Italian F4, Monza: Sammalisto Scores His Third Win and Soars to the Top of the Championship
The Italian F4 Championship wraps up at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza with Luka Sammalisto taking the spotlight. The Finnish driver for US Racing capped off a perfect weekend by claiming his third consecutive victory and seventh win of the season, confirming the dominance he had already displayed at Vallelunga, where he swept all the races over the weekend. Thanks to this extraordinary haul, Sammalisto—already the championship leader after Race 1—has further solidified his position in the standings.
For the previous leader, Prema Racing’s Alp Aksoy, the round at the “Temple of Speed” ended in the worst possible way. After finishing third in Race 2 and losing points in Race 1 due to a penalty, the Turkish driver was forced to retire from the Final following contact with Arjen Kraling while battling for a top-ten finish. This incident cost him not only valuable points but also the championship lead, which is now in Sammalisto’s hands.
At the end of the race, David Cosma-Cristofor (Prema Racing) had secured second place, confirming his excellent form following numerous strong finishes in previous rounds of the season. However, a subsequent review of the decisions by the Stewards’ Panel altered the final standings: the driver was penalized five seconds for contact with Ary Bansal, dropping him from second to eighth place.
The two US Racing drivers benefited from the penalty imposed on David Cosma-Cristofor. Oleksandr Savinkov inherited second place, capping off a weekend marked by speed and determination: after finishing third in Race 1, the driver had actually finished outside the points in the morning race due to contact while battling for second place. His teammate Noah Killion rounded out the team’s one-two finish. Fresh off his victory in Race 2—which took place without Sammalisto at the start due to the group rotation—the American driver once again demonstrated his excellent race pace in the final race, contributing to US Racing’s success.
Christian Costoya (Prema Racing) finished just off the podium, moving up to fourth place after penalties were applied. The Spaniard was also the top rookie, confirming his status as one of the most promising young drivers of the season.
Fifth place went to Ary Bansal (US Racing), who delivered a solid performance. After consistently holding a top position, the driver lost ground in the final stages following a run off into the gravel, but still managed to limit the damage and retain a spot in the top five after the standings were updated. Behind him, Elia Weiss (Jenzer Motorsport) finished sixth, followed by Sicilian driver Ludovico Busso (US Racing), who delivered another solid and consistent race. Also worth noting was the comeback by Edward Robinson (US Racing), who managed to climb back up to ninth place after starting from the 16th spot on the grid, delivering one of the most impressive performances of the final race.
Rounding out the top ten was Germany’s Simon Rechenmacher (Cram Motorsport), tenth overall and second among the Rookies. Further back were Alex Ruta (Van Amersfoort Racing), Niccolò Maccagnani (Prema Racing and Ferrari Driver Academy), David Walther (Maffi Racing), and Knud Nielsen (Real Racing), with the latter once again finishing on the podium in the Rookie standings for the third time this season.
The final points-scoring position went to Thomas Bearman, who staged a convincing comeback after running off into the gravel, which had compromised his race in the early stages. For the British driver, this marks his best result of the season in the series, highlighted by his second-place finish in Race 3. What made the weekend at Monza even more special was the presence of his brother Oliver Bearman, a Haas driver in Formula 1, who came to the circuit to closely follow his brother’s performance in the championship that he himself had won in 2021.
In the Women’s Trophy, meanwhile, victory went to Emma Felbermayr, who secured another season sweep in the category. In addition, for the second time in 2026, she managed to score points in the overall standings as well, finishing the race in fifteenth place. Rounding out the women’s podium were Rosanne Den Drijver and Payton Westcott, who finished second and third, respectively.
The high temperatures and blazing sun did not deter the crowd, who participated in the numerous activities organized in the Fan Zone. Particularly popular were the ACI Esport simulators, the autograph session with the stars of the Formula Regional European Championship, and the Meet & Greet with several drivers from the Italian Gran Turismo Endurance Championship, the Italian F4 Championship, and TCR Italy.
