Podium hat-trick for Ricky Donison

Rising Indian racer Ricky Donison recorded a hat-trick of podium finishes on debut in the new FIA accredited Formula 4 championship at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi on October 28 and 29, according to information received here.

The field for the inaugural non-championship event included world KFJ karting champion Logan Sargeant from the United States and experienced South African Jonathan Aberdein, winner of ROK world finals last year.

The championship saw entries from a bunch of national karting and regional racing series champions from around the world seeking to foray into single seater international F4 racing.

The Fiat Abarth 414, F4 turbocharged 160 hp machine was a challenge for Donison and mechanical issues meant he had less time to get familiar with the car.

During Race 1, Donison was involved in a lengthy battle for third place and despite braking problems he brought the car home ahead of the challengers. In Race 2 he helped himself with another podium finish with another third place finish.

In the third and the last race of the day, the problems from Race 1 resurfaced. It looked unlikely that Donison would bring the car home but the three-time JK Tyre Rotax national champion and Rotax Asia max runner-up kept his head down for a third straight podium.

“I thank Team Energy for the work they did on my F4 car. They have been excellent. Driving on the track where Sebastian Vettel won a world championship in 2010 is a dream come true. I still need to do a big number of laps and get the best usage of my car. Still a long way to go,” he said later.