at first glance, but I’ve carried over a lot of habits. In rallycross, we also race on tracks like Slovakia Ring and Poznań, where a large part is on tarmac, and you follow a „racing line.“ You also learn to drive on the limit of your tyres, work with the car’s weight, and battle with other drivers – just not as aggressively. And since rallycross rarely takes place in ideal conditions, it really helped me when racing in the rain.

How would you compare the environments of rallycross and circuit racing? How do the demands on the driver, the team, and preparation differ?

The biggest difference was that in circuit racing, I had a rented car from the team, so there was no need to pack spare parts, tools, or worry about transporting the car. Even though rallycross is a sprint race, lasting just around five minutes, it’s incredibly aggressive and tough. Physically and mentally, it was more demanding for me. As a result, rallycross required more physical preparation. So far, I’ve only raced in circuit events in the ESET Cup, but I really like the friendly atmosphere in all the divisions I’ve raced in.

What are your plans for next season?

After trying circuit racing, I’d really like to continue and move up the ranks. I really like the TCR series or the GT categories, but as everyone knows, motorsport isn’t the cheapest, so we’ll see what offers come along and how the lottery numbers turn out! I’d like to give a big thanks to my main partners, YACCO, MONTKOVO, and NAREX, who’ve supported me this year as well.