(reprinted from https://www.jackholmesracing.com/)
2022 Formula Pro USA F4 Champions!!!
It was a long road here but we did it! I’m very happy with how I drove all season long. I did everything I could to maximize each weekend and ended up on top.
We entered the finale weekend needing a win to close things out. I qualified P2 for the first race and a full course yellow came out on lap one. I took the lead in the first lap after the restart, then lost it at the start of the next. Four corners later, I took the lead again and this time I stayed there. I went to work pushing for a gap and within two laps we were split by 2 Formula Mazdas. I defended hard against the faster cars, knowing the chasing F4 would be stuck until they made it past me, frustrated and burning through tire life. It took several laps before the Mazdas were through and by then I had a 5 second lead and fresher tires. I matched his pace for the remainder of the race and crossed the line P1, securing the Championship. It was a clean race and the fastest I’ve gone yet at this track.
With the championship pressure gone, I showed up Sunday relaxed and eager for another great day of racing. I took pole by over a second and we started the race side-by-side. I got a good start, but a pick by traffic helped him by on the opening lap. He was charging hard and began to build a gap on me until he stood around five seconds ahead. He was still in sight once we entered clear air, so I kept my focus, hit my marks, and pulled out as much consistent pace as I could. I knocked out 6 or 7 laps at the limit, but we were trading blows and I was barely making any gain. My luck turned when a stalled car brought out a full course yellow. The gap was now zero seconds and I was glued to his gearbox. The green flag eventually came out and I quickly took the lead with some moves into turn 4. The next few laps were critical and I worked traffic very hard to keep him behind. I had developed a comfortable gap with one car between us and two laps remaining when a driver in a different class took me out. He went for a gap that wasn’t there and sent me flying off into the dirt in turn 2.
It was stupid by him and I did nothing wrong, but that’s multi-class racing sometimes. I was at least able to keep it off the wall. I returned to track with dirty tires chasing hard, but the gap was too large and I ultimately crossed the line P2 in class. It was a frustrating way to end a perfect weekend where we should have had a sweep, but we bagged the title and I drove fast so we still left happy.
What a season it’s been! Seven wins, nine pole positions, five fastest laps and plenty of incredible wheel-to-wheel racing. Huge respect to my competitors for keeping it clean to the end and pushing me to my limit.
I can’t say it enough, but I’d like to thank each and every one of my sponsors and supporters for getting me here. You’re what made all this possible and I couldn’t have won it without you. I’d also like to thank my amazing team @worldspeed, especially Jan my engineer and Suren my mechanic for always giving me a fast car. It’s been a great time working with these guys.
Each day that I’m able to continue to race at this level I am extremely grateful. The momentum will carry me only up from here. Thank you everyone subscribed to this letter for being a part of this with me. This is just the start. On to something even faster next!