Happy to be back in the Italian F4 Championship paddock and in his Prema Racing Tatuus car, James Wharton immediately placed himself among the favourites in Thursday's private tests, finishing P3 twice and P1 once. He remained in the top group in both Free Practice sessions, setting the stage for a successful official Qualifying session. To his dismay, the Motorsport Australia-backed driver who started in Group 1 only finished P6. "Honestly, I was really hoping for a better result, but it didn't turn out the way I hoped," he lamented.

7th on the grid for Race 1 (Groups B vs. C), James was very incisive in the opening laps. He overtook two drivers and set the provisional fastest lap shortly before the halfway mark. Very close to taking P4, the All Road Management driver was unfortunately involved in a collision. A cruel disappointment!

Highs and lows

The next morning in Race 2 (Groups A vs. C), his excellent start enabled him to gain a few positions, but a red flag forced the race director to restart. James was still able to gain positions during the first few laps, as well as putting in some good laps. This time, no incident disrupted his race, which finished in 5th position.

But the two races added up and James Wharton only ended up 12th on the starting grid for the final race, which proved to be a tricky one for the Australian. "The Qualifying session definitely had a negative impact on my weekend. I had to adopt an offensive strategy to get back up and use the two sets of Pirelli tyres we have at our disposal quickly. As a result, I was not able to perform as well in this last race. The tyre wear was starting to show and I found it impossible to move back up, especially on this Imola circuit which is not really conducive to overtaking."

"Of course, I am disappointed to have scored only 10 points in the whole meeting. But I have to remember that I was one of the fastest drivers in the Saturday and Sunday morning races. The aim is to build on the high level of performance that I and the team have achieved at the next race in May at Misano."

About James Wharton

James Wharton is a 16-year-old Australian racing driver, who is competing in his second international Formula 4 season in 2023. Currently supported by the Ferrari Driver Academy, All Road Management and Motorsport Australia, James began karting in his native country at the age of seven. He has gone on to shine in some of the world's top single-make challenges.

A two-time winner of the prestigious SKUSA SuperNationals in Las Vegas in Junior, he was involved in FIA Karting competitions from 2018 to 2021, where he has learnt a lot from great teams like RFM and Parolin Motorsport. Numerous podiums have been achieved, culminating in a brilliant 5th position in the KZ2 International Super Cup, a de facto World Cup for the category.

Winner in his second F4 meeting in Dubai, James Wharton finished 5th in the UAE Championship with a total of four wins, three pole positions and four fastest laps. During the 2022 season, the Australian followed up with two more 5th places in the Italian and German F4 Championships, with impressive consistency: 20 top five finishes including eight podiums.

At the beginning of 2023, the Australian won the UAE Formula 4 Championship brilliantly with the Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited team. His goal is to take more victories this season in the Italian F4 Championship with the Prema Racing team.