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Zhuhai International Circuit -

This weekend, FIA China F4 Series Championship-winning team BlackArts Racing [www.blackartsracing.com] extended its lead in the 2019 China F4 Series after strong results from all three of its drivers.

Leading BAR’s three car field was Conrad Clark of New Zealand [www.conradclarkmotorsport.com], returning from two for two wins in Shanghai just a few weeks ago; Nic Lai of Macau who had raced in Round One in Shanghai as well; and F4 newcomer Patrick Tsang of Hong Kong.

In Qualifying, held at 0925 Friday morning on a recently dried track, Clark took P2 with Nic Lai 8th and Patrick Tsang 11th.

In Friday afternoon’s Race One, held at 1:20pm under clear skies and cool conditions. Conrad Clark led flag to flag to take his 3rd China F4 win in a row, with Nic Lai finishing 9th and Patrick Tsang 13th, after spinning during his first F4 race. While Clark took the overall win, Tsang placed 3rd on the Master’s Podium.

In Saturday morning’s Race Two at 9:50am under dry conditions, Clark started on pole and completely dominated the race to finish almost 8 seconds ahead of the field. Meanwhile, Nic Lai set a new personal best laptime and was having a strong race until being hit by a competitor; after continuing he was able to finish 9th. Patrick Tsang had a strong race and finished 8th, while also setting a new personal best laptime despite both himself and Lai being on used tires.

Saturday afternoon’s reverse grid Race Three was held at 2:20pm on a drying track after midday showers. With the top ten finishers from Race Two in reverse order, Conrad Clark started 10th, with Nic Lai in 2nd and Patrick Tsang 3rd on the grid. Clark moved up seven positions to finish 3rd on the podium, while Nic Lai finished 7th of the 14 car grid and F4 rookie Patrick Tsang finished 10th after a spin, but took to the Masters Class podium once again.

Conrad Clark: “Pretty solid weekend with two wins and a third. Starting the last race p10 was never going to be easy so I am happy with the end result, and we managed to come away from the weekend with a bigger championship lead - so a massive thanks to BlackArts for the great car all weekend.”

Patrick Tsang: “Being my first time racing in a F4 car, it was a wonderful experience and I really enjoyed it very much! During my first race on Friday, I spun a few times off track, but managed to know the car better for the following day. Together with the excellent advice from my coach, my lap time kept improving. Very happy to grab a few trophies in the Masters class from this interesting and exciting event! Last but not least, many thanks to Black Arts Racing team which gave excellent support for the past couple of days!”

Nic Lai: “I was racing again with BlackArts, for the 2nd round of the 2019 Chinese F4 Championship in Zhuhai. I finally had the chance to race at my home track for the first time after a couple of years on and off practicing the FR 2.0 in Zhuhai with BAR. During the official practice, I was having a hard time catching up with the other drivers’ lap times, so it wasn’t a great start for the weekend. However, after having intensive coaching for the whole afternoon from Pete Olson, the next day I managed to do a better job in qualifying - I got a grid start position of 8th for Race One.

Starting off Race One, I battled with other two cars coming from behind, and tried to be as consistent as possible. I fought until the end, to finish 9th. In Race Two, in T7 I lost control after overheating the tires and losing the rear, and with the car behind not being able to stop in time I was hit and spun, but managed to quickly turn my car around and continued to the finish. Two other cars had passed me when I spun, so I finished 9th. This actually gave me an advantage for the reverse grid of Race Three, where I started 2nd on the grid and moved up during the race to finish 7th while continuing to improve my lap times and consistency.

Overall, after my performance during heated race battles I was happy with the results. I was also surprised and grateful to receive a trophy for the Rookie Championship from CFGP 2019. Big thanks to BlackArts Racing team for the coaching and encouragement, to make such a big contribution to my improvement.”

BlackArts Racing has now extended its lead the FIA China F4 Driver’s Championship to 44 points and in the team standings by 34 points, complementing its lead in the Asia Formula Renault Championship. The six-round, 17-race FIA China F4 series will next visit the Tianjin International Circuit near Beijing, July 26th-28th. Please visit www.BlackArtsRacing.com and on facebook, www.facebook.com/BlackArtsRacingBAR for updates and contact sales@blackartsracing.com for racing and testing inquiries.

2019 FIA China F4 Championship Schedule:

Rnd 1 – April 12th-14th - Shanghai International F1 Circuit, China*
Rnd 2 – May 2nd-4th - Zhuhai International Circuit, China
Rnd 3 – July 26th-28th - Tianjin International Circuit, China
Rnd 4 – August 17th -18th - Qinhaungdau Racing Valley, China
Rnd 5 – September 6th-8th - Shanghai International F1 Circuit, China
Rnd 6 – September 28th-29th - Shanghai International F1 Circuit, China

*Formula One Support Race