Italian F4: Powell and Olivieri on the podium in Vallelunga

26 May 2025

alex powell F4 italian championship 2025 r-ace gp

26 May 2025 – The Vallelunga circuit hosted the second round of the hotly contested Italian F4 Championship this weekend. After a mixed start to the meeting, R-ace GP reversed the trend with back-to-back podium finishes for Alex Powell in Race 3 and Emanuele Olivieri in Race 4.

Free Practice

Alex Powell (#41) was in the top 10 in Free Practice 1, with Emanuele Olivieri (#68), Oleksandr Savinkov (#52) and Emily Cotty (#42) just a short distance behind in 11th, 12th and 13th. Guy Albag (#44) was in the top 20.

The drivers improved their times in Free Practice 2, especially Emanuele Olivieri (5th), Alex Powell (7th) and Guy Albag (14th).

Qualifying

Unsurprisingly, Emanuele Olivieri finished a strong second in qualifying. Alex Powell followed in 8th place, while Oleksandr and Guy were P11 and P12 respectively. Emily Cotty clocked her best time since the start of the championship in 10th place in Series 2.

Race 1

Guy Albag finished 14th.

Race 2

Emanuele Olivieri finished 5th, followed by Alex Powell in P7. Oleksandr Savinkov was 15th and Emily Cotty 17th. The British driver took victory in the women’s category.

Race 3

Alex Powell got off to an excellent start, moving up from 10th to 3rd place. Taking advantage of contact between two competitors, the Jamaican moved up to second place and defended his position right up to the finish line. It was his first podium finish of the season. Emily Cotty finished 20th and won the women’s category. Despite crossing the finish line in third place, Emanuele Olivieri was relegated to 21st place after a penalty. Oleksandr Savinkov was 24th. Guy Albag was unable to finish the race after a competitor took him off the track.

Race 4

The weekend ended in style with another podium finish from Emanuele Olivieri. The Italian finished 2nd ahead of Alex Powell in 4th place. Guy Albag was 20th, Oleksandr 26th and Emily 27th, taking her third consecutive win in the women’s category.

The next round of the championship will take place at Monza on 22 June.

To watch the races, go to the championship’s Youtube channel.

To follow our performances throughout the season, check out our Facebook and Instagram pages!

‘’The reactivity of the team and drivers in FRMEC was exemplary,’’ stresses Thibaut de Mérindol, R-ace GP’s boss

07 Mar 2025

Crowned champion in 2024, R-ace GP returned to defend its title in Formula Regional Middle East. After a difficult start that slowed its performance, the team, more determined than ever, bounced back to finish second in the championship and third in the drivers’ standings.

‘’The first round in Abu Dhabi was a huge disappointment,’’ admits Thibaut de Mérindol, Team Principal of R-ace GP. The reason: the new tyre specifications, which gave the team a hard time and put the brakes on the hoped-for performances.

But by the third round in Dubai, R-ace GP had made an impressive recovery in the rankings. ‘’The reactivity of the team and drivers was exemplary,’’ says the team boss. ‘’It’s not easy to maintain a good state of mind when you get off to a bad start, especially in a short championship with one race following another. However, they were able to find solutions and recreate the momentum.’’

Drivers making progress

‘’Ugo [Ugochukwu] played a decisive role in the team,’’ he insists. ‘’He was the one who took on the role of leader and helped us turn the corner. We relied a lot on him.’’ The young American, who will continue his season in Formula 3, finished third in the drivers’ championship.

‘’Enzo [Deligny] has improved this season, but he still has a lot of work to do to reach the expected level and take on the role of leader. He can count on all the teams’s energy to support him and help him progress,’’ says Thibaut de Mérindol.

Jin Nakamura, meanwhile, has shown promising potential. ‘’He still needs to adapt culturally and technically to European motorsport, which is nothing like what he experienced in Japan. Here, he’s discovering a whole new way of working. His driving is still a little instinctive, but he has a real desire to learn and improve.’’

‘’Akshay [Bohra] struggled to bounce back after our difficult first weekend. But we saw his true worth, particularly during our tests last year. We know what he’s capable of once he regains his confidence’’, he concludes.

Lessons for the rest of the season

Despite a rocky start, R-ace GP has shown itself to be adaptable and resilient. While the title may have eluded them this year, the team will be taking away some solid lessons that will enable them to approach the rest of the season with ambition.

The European season kicks off in less than two months’ time, at the start of May. In the meantime, stay tuned on our social media – Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn – to find out more about our line-up in Formula Regional by Alpine (FRECA).

FRMEC season in numbers:

12 podium finishes.
4 wins.
4 second places.
4 third places.
259 points scored by the team starting from Round 3 (including 159 by Ugo Ugochukwu), making it the team with the most points scored over the last three rounds.
14 points difference with the leader of the team ranking.

‘‘2025 marks the revival of our F4 team,’‘ says R-ace GP’s Team Principal Thibaut de Mérindol

07 Mar 2025

Emanuele Olivieri F4 Middle East R-ace GP

Press release, 7 March 2025 – The 2025 season is off to a flying start for R-ace GP and its F4 team. Having just returned from the Middle East with the double title of Team and Driver Champion, as well as the title of Driver Runner-Up, it’s time to reflect on the season. And with 22 podium finishes, including 11 victories, R-ace GP Team Principal Thibaut de Mérindol could not have hoped for a better result for his team.

‘‘The level of performance and the results achieved have been more than satisfying,’‘ explains Thibaut de Mérindol, Team Principal of R-ace GP. ‘‘The in-depth work we began in 2024, and the efforts made over the past year to get this team up and running again, especially with the involvement of Cyril Comte [R-ace GP’s Technical Director], have paid off.’‘ The team’s technical and operational progress has been rewarded this year with three titles.

Drivers who live up to expectations

‘‘Emanuele [Olivieri] and Alex [Powell] are excellent drivers who have done what was expected of them, which is to take on the role of co-leaders of the team,’‘ he adds. ‘‘We saw their potential last season, and we were convinced that such a pairing of drivers would make a major contribution to raising our team to the highest level. That’s why I’d like to thank them and their management for the confidence they have shown in us by joining our team.’‘

‘‘On several occasions, Oleksandr [Savinkov] has shown real potential. But there’s still work to be done to master and maintain his level of performance,’‘ continued the R-ace GP director. ‘‘As for Emily [Cotty], she has made good linear and continuous progress. Given her lack of experience, the starting point is really satisfying, especially for a rookie,’‘ he concludes.

The European season kicks off in less than two months’ time, at the start of May. Until then, stay tuned on our social networks – Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn – to find out more about our F4 Italy and Euro 4 line-ups.

The F4 Middle East 2025 season in numbers:

23 podium finishes.
11 wins.
3 second places.
8 third places.
9 pole positions out of 10 qualifying sessions.
602 points in the team standings.
212 points scored by Alex Powell from Round 3, making him the top scorer in the second half of the season.

Oleksandr Savinkov F4 Middle East R-ace GP

Team F4 Middle East R-ace GP Emanuele Olivieri

Championship winner R-ace GP F4 Middle East 2025

R-ace GP, team and driver champions in F4 Middle East!

01 Mar 2025

R-ace GP Champion F4 Middle East Team Driver

27 and 28 February 2025, Lusail – The 2025 Formula 4 Middle East season ended in style in Qatar, with R-ace GP clearly dominating. Triple victory, the final pole position of the season, two podium finishes and, above all, three titles: Team Champion, Driver Champion and Driver Runner-Up. Here’s a look back at a magnificent finale.

On Wednesday 26 February, Alex Powell (#41) set the fastest time in free practice, ahead of his team-mate and championship leader Emanuele Olivieri (#68).

The following day, the Jamaican driver took pole position in the second qualifying session, setting a lap of 1:55.945. He will therefore start the final race of the season from the front.

Race 1

At the front of the pack for the whole race, Emanuele Olivieri crossed the finish line in second place. But following the disqualification of the initial winner, the Italian took his sixth victory of the season. Alex Powell finished 5th, Oleksandr Savinkov (#52) 10th. Emily Cotty (#42) was forced to retire after a collision.

Race 2

Starting sixth, Alex Powell got off to a dazzling start. After overtaking his team-mate Oleksandr Savinkov, he quickly took the lead and went on to win the race. Behind him, Emanuele Olivieri made a fine comeback to take third place. Oleksandr Savinkov finished 6th and Emily Cotty 16th.

When the chequered flag fell, it was pure euphoria at R-ace GP: the team had won two titles in a single race. R-ace GP was crowned Team Champion and Emanuele Olivieri became Driver Champion.

Race 3

For this final race of the season, Alex Powell put in a faultless performance, leading the event from start to finish. With this fifth victory, he ended his season in style and became Runner-Up.

Behind him, Emanuele Olivieri finished second, while Emily Cotty was 16th. Disappointing results for Oleksandr Savinkov, who suffered a puncture that forced him to retire.

You can follow the races on the championship’s YouTube channel.

Historic success for R-ace GP

The season ended on a high note in the Middle East! For the first time in its history, R-ace GP has won Formula 4 in the region. However, this is not a first for the team, which had already won the FRMEC title in 2024 with Tuukka Taponen.

The European season will get underway in two months’ time, with F4 Italy and Euro 4. In the meantime, keep up with the team on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, and stay tuned for our European F4 championships line-ups!