Dempsey Grabs Chinese F4 Championship Lead for Pinnacle Motorsport

Motorsport Ireland Young Driver of the Year Jordan Dempsey from Mullingar has now jumped into the F4 Chinese Championship’s lead after another dominant weekend at the Shanghai International Circuit. The Irishman scored two outright race victories during the series’ fifth event last September 21-23 to lead the driver’s standings by 28 points.

Driving for the John O’Hara managed Pinnacle Motorsport team, Dempsey set the fastest lap around the 5.451 km Formula 1 circuit during qualifying to put him on pole position. However, a penalty incurred from the previous round at Ningbo saw him start from the third row on the grid.

This didn’t seem to phase the young 18-year-old who immediate went on attack mode in Race 1. It only took him two laps to climb all the way up to P2, which was only slightly delayed by a safety car period. But he resumed his chase once the track turned green, taking the race lead on lap six and opening a gap to win by a 2.509 second advantage.

Race 2 on Sunday morning saw Dempsey cruise to another victory. This time, he started from pole and enjoyed a lights-to-flag win for Pinnacle Motorsport. Unfortunately, his winning streak was cut short in the third and final race of the weekend.

Dempsey started from P10 due to a reverse-grid and worked his way through the traffic to slot into P3 on lap five. Now challenging for P2 spot, he attempted to make a clean pass on Shanghai’s long 1.2 km straight when another driver collided with his #03 car. Dempsey was forced off track and crashed into the barriers at high speed. But thankfully he suffered no serious injuries and was cleared by the medical centre.

With the results from Shanghai, Pinnacle Motorsport and Jordan Dempsey now leads the F4 Chinese Championship by 28 points at the season resumes action in just two week’s time. It’ll race on the Wuhan Street Circuit on October 2-5 in support of the WTCR, TCR China, and CTCC.

Accompanying Pinnacle Motorsport on their FIA F4 Chinese Championship campaign are partners Motorsport Ireland and P1 Racewear.

Jordan Dempsey: “Great weekend in Shanghai yet again. Myself and the team showed that we’re ready to take this championship. To qualify on pole and win the first two races shows how I’m coming on under the coaching of Pinnacle Motorsport! I can’t wait for Wuhan to try and further increase my lead in the championship. I have to say a massive thanks to the team, to Digital Planet, Motorsport Ireland, Sport Ireland, Team Ireland, my family, friends, and fans for always supporting me 100%!”

The FIA F4 Chinese Championship is a junior single-seater series that caters to young drivers who are moving up from karting to F4, F3, F2, and eventually to F1. It is designed to keep costs down while providing an ideal learning tool. Drivers also earn points towards an FIA Super License. Know more about the FIA F4 Chinese Championship by visiting www.fiaf4.com.cn.