F4 Racing Us
February 20, 2020 – New step for the Ligier single-seaters: the Bondurant High Performance Driving School announced the launch of the first F4 Racing School in the US featuring the Ligier JS F4. This is an unprecedented opportunity for young talents and driving enthusiasts to get the best training program in a state-of-the-art open-wheel formula racecar.
ABOUT THE SERIES THE LIGIER JS-F4 RACE CAR The JS-F4 is designed by the legendary Max Crawford and built in the U.S. It is powered by a durable and fast 2.0-liter Honda K20C1 four-cylinder engines built in Ohio pumping out 160 hp. All cars wear spec Hankook. Traveling together for the first time to all events, F4 U.S. And FR Americas official 2020 season will kick off for a doubleheader weekend at a spectator-free Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course with Sportscar Vintage Racing Association and the Trans Am Series by Pirelli, June 26-28.
- Low Equipment Cost -The most affordable, contemporary racing product with a total price of $61,875. Premium features include modern: carbon-fiber chassis, paddle shifters, sequential gearbox, data acquisition, onboard camera; and highly efficient, powerful direct-injection engine.
- Low Equipment Cost -The most affordable, contemporary racing product with a total price of $61,875. Premium features include modern: carbon-fiber chassis, paddle shifters, sequential gearbox, data acquisition, onboard camera; and highly efficient, powerful direct-injection engine.
Launched in 2016 in the F4 U.S. Championship, the Ligier JS F4 was an instant success. Each season the field of Ligier JS F4s kept growing. In 2018, the F4 U.S. Championship scored the highest average international F4 grid with 33 Ligier JS F4s per event and in 2019 it broke the international FIA F4 single-event entry record with 38 Ligier JS F4s taking the green at the Circuit of the Circuit of the Americas during the United States Grand Prix on November 1-3, 2019.
It was only a question of time before the Ligier JS F4 hit driving schools. “Since we initiated the F4 U.S. Championship, it has always been a goal of ours to have a program with a driving school,” said Ligier Automotive North America Chief Executive Officer Max Crawford. “We are very excited to begin our partnership with Bondurant High Performance Driving School”.
“It's extremely important that drivers who do have the desire to compete in the championships show up well-prepared”, he commented. “A school that teaches the same championship curriculum in the same Ligier JS F4 racecar can only be a huge benefit for drivers. Bondurant's strong reputation and quality instruction made perfect sense for us and we welcome them on board.”
The Bondurant High Performance Driving School's new F4 open-wheel race car training program will give drivers and automotive enthusiasts the opportuntity to train in a competitive, modern and state-of-the-art single-seat, open-wheel car. It will be the only school in the United States to propose this type of equipment package, powered by Honda.
The Bondurant F4 School begins scheduling courses in March. It offers multiple course options to get behind the wheel of a Ligier JS F4. Classes are open to anyone with the desire to further their skills as a competitive driver, for those seeking an SCCA Pro License or those who have dreamt of driving a true open wheel race car. Indeed, Bondurant has a longstanding partnership with Sports Car Club of America, and because of the school's new F4 training capabilities,it now has the ability to award SCCA PRO licenses to graduates of the class who have met all the required performance standards.
“For over 50 years, the Bondurant School has utilised open-wheel formula race cars in our training programs. Never before have we had the opportunity to bring brand new state-of-the-art open wheel racecars and equipment into our advanced programs,” said Bondurant Chief Instructor Mike McGovern. “This investment, as well as the relationships derived from it, is a direct result of new ownership and their long term vision and commitment to the school and the industry.”
SCCA F4 U.S. and F3 Americas Race Director Scott Goodyear noted just how much of a role race schools play in preparing up-and-coming drivers for success on the modern racing circuit.
'The best way to launch your racing career is to start with proper training and learn the art of driving a race car along with the rules and regulations of motor racing,” he said. “The information a driver receives from sitting in the cockpit of a school race car sets the tone for their success in the first season of car racing. All the top drivers around the world started their career behind the wheel of a school race car to accelerate their learning curve before entering competition. I can recall my first time in a race car, a three-day racing school driving a Formula 1600. It was a huge advantage over my competitors.”
Goodyear also expressed excitement about the fact that young drivers now have an opportunity to learn the ins-and-outs of F4 racing right here on American soil.
“As Race Director for the F4 United States Championship, I'm ecstatic that our young drivers now have a dedicated F4 School to attend here in the United States to learn the craft of driving an F4 race car,” he said. “The Bondurant School has long been the top school for up and coming drivers, and their commitment and focus on the F4 Series is going to produce race-ready drivers to enter our Championship.'
The Bondurant School has already taken delivery of its first four Ligier JS F4s!Three more cars will be delivered by early March.
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Ligier JS F4
Complying with the FIA Formula 4 regulations until 2024, the Ligier JS F4 is a launching pad for young drivers often coming from the world of karts who are starting a career in car racing.
The Ligier JS F4 has been selected by the FIA and SCCA Pro Racing to exclusively equip the F4 U.S. Championship playing field in the United States. In 2018, an average of 33 Ligier JS F4s competed in this championship.
For more information on the Ligier JS F4, click on the link below or contact ussales@ligierautomotive.com
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For more information on the Bondurant School of High Performance Driving and its new F4 School, visit Bondurant.com.
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For more about the F4 U.S. Championship, visit https://www.f4uschampionship.com/
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Photo Credit: Bondurant School
Building on the world-record breaking momentum from 2019, SCCA Pro Racing revealed today the five circuits across the country that the Formula 4 United States Championship Powered by Honda will visit in 2020. The 17-round F4 U.S. calendar will include new and returning venues with a “Winter Warm-up” scheduled Jan. 13 at Palm Beach International Raceway for teams and drivers to test and experience series procedures before the first race of the season.
“SCCA Pro Racing is aiming to provide our teams with a variety of events and tracks that will help them develop successful drivers,” said Sydney Davis Yagel, General Manager of SCCA Pro Racing. “We hope the addition of a few new tracks will challenge the drivers and provide great racing for our fans.”
The official 2020 season will kick off for a three-round weekend on the tight turns and intense elevation changes of Road Atlanta April 9-11. The championship will join F3 Americas, Formula Race Promotions and the Blue Marble Cocktails Radical Cup North America Series for a full weekend of open-wheel racing.
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F4 U.S. breaks from racing in May to allow for drivers and crew members to attend the Indianapolis 500. The action resumes in June as teams make their way to the Lone Star State for a three-round battle on the Circuit of The Americas, June 5-7.
“As a young driver in a junior series I always wanted to race on the top tracks in world to gain circuit knowledge for the future,” explained F4 U.S. and F3 Americas Race Director Scott Goodyear. “In 2020 we have the opportunity to race on a F1 circuit twice, which helps develop the craft of our young drivers behind the wheel. The June race will play an important role in prepping drivers and teams for the biggest race of the year when we join Formula 1 in October.”
The second half of the season starts with a schedule staple, The Andy Scriven Memorial at Virginia International Raceway July 17-19 that honors the late Andrew “Andy” Scriven, Ligier Automotive North America’s chief designer of the JS F4-16 and Ligier JS F3 chassis.
The Honda-powered series go from the Virginia rolling hills to Alabama’s Barber Motorsports Park, July 31-August 2. The visit to the 2.38-mile, 16-turn road course is a first for F4.
The final leg of the 2020 calendar starts Sept. 25-27 at Sebring International Raceway, followed by the most anticipated race of the season, the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix at COTA, Oct. 23-25.
“Our goal is to always pack our schedule with FIA-graded legendary raceways where not only our drivers will enjoy competing, but will also prepare them for their racing future as they ascend through the echelons of racing,” said Davis Yagel. “The 2020 schedule achieves that with a mix of street courses and iconic road courses.”
F4 Racing Usa
In an effort to assist with team and driver budgets, the FIA-approved championship will travel with the F3 Americas Championship Powered by Honda most of the season.
For more information on F4 U.S. or F3 Americas visit, F4USChampionship.com and F3Americas.com.
Jan. 13: Palm Beach International Raceway Winter Warm-up with F3 Americas
April 9-11: Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta with F3 Americas, FRP and Radical Cup
June 5-7: Circuit of The Americas with F3 Americas
July 17-19: Andy Scriven Memorial at VIRginia International Raceway with F3 Americas and FRP
July 31-Aug. 2: Barber Motorsports Park with F3 Americas and Radical Cup
Sept. 25-27: Sebring International Raceway with F3 Americas
Oct. 23-25: United States Grand Prix at Circuit of The Americas with F1