TOPEKA, Kan. – SCCA Pro Racing today announced the dates for the inaugural FIA-certified F4 United States Championship Powered by Honda season. The 2016 calendar features five tripleheader race weekends to decide the season-long Championship.
The entry-level, cost-contained open wheel series has generated significant interest since its September launch, with chassis manufacturer Crawford sending, to date, 92 purchase agreements to teams, drivers and schools.
“At the F4 United States Championship launch, we stated that we were searching for a five-stop, 15-race schedule on premier tracks, concentrating on the eastern half of the United States to start,” Steve Oseth, SCCA Pro Racing GM said. “We’ve done that, and now can let those interested in the Series know not just what they can race, but when and where.”
The F4 United States Championship, utilizing the FIA Formula 4 homologated Crawford chassis and Honda K20 C1 2.0-liter engine, makes its official debut at Lime Rock Park on Memorial Day Weekend, May 27-28, in concert with the Pirelli World Challenge GT and GTS event.
The following two stops on the schedule are at New Jersey Motorsports Park, June 10-12, and Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, August 13-14. Both events include participation from SCCA Pro Racing’s Trans Am Series, with the Mid-Ohio date highlighted by the NASCAR Xfinity Series.
Road Atlanta, September 17-18, will be shared with HSR’s fall vintage weekend. The inaugural championship will conclude at Homestead-Miami Speedway with Trans Am, October 9-10.
A mid-season break was built into the schedule to allow each team a chance to reset before the push to the end of the season. With two events still on the calendar, everyone can examine data from the first part of the season to optimize both car and driver for a chance to capture the inaugural series championship.
The F4 United States Championship will join FIA Formula 4 championships already established in Australia, China, Germany, Italy, Japan, Northern Europe and the United Kingdom for 2016.
An American-built Crawford carbon-composite chassis and Honda K20 C1 2.0-liter engine, producing the FIA-mandated 158 hp, leads the series. Pirelli P Zero racing radial tires complete the package, which will meet the FIA price cap of $45,000 for the chassis, including paddle shifters, data acquisition and camera. The Honda engine will carry a one-year lease price of $6,600. Tires will be priced at approximately $250 apiece, with a maximum allotment of six tires (three front, three rear) per race weekend.
Cars will begin delivery to customers in January.
At the September launch, the Series announced a prize plan of $1,000 to win each of the three weekend races, with an additional $1,000 prize to the “weekend champion,” the driver who scores the most points in the three-race event. $500 and $250 goes to the additional podium finishers in each race of the season. A cash prize is also up for grabs for the top three season-long Championship finishers.
