CHARLOTTE (October 12, 2024) – Since their establishment in the mid-2010s, both Formula Regional Americas Championship (FR Americas) and Formula 4 United States Championship (F4 U.S.) have solidified their standing as a proving ground for aspiring racecar drivers. Graduates of FR Americas and F4 U.S. have consistently advanced their careers, with former drivers among the starting fields of INDYCAR, FIA Formula 3, Super Formula, IMSA, INDY NXT and more.
Both championships have proven to be a great stepping stone toward the pinnacle of open-wheel racing in America—INDYCAR. In INDY NXT, FR Americas and F4 U.S. alums have been responsible for three of the last four driver championships, as well as 67% of all pole positions and race wins over the last four seasons. From there, Kyle Kirkwood and David Malukas were the first FR Americas & F4 U.S. graduates to reach the INDYCAR starting grid, with Kirkwood becoming the first alum to win a race and earn a pole. Six graduates competed in the 2024 INDYCAR season, accounting for two poles, 178 laps led, seven top-five finishes, 21 top 10s and the Rookie of the Year title, which was earned by 2020 FR Americas Champion, Linus Lundqvist.
Climbing the ladder toward Formula 1, Hunter Yeany was the first to reach FIA Formula 3, but Noel León is the one currently leading the way for our graduates, tallying three podiums during his rookie season and becoming the first FR Americas or F4 U.S. alum to earn a pole. Likewise, Maite Cáceres was the first alum to reach the F1 Academy last year, but this season, Chloe Chambers became the first to win a race, taking the victory in Barcelona earlier this summer.
Here’s a quick recap of where FR Americas & F4 U.S. graduates raced this season:
- Kyle Kirkwood (2017 F4 U.S. Champion; 2018 F3 Americas Champion) – INDYCAR with Andretti Autosport
- David Malukas (2020 FR Americas Vice Champion) – INDYCAR with Meyer Shank Racing
- Linus Lundqvist (2020 FR Americas Champion) – INDYCAR with Chip Ganassi Racing
- Kyffin Simpson (2021 FR Americas Champion) – INDYCAR with Chip Ganassi Racing
- Christian Rasmussen (2018 F4 U.S. Third-Place Champion) – INDYCAR with Ed Carpenter Racing
- Nolan Siegel (2020 F4 U.S. Driver) – INDYCAR with Arrow McLaren
- Jacob Abel (multi-season F4 U.S. and FR Americas Driver) – INDY NXT with Abel Motorsports
- Callum Hedge (2023 FR Americas Champion) – INDY NXT with HMD Motorsports
- Michael d’Orlando (2019 F4 U.S. Driver) – INDY NXT with Andretti Cape
- Jordan Missig (2020-2021 FR Americas Driver & Race Winner) – INDY NXT with Abel Motorsports and Radical Cup North America with Rahal Radical Racing
- Noel León (2021 F4 U.S. Champion) – FIA F3 with Van Amersfoort Racing
- Chloe Chambers (2021 F4 U.S. Driver, PMH Powering Diversity Scholarship Recipient) – F1 Academy with Haas F1 Team and Campos Racing
- Dakota Dickerson (2018 F4 U.S. Champion, 2019 FR Americas Champion) – IMSA SportsCar Championship
- Ernie Francis Jr. (2021 FR Americas Third-Place Champion, PMH Powering Diversity Scholarship Recipient) – Lamborghini Super Trofeo Driver with TR3 Racing
- Bryson Morris (multi-season F4 U.S. and FR Americas Driver) – IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge Driver with Bryan Herta Autosport, Lamborghini Super Trofeo Driver with ANSA Motorsports and Fanatec GT World Challenge Driver with DXDT Racing
- Nick Persing (2022-2023 FR Americas Driver) – Lamborghini Super Trofeo Driver with Wayne Taylor Racing with Andretti
- Cole Kleck (multi-season F4 U.S. and FR Americas Driver) – Lamborghini Super Trofeo Driver with Topp Racing
- Al Morey IV (2022 F4 U.S. Driver) – Lamborghini Super Trofeo Driver with Topp Racing
- Maddie Aust (2022 F4 U.S. Driver, PMH Powering Diversity Scholarship Recipient) – Toyota GR Cup North America Driver with BSI Racing
- Hannah Greenemeier (2023 F4 U.S. Driver, PMH Powering Diversity Scholarship Recipient) – SRO Motorsports’ Pirelli GT4 America with Heart of Racing
Beyond that, there are the drivers who are still climbing the open wheel ladder within the Parella Motorsports Holdings (PMH) ecosystem—the stars of tomorrow. Given the success of today’s graduates, PMH continues to dedicate resources to developing young drivers’ careers with new opportunities and race series.
Starting with drivers as soon as they graduate from karting, PMH has partnered with Radford Racing School to establish the Radford Racing School F4 U.S. “Karts to Cars” Scholarship, which gives four young karters their first single-seater experience every fall. From there, drivers as young as 14 years old gain experience in the Ligier JS F4 Series, before graduating to F4 U.S., and ultimately FR Americas—just like Patrick Woods-Toth.
Woods-Toth made his transition from karts to cars through the Radford scholarship before winning the 2023 F4 U.S. Championship. With eight wins this season, the Saint-Lazare, Quebec native locked in the 2024 FR Americas Championship title while at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (CTMP) last month, making him the first driver since Kyle Kirkwood (2017-2018) and Dakota Dickerson (2018-2019) to win back-to-back F4 U.S. and FR Americas championships.
FR Americas, F4 U.S. and the Ligier JS F4 Series all return to action later this month with the season-finale COTA SpeedTour at Circuit of The Americas, October 31-November 3. Tickets for the event are available now at SpeedTour.net/Austin.
