2014 BRDC Formula 4 Championship explained

The 2014 BRDC Formula 4 Championship was a multi-event motor racing championship for open wheel, formula racing cars held across England. The championship featured a mix of professional motor racing teams and privately funded drivers competing in 2 litre Duratec single seat race cars that conformed to the technical regulations for the championship. The 2014 season was the second BRDC Formula 4 Championship organized by Jonathan Palmer's MotorSport Vision company, with support from the British Racing Drivers' Club in the United Kingdom, and dedicated championship highlights shown on ITV4 the weekend after each round, in a prime time slot. The season began at Silverstone on 26 April and ended on 26 October at Snetterton, after 8 triple header events amassing to 24 races.

Heading into the final round of the championship, six drivers were in mathematical contention to win the championship. Lanan Racing team-mates Arjun Maini and George Russell led the standings, with Maini 21 points clear of Russell. HHC Motorsport duo Sennan Fielding and Raoul Hyman were split by five points for third and fourth places, with Struan Moore (Lanan Racing) and Will Palmer (HHC Motorsport) requiring results to go in their favour, despite being in the running.^[1] Russell took pole position for the opening race,^[2] but Fielding was the highest placed at the end, in third place; Russell cut Maini's lead slightly with a seventh, while Palmer and Moore could no longer win the title due to their results.^[3] Maini took pole for the second race, due to his eighth place and the regulations for the partially reversed grid order stipulating such. Maini led from the start, before Hyman and Russell passed him early in the race. Maini fell to fifth as he made an error later in the race, dropping him behind Fielding and Moore. Hyman held the lead until the end which meant that four drivers could still win the title in the final race.^[4]

Maini held a 13-point lead over Russell, with Fielding 5 points further adrift, and Hyman the outsider, 25 points adrift of Maini. Russell started from pole position, with Hyman, Fielding and Maini behind.^[5] Hyman made the best start to take the lead from Russell at the start, but Russell regained the lead the following lap, and ultimately went on to win the race; a season-high fifth victory. With Maini down in fifth place, it enabled Russell to clinch the title by just three points.^[6] With the championship, he received a prize test with the Arden Motorsport GP3 team at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi at the end of the season, as well as a £25,000 cash prize.^[7] Behind Maini, Hyman's second place finish allowed him to jump Fielding for third place in the championship, by a single point. All three drivers won four races over the course of the season, including a hat-trick for Fielding at Silverstone, a first for the series. Other drivers to win races were Moore at Oulton Park, Palmer won twice at the first Snetterton meeting, as well as single victories for Diego Menchaca (Snetterton), and Brands Hatch victories for Gustavo Lima, Gaetano di Mauro and Chris Middlehurst.

Teams and drivers

2014 Entry List^[8]
Team		Driver	Rounds
Douglas Motorsport	2	Charlie Eastwood^[9]	All
	26	Rodrigo Fonseca^[10]	All
	68	Diego Menchaca^[11]	All
HHC Motorsport	3	Will Palmer^[12]	All
	4	Sennan Fielding^[13]	All
	7	Raoul Hyman^[14]	All
Hillspeed	5	Gustavo Lima^[15]	1–6
	12	Alfredo Zabalza^[16]	1–2, 4–8
	72	Rahul Raj Mayer	All
Lanan Racing	8	George Russell^[17]	All
	9	Struan Moore^[18]	All
	36	Arjun Maini^[19]	All
Chris Dittmann Racing	10	Tom Jackson^[20]	1–6
	11	Tom Bale^[21]	4–8
	17	Piers Hickin^[22]	8
Mark Godwin Racing	13	Michael Claessens^[23]	All
	16	Chris Middlehurst^[24]	1–6
	43	David Wagner^[25]	1–3
Petroball Racing	21	Gaetano di Mauro^[26]	All
	61	Dan Roeper^[27]	1–3
Sean Walkinshaw Racing SWR – Caterham F1^[28]	22	Álex Palou^[29]	5
	23	Jordan Albert^[30]	All
	27	Nicolas Beer^[31]	1–4
	41	Diego Borrelli^[32]	All
Meridian Racing^[33]	35	Connor Jupp	5–8
	42	Jai Nijjar	5–7
Enigma Motorsport	51	Falco Wauer^[34]	1–2

Race calendar and results

The first Brands Hatch race weekend was held in support of the Blancpain Sprint Series. Later in the season, at the first Snetterton meeting and the second Brands Hatch meeting, the series formed part of the support package to British GT Championship rounds.

Round		Circuit	Date	Pole Position	Fastest Lap	Winning Driver	Winning Team
1	R1	Silverstone Circuit (Grand Prix, Northamptonshire)	26 April	Raoul Hyman	Sennan Fielding	Raoul Hyman	HHC Motorsport
	R2		27 April		Will Palmer	George Russell	Lanan Racing
	R3				George Russell	George Russell	Lanan Racing
2	R4	Brands Hatch (Grand Prix Circuit, Kent)	17 May	Raoul Hyman	Arjun Maini	Raoul Hyman	HHC Motorsport
	R5		18 May		Sennan Fielding	Gustavo Lima	Hillspeed
	R6				Sennan Fielding	George Russell	Lanan Racing
3	R7	Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit (300 Circuit, Norfolk)	21 June	George Russell	Will Palmer	Will Palmer	HHC Motorsport
	R8		22 June		Arjun Maini	Arjun Maini	Lanan Racing
	R9				Arjun Maini	Will Palmer	HHC Motorsport
4	R10	Oulton Park (International Circuit, Cheshire)	18 July	George Russell	Struan Moore	George Russell	Lanan Racing
	R11		19 July		Arjun Maini	Arjun Maini	Lanan Racing
	R12				Chris Middlehurst	Struan Moore	Lanan Racing
5	R13	Silverstone Circuit (Grand Prix, Northamptonshire)	16 August	Sennan Fielding	Sennan Fielding	Sennan Fielding	HHC Motorsport
	R14		17 August		Will Palmer	Sennan Fielding	HHC Motorsport
	R15				Raoul Hyman	Sennan Fielding	HHC Motorsport
6	R16	Brands Hatch (Grand Prix Circuit, Kent)	30 August	Gaetano di Mauro	Arjun Maini	Gaetano di Mauro	Petroball Racing
	R17		31 August		Arjun Maini	Chris Middlehurst	Mark Godwin Racing
	R18				George Russell	Arjun Maini	Lanan Racing
7	R19	Donington Park (Grand Prix Circuit, Leicestershire)	20 September	Sennan Fielding	George Russell	Sennan Fielding	HHC Motorsport
	R20		21 September		Raoul Hyman	Raoul Hyman	HHC Motorsport
	R21				Sennan Fielding	Arjun Maini	Lanan Racing
8	R22	Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit (300 Circuit, Norfolk)	25 October	George Russell	George Russell	Diego Menchaca	Douglas Motorsport
	R23		26 October		George Russell	Raoul Hyman	HHC Motorsport
	R24				Raoul Hyman	George Russell	Lanan Racing

Championship standings

Scoring systemPoints were awarded to the top 20 classified finishers in all races.

Races	Position, points per race
	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	11th	12th	13th	14th	15th	16th	17th	18th	19th	20th
Races 1 & 3	35	29	24	21	19	17	15	13	12	11	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1
Race 2	25	22	20	18	16	15	14	13	12	11	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1

Drivers' championship

Pos. Driver SIL BRH SNE OUL SIL BRH DON SNE Points 1 George Russell 5 1 1 4 3 1 3 3 6 1 6 Ret 5 6 6 10 3 5 2 6 Ret 7 2 1 483 2 Arjun Maini 8 11 2 2 4 4 8 1 4 7 1 Ret 3 8 4 3 2 1 4 4 1 8 5 5 480 3 Raoul Hyman 1 4 10 1 10 3 2 13 3 2 2 Ret 6 7 2 4 4 12 7 1 Ret 6 1 2 465 4 Sennan Fielding 3 10 DSQ 5 5 2 4 NC 2 5 17 4 1 1 1 6 9 4 1 7 9 3 3 4 464 5 Struan Moore Ret 3 5 6 7 Ret 9 6 7 4 4 1 2 Ret 3 2 6 3 3 5 10 5 4 6 412 6 Will Palmer 7 6 6 3 6 8 1 5 1 6 3 3 Ret 3 7 8 7 Ret 5 2 Ret Ret 17 18 356 7 Diego Menchaca 2 8 3 Ret 8 11 7 2 8 10 9 Ret 7 DSQ 10 16 11 13 6 3 2 1 18 9 327 8 Gaetano di Mauro 12 Ret 12 11 16 9 14 9 5 12 11 6 11 2 9 1 Ret 2 10 9 DNS 4 6 7 301 9 Chris Middlehurst Ret 7 4 7 2 5 10 Ret 15 3 5 2 10 DSQ 8 7 1 9 253 10 Charlie Eastwood 18 Ret 7 14 13 10 15 14 9 18 12 Ret 12 11 Ret 12 Ret 8 8 10 4 2 8 3 233 11 Jordan Albert 13 13 13 DNS 18 6 18 8 16 15 13 7 14 14 13 5 5 7 9 11 3 Ret 15 13 226 12 Rahul Raj Mayer 9 14 11 10 11 14 11 7 12 16 10 Ret 8 9 11 11 Ret 11 Ret 12 6 10 7 10 223 13 Rodrigo Fonseca 11 16 8 9 9 12 13 DSQ 14 20 14 Ret 15 4 12 Ret 16 6 11 8 5 Ret 11 12 200 14 Gustavo Lima 6 5 9 8 1 18 6 4 10 9 7 Ret 13 Ret 14 9 12 Ret 194 15 Tom Jackson Ret 12 19 12 19 16 16 11 13 8 Ret 5 Ret 5 15 13 8 10 136 16 Diego Borrelli 14 Ret 17 16 12 7 17 15 Ret 19 Ret 8 16 10 21 14 Ret 14 13 18 13 Ret 14 14 128 17 Alfredo Zabalza Ret Ret 16 15 15 DNS 13 Ret Ret 9 15 18 15 10 16 12 14 8 11 10 15 124 18 17 17 18 Ret 20 DNS Ret 12 18 14 15 9 18 16 19 19 Ret 19 16 15 14 12 16 16 100 19 Connor Jupp Ret 12 17 17 13 17 14 13 7 9 9 11 93 20 Nicolas Beer 4 2 Ret Ret 21 DNS 5 Ret 19 11 8 Ret 87 21 Tom Bale 17 16 Ret 17 18 16 18 14 15 15 17 11 Ret 13 17 69 22 David Wagner 10 9 15 13 Ret 13 12 Ret 11 64 23 Álex Palou 4 13 5 48 24 Dan Roeper 16 15 14 DNS 17 17 Ret 10 17 41 25 Jai Nijjar 19 17 20 20 15 18 17 16 12 35 26 Piers Hickin Ret 12 8 22 27 Falco Wauer 15 Ret 20 Ret 14 15 20 Pos. Driver SIL BRH SNE OUL SIL BRH DON SNE Points

Bold – Pole Italics – Fastest Lap

Jack Cavill Pole Position Cup

The Jack Cavill Pole Position Cup was awarded to the driver who started from pole position most often throughout the season. Champion George Russell won the trophy, on a tie-break with Arjun Maini, as Russell took more pole positions from qualifying sessions.^[35]

Pos.	Driver	Poles
1	George Russell	5
2	Arjun Maini	5
3	Sennan Fielding	4
4	Raoul Hyman	2
	Will Palmer	2
6	Gaetano di Mauro	1
	Charlie Eastwood	1
	Tom Jackson	1
	Gustavo Lima	1
	Rahul Raj Mayer	1
	Struan Moore	1

Notes and References

1. News: BRDC F4 super-six set for Snetterton shootout. 20 October 2014. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 14 November 2014. 29 November 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141129010853/http://www.formula4.com/news/brdc-f4-super-six-set-for-snetterton-shootout.aspx. dead.
2. News: Russell secures pole in frantic Snetterton qualifying. 25 October 2014. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 14 November 2014. 29 November 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141129010855/http://www.formula4.com/news/sn-r8-2014-qual-report.aspx. dead.
3. News: Menchaca holds off Eastwood to take dramatic maiden win. 25 October 2014. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 14 November 2014. 29 November 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141129010848/http://www.formula4.com/news/f4-r8-2014-r1-report.aspx. dead.
4. News: Hyman takes win to ensure four way title showdown at Snetterton. 26 October 2014. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 14 November 2014. 29 November 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141129010850/http://www.formula4.com/news/f4-r8-2014-r2-report.aspx. dead.
5. News: Race three starts at 14.10 – Russell on pole. 26 October 2014. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 14 November 2014.
6. News: Champion! Russell marches to Snetterton victory to secure crown. 26 October 2014. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 14 November 2014. 29 November 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141129011039/http://www.formula4.com/news/f4-r3-r8-report-2014.aspx. dead.
7. News: Abu Dhabi GP3 test with Arden for BRDC F4 champion. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 27 March 2014.
8. Web site: 2014 Championship entries. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 14 January 2014. 19 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131219074220/http://www.formula4.com/teams/2014-teams.aspx. dead.
9. News: World Karting Champion Charlie Eastwood joins F4 with Douglas. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 4 December 2013. 14 January 2014. 15 January 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140115165542/http://www.formula4.com/news/world-karting-champion-charlie-eastwood-joins-f4-2014-with-douglas-motorsport.aspx. dead.
10. News: Mexican Rodrigo Fonseca completes three car Douglas F4 line up. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 5 March 2014. 5 March 2014. 5 March 2014. https://archive.today/20140305173118/http://www.formula4.com/news/mexican-rodrigo-fonseca-completes-three-car-douglas-motorsport-f4-line-up.aspx. dead.
11. News: Diego Menchaca returns to F4 with Douglas Motorsport. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 19 February 2014. 19 February 2014. 24 February 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140224234930/http://www.formula4.com/news/diego-menchaca-returns-to-brdc-f4-championship-with-douglas-motorsport.aspx. dead.
12. News: Will Palmer confirms F4 participation with HHC Motorsport in 2014. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 13 January 2014. 14 January 2014. 15 January 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140115164542/http://www.formula4.com/news/will-palmer-targets-f4-title-challenge-with-hhc-motorsport-in-2014.aspx. dead.
13. News: Sennan Fielding targets F4 title glory with HHC Motorsport in 2014. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 19 December 2013. 14 January 2014.
14. News: Raoul Hyman confirms F4 return with HHC Motorsport in 2014. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 16 December 2013. 14 January 2014. 19 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131219081327/http://www.formula4.com/news/raoul-hyman-confirms-brdc-f4-return-with-hhc-motorsport-in-2014.aspx. dead.
15. News: Lima heads to Hillspeed for 2014 F4 challenge. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 20 January 2014. 20 January 2014.
16. News: Hillspeed finalise international line-up with Mexican rookie Zabalza. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 4 April 2014. 4 April 2014. 7 April 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140407073219/http://www.formula4.com/news/hillspeed-finalise-international-lineup-with-mexican-zabalza.aspx. dead.
17. News: Multiple Karting champion George Russell joins F4 with Lanan. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 6 December 2013. 14 January 2014. https://archive.today/20140114180318/http://www.formula4.com/news/multiple-karting-champion-george-russell-joins-f4-with-lanan-racing.aspx. 14 January 2014. dead.
18. News: Struan Moore switches to Lanan Racing for F4 return. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 17 January 2014. 17 January 2014. 1 February 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140201125817/http://www.formula4.com/news/struan-moore-switches-to-lanan-racing-for-f4-return.aspx. dead.
19. News: Arjun Maini completes Lanan F4 driver line up. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 13 March 2014. 14 March 2014. 13 March 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140313223128/http://www.formula4.com/news/arjun-maini-completes-lanan-f4-driver-line-up.aspx. dead.
20. News: Tom Jackson graduates to F4 with Chris Dittmann Racing. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 31 January 2014. 1 February 2014. 2 February 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140202150110/http://www.formula4.com/news/tom-jackson-graduates-to-f4-with-chris-dittmann-racing.aspx. dead.
21. News: Formula Gulf Champion Bale joins F4 with Chris Dittmann Racing. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 2 July 2014. 2 July 2014. 14 July 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140714184151/http://www.formula4.com/news/formula-gulf-champion-tom-bale-joins-f4-with-chris-dittmann-racing.aspx. dead.
22. News: Hyman: "I believe I can still win it". BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 23 October 2014. 24 October 2014. 24 October 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141024111235/http://www.formula4.com/news/hyman-i-believe-i-can-still-win-it.aspx. dead.
23. News: Mark Godwin Racing confirm F4 line-up with Dutchman Claessens. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 17 April 2014. 17 April 2014. 19 April 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140419013910/http://www.formula4.com/news/mark-godwin-racing-confirm-three-car-f4-line-up-with-dutchman-michael-claessens.aspx. dead.
24. News: Formula Renault BARC champion Chris Middlehurst joins F4. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 23 January 2014. 23 January 2014. 1 February 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140201215931/http://www.formula4.com/news/maba-nominee-chris-middlehurst-signs-with-mgr-for-f4-2014.aspx. dead.
25. News: David Wagner returns to Mark Godwin Racing for F4 debut. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 3 April 2014. 3 April 2014.
26. News: Petroball confirm Barrichello protégé Gaetano di Mauro. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 4 March 2014. 4 March 2014.
27. News: Petroball complete driver line-up with USA karter Dan Roeper. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 2 April 2014. 2 April 2014.
28. News: Sean Walkinshaw Racing announces Caterham F1 link-up. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 19 August 2014. 30 August 2014. 30 August 2014. https://archive.today/20140830093752/http://www.formula4.com/news/swr-announces-caterham-f1-link-up.aspx. dead.
29. News: Alex Palou to make F4 debut at Silverstone with SWR. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 11 August 2014. 14 August 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140814214022/http://www.formula4.com/news/alex-palou-to-make-f4-debut-at-silverstone-with-swr.aspx. 14 August 2014. dead.
30. News: Jordan Albert confirms SWR move . BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 7 April 2014. 7 April 2014.
31. News: Danish star Nicolas Beer joins F4 with Sean Walkinshaw Racing. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 28 February 2014. 28 February 2014. 5 March 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140305053315/http://www.formula4.com/news/danish-star-nicolas-beer-joins-f4-with-sean-walkinshaw-racing.aspx. dead.
32. News: Venezuelan karting ace Diego Borrelli graduates to F4 with SWR. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 27 February 2014. 27 February 2014. 4 March 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140304200222/http://www.formula4.com/news/venezuelan-karting-ace-diego-borrelli-graduates-to-brdc-f4-with-sean-walkinshaw-racing.aspx. dead.
33. News: Meridian Racing switches to BRDC F4 Championship. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 13 August 2014. 14 August 2014. 14 August 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140814192501/http://www.formula4.com/news/meridian-racing-switches-to-brdc-f4-championship.aspx. dead.
34. News: Falco Wauer returns to Enigma Motorsport for F4 title assault. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. British Racing Drivers' Club. 10 April 2014. 10 April 2014. 13 April 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140413145550/http://www.formula4.com/news/enigma-confirm-falco-wauer-f4-return-for-2014.aspx. dead.
35. News: Russell clinches Jack Cavill Pole Position Cup honours. BRDC Formula 4 Championship. MotorSport Vision. 27 October 2014. 13 November 2014. 27 November 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141127024341/http://www.formula4.com/news/champion-russell-clinches-jack-cavill-pole-position-cup-honours.aspx. dead.