Augie Soto-Schirripa earned his second-career win in Formula 4 United States Championship Powered by Honda (F4 U.S.), leading the field to the checkered flag at VIRginia International Raceway (VIR) on Saturday morning. Wet track conditions made for a challenging first race for the Andy Scriven Memorial at the VIR SpeedTour, but Soto-Schirripa raced from his fourth-place grid position to take the lead after a restart on lap five and never looked back.
Rain plagued the morning as much of the field fought reduced visibility due to spray. A full-course caution led to a restart on lap five, allowing Soto-Schirripa to make a run at the lead. Applying pressure, Soto-Schirripa capitalized when Costello went wide through the Horseshoe and drove off into the grass. Meanwhile, a rough restart for Patrick Woods-Toth moved him from third all the way back to the eighth position.
With the race back under green-flag conditions, battles ensued throughout the field. Alex Berg (No. 08 MySim.ca / Rohde & Liesenfeld / Easy Drift / Penn Elcom Online / Dae Systems Ligier JS F4), Titus Sherlock (No. 31 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) and Luciano Martinez (No. 91 Scuderia Buell Ligier JS F3) all had strong restarts to inherit the second, third and fourth positions, respectively. Martinez, however, was looking for even more forward progress, first overtaking Sherlock before setting his sights on Berg. A touch of the rumble strips by Sherlock sent the No. 31 spinning in Snake, while Woods-Toth quietly slid into fourth, overtaking both Sherlock and Daniel Cará (No. 10 Tenuta Foppa & Ambrosi Ligier JS F4) within a matter of seconds. While they jockeyed for the fourth position, Martinez and Berg were racing side-by-side for second through the Uphill Esses. Tight racing in close quarters resulted in Martinez spinning through the grass while Berg continued forward. The full-course caution was once again displayed, slowing the field and causing the clock to run out while under safety.
Soto-Schirripa took the win, followed by Berg in second and Woods-Toth completed the podium in third.
“The team gave me a great car,” said Soto-Schirripa in Winner’s Circle. “I felt confident with what I had, and knew that the key to this was to be consistent and to be smooth and to not get crazy. Even if you lost a little bit of time on some parts of the track, it was better to keep it on four wheels. We did that and we took home the W. I’m really happy.”
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Soto-Schirripa continued his perfect day at VIR, going two-for-two in F4 U.S. competition. In his third F4 U.S. race weekend, the 23-year-old has now secured three wins and four podiums in just eight starts.
Woods-Toth lead early, followed by Berg and Soto-Schirripa for nearly the first half of the race. Berg attempted a pass for the lead entering Turn 1 with 17 minutes left on the clock, but contact left him spinning through the grass and removed him from contention for the win. With Berg out of the picture, Soto-Schirripa picked up a half second to close within 0.3s of Woods-Toth before the full-course caution was displayed.
With just two minutes left on the clock, the race restarted, leading to a one-lap shootout to the checkered flag. Woods-Toth rolled off first with Soto-Schirripa filling his mirrors. Staying tight on his gearbox, Soto-Schirripa made one last run at the lead, drafting down the backstretch and completing the pass as they entered the Roller Coaster for the last time. With a clean pass, Soto-Schirripa sailed away to his second victory of the day in the Andy Scriven Memorial at the VIR SpeedTour.
As they crossed the line, Soto-Schirripa led Woods-Toth and Daniel Cará (No. 10 Tenuta Foppa & Ambrosi Ligier JS F4). Michael Costello (No. 19 Jay Howard Driver Development / CSU One Cure / Lucas Oil / LHP Ligier JS F4) and Kekai Hauanio (No. 29 N.E Where Transport Ligier JS F4) rounded out the top five.
“Oh, wow,” Soto-Schirripa exclaimed as he got out the car. “I had to be patient; I knew the last lap was when to make it happen. I didn’t send it in Turn 1, knowing that he was going to block. So, I tried to keep everyone behind me, knowing that my main goal was [Woods-Toth]. We got it done. I’m super happy for me, for the team—we put together a great car. We went out on used tires. It’s awesome—we’re dialed in. I thought I loved Mid-Ohio, but I think I love VIR more now.”
A series of post-race stewards’ decisions resulted in a 30s penalty for Woods-Toth, as well as a 10s penalty for Costello. The appeal period remains open until 8:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, October 8, after which any appeals will be heard and final results will be determined.
F4 U.S. will be back on track Sunday to contest their final race of the weekend. Lights out for race three is scheduled for 9:35 a.m. ET. For updates, follow the F4 U.S. on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, or use the Race Monitor app for live timing and scoring. The race will be live streamed on the SpeedTour TV YouTube Channel.