Woods-Toth sets pole for FR Americas at Mid-Ohio

Patrick Woods-Toth (No. 27 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) took the pole for Saturday’s Formula Regional Americas Championship (FR Americas) race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. With a lap time of 1m18.643s, Woods-Toth was 0.261s quicker than his championship rival and teammate, Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3), who recorded a 1m18.904s lap. Nicolas Ambiado (No. 55 TLink / Allegro Ligier JS F3) was third, also just 0.277s behind the leader.

FR Americas was on track Friday with two practice sessions, where Shehan and Ambiado each took a turn at the top of the leaderboard.

In first practice, Shehan led the way, recording a fast time of 1m19.135s to hold off his teammate Titus Sherlock (No. 31 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) by 0.011s. Just behind them was Woods-Toth, who rounded out the top three with a 1m19.236s lap.

Ambiado paced the second practice with a 1m19.982s lap, with Shehan only 0.059s behind. In third, Sherlock recorded a 1m20.405s during the session.

The lights go out for FR Americas’ first race Saturday at 6:15 p.m. ET. All of this weekend’s feature races will be live streamed at YouTube.com/SpeedTourTV, with live timing and scoring accessible on the Race Monitor app. Additional news and updates from the Mid-Ohio SpeedTour will be posted on FR Americas’ Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

RESULTS

Woods-Toth secures first FR Americas race win at IMS

Marking the inaugural race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway for Formula Regional Americas Championship (FR Americas), points-leader Patrick Woods-Toth (No. 27 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) emerged victorious on Saturday afternoon. Overcoming tough competition from his championship rivals, Woods-Toth paced the field from lights to checkered in an all-green race.

Woods-Toth entered the weekend tied in points with Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3), and the two drivers have been neck and neck ever since. With each leading one of the test sessions, Shehan paced practice, while Woods-Toth took qualifying. As Woods-Toth led the field down the grid on Saturday afternoon, Shehan lined up to his outside in second.

When the lights went out, Shehan got the jump to lead the field into Turn 1. Titus Sherlock (No. 31 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3), who started third, swept around the outside to try to challenge Woods-Toth for second, but was unable to complete the pass. With Woods-Toth gaining speed as they raced down the Hulman Straight, he had the preferred inside line as they entered Turn 7 to overtake Shehan and once again lead the field. From there, the Canadian continued to hit his marks and started to open a gap.

Behind him, the action continued to heat up. Corner workers spotted a loose rear wing on Sherlock’s machine, forcing the driver to surrender the third position as he came down pit lane. Fifth-place starter Theodor Jensen (No. 1 JENSEN Global Advisors Ligier JS F3) was on the move, overtaking fourth-place starter Nicolas Ambiado (No. 55 TLink / Allegro Ligier JS F3), and continuing to climb the leaderboard with Sherlock’s misfortune.

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As the race passed its halfway point, sixth-place starter Jett Bowling (No. 02 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) looked to make something happen. Racing nose to tail with Jensen and Ambiado, Bowling overtook fourth as Ambiado wiggled off the exit of Turn 10 with just over seven minutes left on the clock. Focused forward, Bowling was on Jensen’s gearbox the final three laps of the race, waiting for the right opportunity to make his move. With Jensen wide off the final turn coming to the white flag, the two were side by side as they passed under the starter’s stand. Regrouping himself, the Danish driver pulled back ahead as they entered Turn 1 and lapped traffic intensified their battle.

As they crossed the line, Woods-Toth took his third win of the season, with Shehan following in second. Jensen claimed the third and final podium position in his first series start.

“We had to manage the tires and the engine today,” said Woods-Toth atop the podium. “It’s really hot, so everything was just fading away as you drive. Ryan [Shehan] gave me a hard battle the whole time, keeping me on my toes, and I couldn’t relax for the whole 35 minutes. I was sweating a lot, but luckily, we came in with the win and a good day. I’d like to thank the whole team at Crosslink Kiwi. We’ve had a great car all season. They’ve been working really hard, staying late and everything, so thank you to them. Of course, thank you to my sponsors—Orlando, FSMQ, Ron Fellows—and all my family and friends back home.

FR Americas competes in their final two races of the weekend Sunday. The lights go out for race two at 10:00 a.m. ET, followed by race three at 2:30 p.m. ET.

This weekend’s races will be live streamed at YouTube.com/SpeedTourTV, with live timing and scoring available on the Race Monitor app. Additional news and updates from the weekend will be posted on the series’ social channels: Facebook, Instagram, and X.

RESULTS

Woods-Toth grabs inaugural FR Americas pole at IMS

Patrick Woods-Toth (No. 27 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) took the pole position for the inaugural Formula Regional Americas Championship (FR Americas) race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The two-time winner recorded a 1m22.982s lap time to secure the pole by 0.063s over teammate and championship rival Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3). The top five competitors remained within a second of the leader, as Titus Sherlock (No. 31 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) was third, Nicolas Ambiado (No. 55 TLink / Allegro Ligier JS F3) was fourth and Theodor Jensen (No. 1 JENSEN Global Advisors Ligier JS F3) was fifth.

Competitors in FR Americas had a single practice session Friday morning, which Shehan paced with a 1m23.506s lap. In an ultra-tight field, the top eight were all within one second of the leader. Sherlock followed in second, just 0.107s behind Shehan, with Jett Bowling (No. 02 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) rounding out the top three.

FR Americas will contest their first race of the weekend Saturday afternoon at 1:10 p.m. Prior to the lights going out, fans are invited to join the drivers, along with the Indy SpeedTour Grand Marshal, Lyn St. James, on pit lane for a special pre-race fan walk. Fans can meet the drivers, collect autographs, see the cars, and walk across the yard of bricks just moments before the lights go out. The fan walk begins at 12:30 p.m. ET.

Races will be live streamed at YouTube.com/SpeedTourTV, with live timing and scoring available on the Race Monitor app. Additional news and updates from the weekend will be posted on the series’ social channels: Facebook, Instagram, and X.

RESULTS

Woods-Toth holds off Sherlock to win FR Americas at Road America

Patrick Woods-Toth (No. 27 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) emerged the winner in the opening race of the weekend for Formula Regional Americas Championship (FR Americas) at Road America. A hotly-contested race, wheel-to-wheel battles emerged throughout the entire field, with Woods-Toth having to hold off the advances of his teammate, Titus Sherlock (No. 31 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3), during a one-lap shootout to the checkered flag.

Woods-Toth led the field down the starting grid, but it was Sherlock who got the jump when the lights went out. With Sherlock completing the pass to overtake the lead by the time they reached Turn 1, Woods-Toth stayed tight on his gearbox as they worked through the opening turns. As they approached Turn 5—one of the best passing opportunities at the 4.048-mile circuit—Woods-Toth decided to brake late and drive to the inside of Sherlock. Racing side by side, the two engaged in a heated battle all the way through Turn 7, when Sherlock drove a bit too wide, giving up a couple positions and allowing Woods-Toth to drive away.

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Opening up over a 5s lead as the race passed its halfway point, Woods-Toth appeared to have an easily-sailing path to victory. In the meantime, Jett Bowling (No. 02 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) was engaged in a tight battle with Nicole Havrda (No. 6 Valley Kitchens Ltd / Colonial Countertops Ltd Ligier JS F3), Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) and Justin Garat (No. 17 Speed Factory Ligier JS F3) while competing for the fourth position. With just 12 minutes left on the clock, Bowling went wide on the exit of Turn 12, lost control of the rear of his car and spun around to make contact with the wall. An extensive cleanup ensued, which put Woods-Toth back on the defense for a one-lap shootout finish.

As the green flag waved, Sherlock pulled tight on Woods-Toth’s gearbox and raced side by side all the way through Turn 8. As they raced through the Carousel, Woods-Toth cleared Sherlock, holding the lead and taking the checkered flag with just a 0.215s advantage.

“The yellow came out at about the worst time for us,” Woods-Toth said on the podium. “We were pushing pretty hard to get a good gap; we weren’t saving any tires there. When the yellow came out, I knew it was going to be a fight. I just had to stay out of trouble. It was a good race with Titus [Sherlock]; he did a good job.”

FR Americas is back on track Saturday afternoon for race two at 5:25 p.m. CT. A live feed from the Road America Jumbotron will continue to be available throughout the weekend at YouTube.com/SpeedTourTV. Live timing and scoring can be accessed on the Race Monitor app, and additional news and updates from the Road America SpeedTour will be posted on the series’ Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

RESULTS

FR Americas and F4 US champions Hedge and Woods-Toth win COTA finales

Confirmed as 2023 Driver Champion of Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda (FR Americas), Callum Hedge capped off his championship season in Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda by winning the third and final race at Circuit of The Americas. The 19-year-old from Auckland, New Zealand earned his 13th win of the season when he led the field to the checkered flag with nearly a 10-second margin. With the victory, he is ranked third on the all-time wins list in FR Americas behind Kyle Kirkwood and Linus Lundqvist, who are both tied with 15.

Hedge (No. 17 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) led the field down the grid for the final race of 2023. After edging Hedge to the finish in Race 2, Oliver Westling (No. 1 JENSEN Ligier JS F3) lined up next to the New Zealander for Race 3. Westling got a jump off the block, but Hedge pulled ahead to take control of the race. Several puffs of smoke could be seen throughout the opening lap as drivers tried to bring their Hankook tires up to temperature, and the caution ultimately waved later in the same lap.

The race restarted with nearly 20 minutes left on the clock. Hedge led the field down the front stretch and toward Turn 1 with Westling in tow. Behind them, Manuel Roza (No. 12 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) was facing pressure from Cole Kleck (No. 11 Speed Factory Ligier JS F3) and Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) as the field raced three wide through Turns 1 and 2. Roza pulled ahead to claim the third position while Kleck and Shehan raced side by side. It wasn’t long until Hayden Bowlsbey (No. 22 Save22 Ligier JS F3) joined the Kleck and Shehan fray. Hard racing between the trio led to Bowlsbey losing control in Turn 13, spinning and making contact with Shehan’s front wing. Both cars were able to clear the incident and the race continued green.

Meanwhile, newcomer Jake Bonilla (No. 20 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) climbed through the field. Starting in 11th, he worked his way up to seventh with about 10 minutes left on the clock, and then engaged in a battle with Everett Stack (No. 2 JENSEN Ligier JS F3) to take the sixth position. Bonilla raced ahead as they entered the esses, and overtook Shehan just minutes later when Shehan was forced down pit road to replace his damaged front wing. Shehan returned to the track, but was out of contention for the win.

Hedge led the field across the finish line with a 9.250-second margin of victory over Westling. Roza finished third taking the second podium of his career, followed by Kleck in fourth and Bonilla in fifth.

“Everyone likes winning. If I don’t win, then I’m not happy, so I need to work as hard as I can. I was pretty disappointed yesterday; I left the door open at the last corner. So, I made sure I didn’t make that mistake again today. I got a pretty rubbish start, to be fair, but then the car was really fast. So big thanks to the team, and Paul for engineering it.

I’d like to thank Honda and HPD for the awesome scholarship and prizes they have offered to the series, so big credit to them. I can’t wait to see what next year holds for me. Big thanks to the people that made this happen for me—Steve Horn, Mike Pilcher, Tasman Motorsport Group, Giltrap Group and Tony Quinn Foundation.”

RESULTS

FINAL STANDINGS

Sweeping the top three spots in the drivers’ championship, Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport also took the teams’ title. The organization recorded 16 wins this season, along with 44 podiums.

Patrick Woods-Toth wins F4 US season finale at COTA

Patrick Woods-Toth finished off his F4 US championship season in similar fashion — in victory lane at COTA. In a whirlwind year, the 20-year-old Canadian went from driving karts, to attending an F4 “karts to cars” scholarship school at Radford Racing School last December, to winning a championship in his first year racing single seaters. The victory marked Woods-Toth (No. 27 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F4) fourth time atop the podium in 2023. He held off a hard-charging Jesse Lacey (No. 16 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F4) during the closing laps, crossing the line side by side with his teammate to take the win with a 0.017s margin. It was his fourth win of the season.

Titus Sherlock was awarded the Omologato Perfectly Timed Move of the Race after winning Race 1 of the weekend, and overcoming a mechanical issue in the Race 3 that caused him to give up the pole position and start the race from the back of the field. Despite the circumstances, he raced through the field to finish eighth.

The field faced an aborted start, which allowed Sherlock’s team a couple extra minutes to work on his car while the field came back around for a two-by-two rolling start. Daniel Cara (No. 10 Tenuta Foppo & Ambrosi Ligier JS F4) led the field down the front stretch with Woods-Toth next to him accelerating toward the green flag. Cara had a clean start and pulled away from the field, while a couple competitors spun behind him.

Before the completion of the first lap, double yellows waved. Augie Soto Schirripa (No. 24 International Motorsport Ligier JS F4) was on a tear from the drop of the green flag. The Race 2 winner experienced a transponder failure in that event, which left him without an official lap time to set the grid for Race 3. Instead, he lined up 22nd and climbed all the way to eighth before the safety period.

The race resumed with Cará leading the field to the restart, while Daniel Quimby (No. 42 Doran Motorsports Group Ligier JS F4), Kekai Hauanio (No. 29 N.E. Where Transport Ligier JS F4), Woods-Toth and Lacey battled hard behind him. It didn’t take long until Woods-Toth starting picking off his competition with Lacey doing the same behind him. Woods-Toth overtook Cara for the lead with just over 11 minutes left on the clock. Just a few turns later, Lacey moved in to second overtaking Quimby racing through Turn 1. From there, it was all focus forward.

On the final lap, Lacey ran side by side with Woods-Toth through Turn 11. The two drag raced down the backstretch before making contact in Turn 12, and Lacey finally pulled ahead as they reached Turn 13. Now nose to tail, Lacey led Woods-Toth and Soto-Schirripa through the final turns all the way to Turn 19. Woods-Toth pulled next to Lacey and raced him through Turn 20 and to the finish line. As they crossed, Woods-Toth edged Lacey by just a 0.017s margin, with Soto-Schirripa just behind them.

“We wrapped up the championship yesterday after such a strong year, and today, we were just going for gold,” said Woods-Toth. “It’s nice to end on a high note. Finishing first on track and we came away with a championship — that’s the most important part. I’m just so happy and thankful for the team, my sponsors, everyone. It’s been such an amazing year.”

RESULTS

FINAL STANDINGS

FR Americas and F4 U.S. will kick off the 2024 season on April 11-14 at NOLA Motorsports Park in Avondale, La.

Hedge crowned FR Americas champion, splits wins with Westling at COTA

Callum Hedge clinched the Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda (FR Americas) title with a win in race one on Friday morning at Circuit of The Americas. After earning the pole at the Mission Foods Austin SpeedTour during qualifying, the New Zealander jumped out to an early lead and held on through a mid-race caution period to sail off to the checkered flag.

“It’s really cool to finally wrap [the championship] up after a really long season,” said Hedge in Victory Lane. “Ryan [Shehan] put up a real good fight. He’s a class driver; I’ve really enjoyed being teammates and racing him this year. It’s just really a big credit for the people who made it happen for me—Mark Pilcher and Steve Horne—without them looking and finding this series, I wouldn’t be able to go on and do the cool things that I’m going be able to do next year. So, it’s a big credit to them and the people who came on board and supported it—Tony Quinn Foundation, Giltrap Group and Tasman Motorsport Group.”

Shehan stayed in Kleck’s mirrors and the two had quite the battle for the next several laps. All of the back and forth, however, allowed Cooper Becklin (No. 19 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) to close in and join the fight. While the trio fought for the second, Hedge pulled away with a 7.492s advantage before debris on the track slowed the field with a full-course caution.

The race restarted just one lap later and Kleck made a run at the lead, taking the point position off of Turn 1 before Hedge snapped it back in Turn 2. Hedge pulled away and Kleck settled into second, while Shehan and Becklin engaged in a fight for the third position. Becklin took the position from Shehan and continued his forward progress, while Shehan fell in the running order after suffering a mechanical issue.

With a solid hold on third, Becklin kept his eyes forward and started chasing down Kleck for second. With less than five minutes to go, Becklin pulled side by side with Kleck through Turn 13 and completed the pass by the time they exited Turn 14. Becklin pulled away from Kleck, but Hedge proved to have too great of a gap to overcome.

As they crossed the line, Hedge led the field, followed by Becklin and Kleck.

“We got a really good start—we haven’t made too many good starts this year—but we finally got a good one,” said Hedge. “We put the green tires on this morning to give us the best opportunity to wrap it up in the first race, so that’s what we did. The car was really fast; a big thanks to the team at Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport.”

Oliver Westling makes a last-lap pass to take race two at COTA

Oliver Westling won a thrilling race two at the Mission Foods Austin SpeedTour weekend at Circuit of The Americas with a last-turn, last-lap pass. Marking his second victory in Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda (FR Americas) competition, Westling (No. 1 JENSEN Ligier JS F3) started the race from the second position and spent the entire race trailing the newly confirmed 2023 drivers’ champion, Callum Hedge (No. 17 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3)—that is, right up until the final turn of the final lap. With a bold move diving deep into the final turn, Westling beat Hedge across the line by just 0.050s.

While they raced for the lead, other drivers found themselves jockeying for position too—teammates Manuel Roza (No. 12 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) and Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) faced off for third, while it was Cole Kleck (No. 11 Speed Factory Ligier JS F3) versus Cooper Becklin (No. 19 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) battling for fifth.

With just over three minutes left on the clock, Hedge noticed a rear wheel bearing was starting to fail. He was forced to slow his pace, as Westling was able to push his fresh Hankook Tires to the limit, closing the gap from 1.609s to just 0.451s.

Tight on Hedge’s gearbox the entire final two laps, Westling pulled side by side in Turn 12 on the final lap. The two continued to swap positions all the way through Turn 15 when Hedge emerged the leader, but Westling wasn’t giving up that easy. He drove it in deep entering Turn 20 and nosed ahead for the lead as they crossed the finish line side by side.

“The last lap was tough,” said Westling following the race. “Callum was definitely hard to battle, and he won’t let up easy. I feel really good about [this win]; I pushed hard. I wasn’t going to give up or let up. I shot up to Turn 20 and just went for it. I saw him right next to me, and I saw his front wing, but I was like, ‘There’s no way he’s passing me.’ I’m really proud of our effort.”

FR Americas will contest one more round this weekend with lights out for race three scheduled at 9:20am ET Saturday. It will stream live on the SpeedTour TV YouTube Channel. Fans can follow @FRAmericas on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for updates, and use the Race Monitor app for live timing and scoring.

RACE ONE RESULTS

RACE TWO RESULTS

Hedge, Sherlock on pole for opening races of COTA FR Americas, F4 US finales

Callum Hedge will lead the field to the starting grid after securing the pole for Race 1 of the Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda final weekend at Circuit of The Americas. Hedge (No. 17 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) set a fast lap of 2m03.575s to better teammate and championship rival Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) by just 0.776s. Oliver Westling (No. 1 JENSEN Ligier JS F3), who is fighting to finish in the top three in the point standings, rounded out the top three in qualifying.

FR AMERICAS RESULTS

The lights go out 9:15am CT, and a live stream broadcast of the race will be available on the SpeedTourTV YouTube page

#31 Titus Sherlock, Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport,

Titus Sherlock is racing for the Formula 4 United States Championship Powered by Honda (F4 U.S.) title this weekend at COTA, and Friday, he’ll start that championship battle from the front of the grid. Recording a 2m15.593s, Sherlock (No. 31 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F4) had just a 0.006s advantage over Daniel Cará (No. 10 Tenuta Foppa & Ambrosi Ligier JS F4) to secure the pole position for Race 1. After winning two of the three rounds at VIRginia International Raceway last month, Augie Soto-Schirripa (No. 24 International Motorsport Ligier JS F4) qualified third for tomorrow’s race with a lap time of 2:15.760.

Sherlock is currently tied with Michael Costello (No. 19 Jay Howard Driver Development / CSU One Cure / Lucas Oil / LHP Ligier JS F4) for second in the point standings, and both drivers are 66.5 points behind leader Patrick Woods-Toth (No. 27 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F4). Costello will line up 13th, while Woods-Toth will start from fourth on the grid.

F4 U.S. RESULTS

F4 U.S. hits the track tomorrow for Race 1 at 12pm CT on Friday, and a live stream broadcast of the race will be available on the SpeedTourTV YouTube page.

FR Americas and F4 US titles up for grabs at COTA

Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda (FR Americas) and Formula 4 United States Championship Powered by Honda (F4 U.S.) pull into Circuit of The Americas (COTA) for their final three races of 2023. Each competing in Rounds 16-18 at the Mission Foods Austin SpeedTour, the championships will join Sportscar Vintage Racing Association (SVRA), the Trans Am Series, Prototype Sprint Series Association and International GT, as all six series crown their champions in the final SpeedTour event of the season. With over 700 cars being showcased throughout the weekend between the on-track competition, Hagerty Cars and Caffeine Car Show, and Corvette Invasion, there is sure to be something for everyone.

Schedule:

FR Americas Championship Powered by Honda

Practice 1: Thursday, November 2 at 9:15 a.m. ET

Practice 2: Thursday, November 2 at 1:10 p.m. ET

Qualifying: Thursday, November 2 at 4:00 p.m. ET

Feature Race 1: Friday, November 3 at 9:15 a.m. ET

Feature Race 2: Friday, November 3 at 2:45 p.m. ET

Feature Race 3: Saturday, November 4 at 9:20 a.m. ET

F4 U.S. Championship Powered by Honda

Practice 1: Thursday, November 2 at 10:40 a.m. ET

Practice 2: Thursday, November 2 at 2:40 p.m. ET

Qualifying: Thursday, November 2 at 5:35 p.m. ET

Feature Race 1: Friday, November 3 at 12:00 p.m. ET

Feature Race 2: Friday, November 3 at 5:50 p.m. ET

Fan Walk: Saturday, November 4 at 12:00 p.m. ET

Feature Race 3: Saturday, November 4 at 12:45 p.m. ET

Fans will have an opportunity to meet the drivers from FR Americas and F4 U.S. during a special pre-race fan walk on Saturday afternoon. Join us on pit lane at 12 p.m. CT to get an up-close look at the F4 cars moments before they head out on track for their third and final race of the weekend. Meet drivers from both series, get free swag—including a complimentary FR Americas/F4 U.S. series poster—and collect autographs. Everyone is welcome to attend this free event!

You can watch the FR Americas and F4 U.S. races this weekend for free on social media with streaming available on the SpeedTourTV YouTube page (YouTube.com/SpeedTourTV). Live coverage on Friday and Saturday means that all three races will be streamed for each championship.

With 11 wins this season, including two in the series’ last outing at VIRginia International Raceway (VIR), Callum Hedge (No. 17 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) continues to lead the championship standings. However, the battle isn’t as cut and dry as it once appeared—in fact, Hedge failed to score any points in the series’ most recent race after being forced to retire early from Round 15. With three runner-up finishes at VIR, Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) kept his championship hopes alive, leaving Hedge with only a 51-point advantage going into COTA.

Cooper Becklin (No. 19 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) was eliminated from championship contention at VIR, but the Oregonian still had a weekend to remember as he secured his first-career win in Round 15. The victory, paired with two third-place results, kept Becklin just 42 points behind Shehan. Oliver Westling (No. 1 JENSEN Ligier JS F3) remains the fourth and final driver with a chance of finishing inside the top three in the point standings. The New Jersey Motorsports Park (NJMP) Round 10 winner ranks fourth, just 57 points behind Becklin.

Jake Bonilla (No. 20 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) will join powerhouse Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport to make his FR Americas debut this weekend at COTA. Bonilla has been testing the Ligier JS F3 car with Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport this year, and earned two podiums—including a win—in the car during a Formula Pro USA Western Championship event at Sonoma Raceway in September. Previously, the San Antonian competed in F4 U.S. during the 2020 and 2021 race seasons.

Manuel Roza (No. 12 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) and Cole Kleck (No. 11 Speed Factory Ligier JS F3) will both return to the FR Americas paddock just in time for the 2023 season finale. With neither driver having competed since Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in June, Roza will return to his traditional No. 12 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport entry, while Kleck joins Speed Factory for the final event of the year.

Austinite Ryan Shehan will join three fellow Texans racing at Circuit of The Americas this weekend. Cole Kleck and Jake Bonilla can carpool from their San Antonio homes, while Max Hewitt (No. 39 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) will have the longest trip to make of the “local” drivers, with a 150-mile journey from Houston.

Hayden Bowlsbey (No. 22 Save22 Ligier JS F3) earned his first-career podium in the series’ most recent outing at VIR. A major accident during the closing laps at NJMP required Bowlsbey to rebuild his car during the 10-week break between events. With the help of his friends and family, both the driver and car were ready to race when the lights went out at VIR. Bowlsbey first entered F4 U.S. competition in 2019, and moved up to FR Americas with his family-owned IGY6 Motorsports in 2022. With 17 previous top 10s, Bowlsbey’s third-place result in Round 15 marked his first-career FR Americas podium—and the first podium finish for IGY6 Motorsports.

With 11 victories this season, Callum Hedge is currently tied with last year’s FR Americas champion, Raoul Hyman, for third on the all-time wins list. Another victory this weekend would break that tie and solidify Hedge’s standing as the third-winningest driver in FR Americas history. Kyle Kirkwood and Linus Lundqvist, both current competitors in INDYCAR, are tied for the most wins in FR Americas with 15 victories apiece.

FR Americas Scholarship on the line
The battle for the 2023 F4 U.S. drivers’ championship title is down to just three drivers. Patrick Woods-Toth (No. 27 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F4) currently leads the championship charge, while Michael Costello (No. 19 Jay Howard Driver Development / CSU One Cure / Lucas Oil / LHP Ligier JS F4) and Titus Sherlock (No. 31 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F4) are tied for second, 66.5 points behind Woods-Toth. Alex Berg, who is currently ranked fourth in points, will miss this weekend’s event as he competes in England’s Formula Ford Festival with Team Canada. His absence leaves Jesse Lacey (No. 16 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F4), hot off his first F4 U.S. win at VIR, to contend with Daniel Cará (No. 10 Tenuta Foppa & Ambrosi Ligier JS F4) and Augie Soto-Schirripa (No. 24 International Motorsport Ligier JS F4), who earned two wins during the VIR race weekend. All four drivers remain mathematically eligible to contend for a top-three finish in the final point standings.

At the conclusion of the season, the 2023 F4 U.S. champion will be given the opportunity to move to FR Americas in 2024 with support from Ligier Automotive, Hankook Tires and Parella Motorsports Holdings. In addition, the champion will also receive $25,000 from Honda Performance Development, along with several other prizes.

Five drivers will be making their F4 U.S. debut this weekend at Circuit of The Americas. Ariel Elkin (No. 18 International Motorsport Ligier JS F4) joins the field from the F4 Italian Championship where the Israeli driver competed earlier this year. American Barrett Wolfe (No. 13 Doran Motorsports Group Ligier JS F4) and Australian Daniel Quimby (No. 42 Doran Motorsports Group Ligier JS F4) both move to F4 U.S. after competing in the Formula Pro USA Championships earlier this year. Meanwhile, Zhanbin Jia (No. 6 Jay Howard Driver Development / CSU One Cure / Lucas Oil / LHP Ligier JS F4) will move to F4 U.S. after making his debut in the SpeedTour Formula Development Series just last month at VIR. Pablo Josè Benites (No. 8 Scuderia Buell Ligier JS F4) also used SpeedTour Formula Development to gain experience in his Ligier JS F4 this season and will move up to F4 U.S. competition at COTA.

Four drivers competing in this weekend’s event hail from the state of Texas. Daniel Cará will have the shortest drive to COTA, traveling 150 miles from his home in The Woodlands, Texas. Meanwhile, a trio of drivers will travel from their homes around the greater Dallas area to compete in this weekend’s event—Dallas-based Jett Bowling (No. 02 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F4), Terrell, Texas’ Christopher Parrish (No. 83 Save22 Ligier JS F4), and Titus Sherlock from Prosper, Texas.

Several F4 U.S. competitors notched important career accomplishments during the series’ last round at VIR. Augie Soto-Schirripa earned the most points throughout the weekend with his two wins, while Jesse Lacey earned his first-career F4 U.S. victory. Kekai Hauanio (No. 29 N.E. Where Transport Ligier JS F4) impressed with a weekend where he continued to better his record for career-best finish—first earning a fifth, then a third, and finally a second-place result. Hannah Greenemeier (No. 74 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F4) also recorded a career-best finish with her sixth-place result in Round 14. Luciano Martinez (No. 91 Scuderia Buell Ligier JS F4) earned his first-career pole to lead the field off the starting grid in Race 2 of the weekend.

Hedge completes FR Americas sweep at Mid-Ohio

Callum Hedge had another perfect weekend in Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda (FR Americas), extending his win streak to seven races. Despite pressure from his Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport teammates, Hedge led the field from …

With the fastest lap in Race 2, Hedge (No. 17 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) secured the pole for the final race of the PERMCO Grand Prix of Mid-Ohio weekend. Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) put up a good fight, staying wheel to wheel with Hedge through Turn 1 and to the entrance of the Keyhole. Meanwhile, their teammate Cooper Becklin (No. 19 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) lined up third, but was a bit slow off the starting block, giving Max Hewitt (No. 39 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) an opportunity to pull to the outside and snag the position. However, just a few turns later, Becklin pulled to the outside of Hedge in Turn 4 to reclaim the position he had just lost.

One driver turning heads early in the race was Cole Kleck (No. 11 Velocity Racing Development Ligier JS F3), who lined up fifth for his third-career FR Americas start, but climbed up to fourth after just two laps. Just behind Kleck was Manuel Roza (No. 12 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3), Hayden Bowlsbey (No. 22 Save22 Ligier JS F3) and Austin Hill (No. 8 SoOhio Equip / Alum Trailers / Ferris Mowers / Big Tex Trailers / PJ Trailers / CM Truck JS F3) just waiting for the right time to pounce. With just over 20 minutes on the clock, pounce they did as they exited Turn 9 and headed toward Thunder Valley. Roza got around Kleck first, and Bowlsbey followed in the very next turn.

Corner workers spotted Hewitt’s car spraying some kind of vapor. Just as they called it in, Hewitt spun the car and landed in the gravel trap just past Turn 4, with smoke billowing from the machine. A safety car period ensued with safety workers retrieving both the driver and car.

The race restarted with just over 11 minutes left. Hedge once again got a solid jump, but Shehan stayed closely behind, rarely giving Hedge even a half-second gap. Despite that, Hedge, Shehan and Becklin remained nose to tail, without any of them able to make a move and complete a pass.

When they finally crossed the finish line after 35 minutes, Hedge led Shehan and Becklin, followed by Roza, who won the Omologato Perfectly Timed Move of The Race. Hill, the hometown hero, rounded out the top five.

Race 3 Official Results

“Can’t really ask for much more than seven wins in a row,” Hedge said from the podium. “I have to give the credit to the Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport team. They’ve given me a really good car. Paul, Big Dill, thank you for making the car nice and fast. Without the team and those two engineers, we wouldn’t be able to achieve the success we have. So big credit to them, and let’s see if we can keep going.”

Notes of interest:
Manuel Roza was named the winner of the Omologato Perfectly Timed Move of the Race after a strong performance throughout the FR Americas weekend at Mid-Ohio.
With his Round 9 victory, Callum Hedge has extended his consecutive win streak to seven races. The record is eight-consecutive wins, set by Kyle Kirkwood in 2018, and later matched by Linus Lundqvist in 2020.
Ryan Shehan has extended his podium streak; he is the only driver to have finished on the podium in every FR Americas race this season.
Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport earned their seventh podium sweep of 2023.
FR Americas is back on track next month at New Jersey Motorsports Park, July 28-30. Follow the championship on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, or watch Race Monitor for live timing and scoring. Tickets for the event are available at NJMP.com/SpeedTour.

WATCH THE STREAM Replay: FR Americas Race 3 from Mid-Ohio

Race 2:

Callum Hedge is up to six-straight victories with a win in Race 2 for Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda (FR Americas) at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course on Sunday morning. The race was filled with tight competition throughout the field, with everyone fighting someone for position.

Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) earned his second pole of the year after recording the fastest lap in yesterday’s Race 1. Shehan’s teammate, Hedge (No. 17 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3), lined up next to him to start the race second. When the lights went out, Hedge immediately stepped on the gas to pull even with Shehan as they entered the first turn. By the time they exited the corner, Hedge had claimed the point position.

Initially pulling away to a half-second lead, Hedge hit his marks while Shehan stalked him in his tracks. Meanwhile, their teammate Cooper Becklin (No. 19 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) fell 2.5-seconds back while controlling the third position. Another 2.5-seconds back was a four-way battle for fourth as Oliver Westling (No. 1 JENSEN Ligier JS F3), Hayden Bowlsbey (No. 22 Save22 Ligier JS F3), Manuel Roza (No. 12 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) and Cole Kleck (No. 11 Velocity Racing Development Ligier JS F3) jockeyed for the position. Just behind them, Austin Hill (No. 8 SoOhio Equip / Alum Trailers / Ferris Mowers / Big Tex Trailers / PJ Trailers / CM Truck Ligier JS F3) and Max Hewitt (No. 39 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) raced nose to tail for the eighth position.

As the clock ticked down, both Shehan and Becklin closed in on Hedge. With 10 laps compete, Shehan was just 0.272-seconds behind Hedge. At the same time, Becklin was also closing in, pulling within a second of the leaders with less than 20 minutes left in the race.

In fact, the battles were tightening up all throughout the field. With less than 10 minutes remaining, Hedge, Shehan and Becklin were all within less than a second of each other. Meanwhile, Westling, Bowlsbey, Roza and Kleck, who is competing in his first FR Americas race weekend, were all within two seconds. At the same time, Hill and Hewitt were separated by just two-tenths.

With less than three minutes on the clock, Shehan looked to the inside of Hedge as they entered Turn 4. Unable to pull off the pass, Becklin started to look to Shehan’s outside as they entered Turn 5. The trio used every bit of their Hankook tires as they looked for the right opportunity within the final laps with less than four-tenths gapping the three drivers as they worked toward the white flag. Shehan took one last look to the inside of Hedge as they raced through Thunder Valley, and stayed on the New Zealander’s gearbox as they raced through the Carousel and toward the checkered flag.
When they crossed the line, Hedge held a 0.289-second advantage over Shehan, with Becklin just 0.717-second behind in third.

“That was a bit more challenging this morning,” said Hedge. “Ryan had a lot of speed, so kudos to him. Hopefully, he’s used his tires up a little bit for the last race today. But he was very quick; props to him. I’m looking forward to going for another battle again later on today.”

Notes of interest:
Today’s 0.289-second margin of victory marked the closest finish of the season in FR Americas.
With today’s victory, Callum Hedge has extended his consecutive win streak to six races.
Ryan Shehan has extended his podium streak; he is the only driver to have finished on the podium in every FR Americas race this season.
Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport earned their sixth podium sweep of 2023.
WATCH THE STREAM REPLAY: FR Americas Race 2 from Mid-Ohio

Shehan and Hedge take FR Americas wins at NOLA

Shehan takes two in a row at NOLA; Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport sweeps podium in Race 2 Ryan Shehan has back-to-back wins in his first two Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda (FR Americas) starts, as he took the win in Race 2 at …

Shehan takes two in a row at NOLA; Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport sweeps podium in Race 2

Ryan Shehan has back-to-back wins in his first two Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda (FR Americas) starts, as he took the win in Race 2 at NOLA Motorsports Park on Sunday morning. Keeping his No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3 at the front of the field from lights to checkered, Shehan won the race in dominating fashion.

“That definitely wasn’t easy,” said Shehan from the podium. “Nick was right behind me the whole first half; then I saw him just pull over—I’m not sure what happened. From there, it was just me and Cooper [Becklin]. I just did my best to maintain the gap to Cooper, and was able to get away with the win. I have to thank Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport; sweeping the podium just shows how strong of a team they are.”

Nick Persing (No. 29 OPI Commercial Builders Inc. Ligier JS F3) applied pressure to Shehan during the early laps of the race, not allowing Shehan to pull more than a half-second gap on the field. However, while working the seventh lap of the race, Persing suffered a mechanical issue that forced him to pull off the track and into a safe location, which allowed the field to avoid a caution.

With Persing’s misfortune, Shehan automatically doubled his lead over second place as he raced nearly a full second ahead of Cooper Becklin (No. 19 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3), who advanced to the second position. Becklin started the race in the third position and quietly hit his marks every lap to hold position.

Teammates Bryson Morris (No. 39 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) and Callum Hedge (No. 17 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) were left to battle it out for the third and final position on the podium. Morris initially held the advantage, but a pass by Hedge in Turn 4 with just over three minutes left on the clock ultimately left Morris on the outside looking in.

Shehan crossed the line first on his Hankook tires, followed by Becklin and Hedge, marking the first team sweep of the season with Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport claiming the top four finishing positions.

SEE MORE: Race 2 Official Results

Follow FR Americas on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, or use Race Monitor to track live timing and scoring. This weekend’s races are streaming free at YouTube.com/SpeedTourTV.

RACE 2 STREAM: FR Americas YouTube

Callum Hedge, Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport, winner, checkered flag

Callum Hedge victorious in NOLA finale for FR Americas

New Zealander Callum Hedge took his first win in the Formula Regional Americas Championship Powered by Honda on Sunday afternoon in the final race of the weekend at NOLA Motorsports Park. Making his FR Americas debut, the driver steadily improved throughout the weekend with a sixth-place finish in Race 1 and third-place finish in Race 2 before finally climbing atop the podium in Race 3.

Hedge (No. 17 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) lined up side-by-side with teammate Cooper Becklin (No. 19 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3), who was in the point position, on the starting grid. It was clear that everyone was there to win, as both Hedge and third-place Nick Persing (No. 29 OPI Commercial Builders Inc. Ligier JS F3) got a clean jump on the start and immediately went three-wide racing down the front stretch. Hedge pulled ahead to take the lead as the group entered Turn 1 and never looked back.

Meanwhile, Persing, who was competing in his sixth race of the weekend across both FR Americas and Radical Cup North America competition, settled into second.

The real action surrounded the battle for third, where with just 10 minutes remaining in the race, a matter of car lengths separated Becklin, Ryan Shehan (No. 66 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3), Bryson Morris (No. 39 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3) and Manuel Roza (No. 12 Crosslink Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F3). Becklin led the train for most of the battle, but a mechanical issue heading into Turn 2 with just over three minutes remaining in the race allowed Shehan to pull around.

As the checkered flag waved, Hedge crossed the line first on his Hankook tires, with Persing in second and Shehan claiming third.

READ MORE: Race 3 Official Results

At the conclusion of the race, Shehan was named the winner of the Omologato Perfectly Timed Move of the Race for his consistent performance throughout the weekend, with two wins and three podium finishes. As part of the award, he was presented with a bespoke Omologato timepiece.

FR Americas is back on May 19-21 for the Road America SpeedTour where they will contest Rounds 4-6 of their 2023 season. Tickets for the event in Elkhart Lake, Wis., are available now at RoadAmerica.com. For updates before our next event, follow FR Americas on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

RACE 3 STREAM: SpeedTourTV YouTube