The Eurocup-4 Spanish Winter Championship begins its inaugural season this weekend in Jerez. Ahead of the season opener, here’s what you need to know about the newest F4-spec winter series, run by Spanish F4’s organisers.

By Seb Tirado

The new winter series for Spanish F4’s teams and drivers had been in development since the summer of 2024, as Feeder Series revealed in September, though the seeds were sown months before. Last year, Spanish F4’s organisers, the Agrupación Deportiva F4 Spain, partnered with the Spanish-based Formula Winter Series, enabling many of the series’ teams and drivers to compete in the Gedlich-organised series.

The two entities split after the season and an alternative winter series was announced in July. The new championship was originally called the F4 Spanish Winter Championship, but organisers confirmed to Feeder Series on Monday that the series has been renamed to the Eurocup-4 Spanish Winter Championship.

The championship will predominantly feature teams and drivers who will also compete in Spanish F4 this year. Of the Eurocup-4 entrants, ART Grand Prix will be the only entered team not racing in the main Spanish F4 season. They will run their 2025 F1 Academy drivers.

The only Spanish F4 team that will not compete in the winter championship, meanwhile, is GRS Team, who will only enter the Eurocup-3 winter championship.

The calendar

The championship will share its first two rounds with Eurocup-3’s winter championship at Jerez and Portimão. Its final round will be a standalone event at Navarra. Every round will feature a test day with two sessions lasting two hours.

• Round 1: Circuito de Jerez (7–9 February)
• Round 2: Algarve International Circuit (21–23 February)
• Round 3: Circuito de Navarra (7–9 March)

The format

The Saturday of each round will start with a single 20-minute qualifying session to set the grids for race one and the so-called sprint race held later in the day. The former will last 30 minutes plus 1 lap and the latter 20 minutes plus one lap with the top ten from qualifying reversed. If the first qualifying session is unable to go ahead, the grid will be formed at the stewards’ discretion.

Sunday will have another 20-minute qualifying session to set the grid for the third race of the weekend, which will officially be called race two. It will last 30 minutes plus 1 lap. If the second qualifying session is unable to go ahead, the fastest laps in race one will be used to form the grid.

The first and third races of each weekend will use the standard FIA points format, with 25 points for the winner down to one point for the 10th-place finisher. The sprints will use the same format but with 18 for first and one for the ninth-place finisher. One point will be awarded to the driver with the fastest lap in each race and two points to the main race polesitters.

Where to watch

Every race will be streamed on the Spanish Winter Championship YouTube channel. Live timing for all sessions will be available on RaceResults and Al Kamel Systems.

Teams and drivers 

KCL by MP Motorsport

In 2024, MP Motorsport’s satellite team finished ahead of the main squad in the teams’ standings by 88 points. They also fielded eventual champion Mattia Colnaghi. In 2025, KCL will field two F4 debutants in Ean Eyckmans (#4) and Niklas Schaufler (#10).

Belgian driver Eyckmans, the son of onetime IndyCar driver Wim Eyckmans, competed in various senior karting championships in 2024. He won the WSK Super Master Series over the winter but had a tougher time the rest of the year, finishing 23rd in FIA Karting European Championship and failing to qualify for the final of the world championship. The 17-year-old then won the Richard Mille Young Talent Academy in October, the prize for which was a fully paid-for season of Spanish F4.

Schaufler competed mostly in junior karting in 2024, winning the the WSK Champions Cup and WSK Super Master Series, finishing sixth in the FIA Karting European Championship and taking the runner-up spot in the Champions of the Future Euro Series. The 15-year-old also finished fourth in the FIA Karting World Championship in the OKJ category but was disqualified for having more than one mechanic on the grid. He ended the year by stepping up to senior karting for the WSK Final Cup and finishing second in the standings. The Austrian is a new member of the Red Bull Junior Team this year, having signed to the programme during the 2024 season.

MP Motorsport

The main MP Motorsport team will feature a full-season returnee in René Lammers (#9), a full-season debutant in Hudson Schwartz (#1) and French F4 runner-up Yani Stevenheydens (#22).

Dutch driver Lammers – the son of former F1 driver Jan Lammers – competed in FWS with the team last year and finished 19th in the standings with a best result of sixth at Aragón. In his main campaign of Spanish F4, the 16-year-old finished 13th in the standings with one podium at Aragón. Those results came as a disappointment considering the year before, he won the Ferrari Driver Academy shootout and the FIA Karting European Championship in senior karting.

Schwartz comes over to Europe for his first full season of F4 after competing in USF2000 with Pabst Racing, in which he finished eighth in the standings with a podium at Portland. The 15-year-old American also competed in Spanish F4’s Barcelona round as a guest driver with Monlau Motorsport, in Italian F4‘s round at the same circuit with partner outfit Van Amersfoort Racing and in both Italian F4 and Euro 4’s Monza rounds with the Dutch team. 

Stevenheydens was briefly French F4 champion last year before weeks of appeals eventually stripped him of the title and demoted him to runner-up. The 18-year-old achieved four wins and eight further podiums in the season. The Belgian driver also tested with Eurocup-3 team Palou Motorsport over the winter and was rumoured to be joining the team for the main 2025 season, but Feeder Series understands that he is no longer expected to do so.

Griffin Core by Campos

Similarly to KCL by MP, Campos Racing’s satellite team finished ahead of the main team in Spanish F4 last year to the tune of 21 points.

For the winter championship, Griffin Core will field three sophomore drivers in Matúš Ryba (#19), Jan Przyrowski (#23) and Thomas Strauven (#99). 

Ryba finished 28th in his main campaign of Spanish F4 with Drivex last year with a best result of 13th at Jerez. The 15-year-old also competed in three British F4 rounds with Argenti and one round each of Italian F4 and F4 CEZ with Jenzer Motorsport. Representing Slovakia in the FIA Motorsport Games’ F4 Cup, Ryba finished fifth on the road in the main race but dropped to ninth after earning a track-limits penalty. 

Przyrowski, 16, competed in the Valencia and Barcelona rounds of FWS with Campos with a best finish of sixth before embarking on his Spanish F4 season with the team. The Polish driver finished 10th in the standings with podiums at Jarama and Barcelona.

Strauven competed with Rodin Motorsport in 2024 and took a win at Aragón in FWS on his way to 12th in the standings. The 16-year-old Belgian was then a consistent points scorer in Spanish F4 and finished seventh in the standings despite missing the final round because of appendicitis. He took a win in his first weekend in Jarama and scored four further podiums throughout the season.

Campos Racing 

Last year, the main Campos team fielded the second-highest-placed non-MP driver in Ernesto Rivera, who moves up to the team’s Eurocup-3 squad alongside fellow 2024 teammate Enzo Tarnvanichkul.

This year, the Valencian team will run an all-rookie line-up in Vivek Kanthan (#2), Miguel Costa (#5) and Noah Monteiro (#81).

Fifteen-year-old Kanthan of the United States competed in senior karting last year. He placed 25th in the FIA Karting European Championship and raced in four other European championships .

Costa, 15 and a native of Brazil, competed in both direct-drive and shifter karting championships last year, with best championship results of 16th in the FIA Karting World Cup and 11th in the FIA Karting World Championship in the KZ2 and OK categories respectively. 

Monteiro, also 15, finished eighth and 18th in the FIA Karting European and world championship OK class respectively. The Portuguese driver is the son of former F1 driver and touring car star Tiago Monteiro.

Drivex

Drivex finished one place below Campos in the Spanish F4 teams’ standings last year, but their top driver finished one place above Campos’ best. Motorsport Games gold medallist Juan Cota gave Drivex the majority of their points on his way to fourth in the standings with four wins and four further podiums. He will move up to Eurocup-3 with the team.

In 2025, Drivex will field three full-season debutants in Christopher Feghali (#33), Filippo Fiorentino (#37) and Gino Trappa (#48). 

Feghali competed in the final two Spanish F4 rounds last year as a guest driver with Drivex, finishing a best of 12th in the first race at Barcelona. The 15-year-old Lebanese driver signed to the Red Bull Junior Team over the summer ahead of his F4 debut.

Fiorentino competed in Brazilian F4’s first Interlagos round with TMG Racing, achieving a win in race one, before competing in all bar the final round of Spanish F4 with Cram Motorsport. He finished 34th in the standings with a best finish of 15th at Valencia. 

Trappa’s main 2024 campaign was in Brazilian F4 with Bassani Racing, and he finished fifth in the standings with one win and five further podiums. He also competed with Drivex in Spanish F4’s Valencia round, taking a best finish of 21st in race one, and represented his native Argentina in the Motorsport Games. He was disqualified from both the qualifying race and the main race for exceeding track limits too many times. 

Rodin Motorsport

Last year, Rodin Motorsport finished sixth in the teams’ standings, with Campos-bound Strauven taking the majority of the New Zealand outfit’s points. The team will line up karting champion Kyuho Lee (#24), 2024 Campos driver Nathan Tye (#46) and single-seater newcomer Emma Felbermayr (#55) for the winter championship.

Lee is currently competing in F4 Middle East with Pinnacle Motorsport and is 15th in the standings with a best result of ninth in the first round. The 16-year-old South Korean driver previously competed in various X30 senior karting championships in Europe and won the FIA Karting World Cup’s OK-N class in 2024. 

Tye comes to Rodin off of what is an effective swap with Strauven. The 16-year-old British driver competed in the second and fourth rounds of FWS with Campos last year, taking a best result of fourth at Barcelona. Tye then completed the Spanish F4 season with the team, finishing 11th in the standings with two podiums.

Felbermayr will compete in a dual campaign in Spanish F4 alongside her Sauber-backed F1 Academy campaign with the team. The 18-year-old Austrian competed in the FIA Karting World Cup and European Championship in the KZ2 category, finishing 51st and 36th respectively. The third-generation racer is the daughter and granddaughter of Le Mans 24 Hour starters and the brother of Horst Felix Felbermayr, who races in Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland.

Saintéloc Racing

In 2024, Saintéloc finished seventh in the teams’ standings, with Matteo Quintarelli giving the team their best result of fourth at Jarama.

In 2025, the French outfit will run French-Greek twins Philippe-Armand Karras (#8) and Jean-Paul Karras (#14) and single-seater debutant Christian Garduño (#16)

Jean-Paul Karras competed in F4 CEZ’s Most round last year with Gender Racing Team, with a best result of seventh in race one. He otherwise raced in senior karting in 2024, failing to score in the FIA Karting European Championship but taking eighth in the COTF Academy Program series, four places behind his brother.

Philippe-Armand Karras also joined Gender for the Most round, with two best results of fourth in races two and three. The 16-year-old also represented Greece at the Motorsport Games later in the year. He qualified seventh for the qualifying race and finished 10th before retiring with terminal damage from the main race after Czechia’s Max Karhan collided with him.

Garduño previously competed in karting in the Americas and Spain. He will make his competitive debut in single-seaters with the team after previously testing with Drivex.

Cram Motorsport

Ádám Hideg scored all of Cram’s points in 2024 and will join Palou Motorsport in Eurocup-3 this year. The Italian outfit has signed only one driver for 2025 so far in Aiva Anagnostiadis (#35).

Anagnostiadis, 17, is currently also competing in FWS with the team, and she is 28th in the standings after last weekend’s first round at Portimão. The Australian driver made her single-seater debut in Indian F4 last year with the MP-run Goa Aces JA Racing and finished 10th in the standings with a best result of fifth at the second Madras round. 

TC Racing 

In their first season of competition, Thibaut Courtois’ eponymous team finished ninth in the teams’ standings, with Gabriel Gomez scoring all of the team’s points and achieving their best result of fourth at Valencia. 

For the winter championship, TC will add another car to their stable and run three drivers: Santino Panetta (#39), Alfio Spina (#78) and Santiago Baztarrica (#88).

Panetta competed in the OK category of the FIA Karting European Championship last year and finished 38th in the standings. The 15-year-old Argentine driver, managed by the Bullet Sports Management agency that oversees compatriot Franco Colapinto, is making his single-seater debut having tested with the team over the winter.

Spina raced in the Spa and Barcelona rounds of the GT2 European Series last year. Piloting an Audi R8 LMS in the Pro-Am category with LP Racing, the 18-year-old Italian driver finished 13th in the standings with a best result of fourth at Barcelona. He previously competed in single-seaters in Italian F4 and Euro 4 in 2023 with BVM Racing, finishing 12th and 16th in the standings with best results of second and ninth respectively.

Baztarrica will make his F4 debut in the winter championship, but he is not unfamiliar with single-seaters. Last year, the 17-year-old competed in his home country in Fórmula 2 Argentina – which uses former Formula Renault 2.0 machinery – and finished third in the standings with ESG Fórmula with four wins and seven further podiums. 

DX Racing Team

Drivex’s newly renamed satellite team will field two single-seater debutants during the 2025 season, but only one will contest in the first round.

Stepan Suslov (#41) will be the sole driver at the season opener. The 16-year-old based in Sweden competed in the GT4 Bronze championship of Iberian Supercars last year and finished fourth in the Bronze standings and 22nd in the overall standings with one class win and one class podium. 

Kaiden Higgins will not compete in the first round, and it is currently unknown when he will join the championship. The 16-year-old Australian driver competed in various junior karting championships in Europe last year and will make his competitive single-seater debut with the team.

Monlau Motorsport 

Monlau Motorsport had a markedly poorer 2024 season, finishing 11th in the teams’ standings compared to seventh in 2023. 

This year, the Van Amersfoort partner team will field three drivers in Francisco Monarca (#25), Alexander Jacoby (#27) and Lorenzo Campos (#91).

Monarca makes his single-seater debut with Monlau, having tested with both the team and TC Racing over the winter. The 16-year-old competed in karting championships in his native Argentina last year. 

Jacoby made his F4 debut shortly after turning 15, competing from Spanish F4’s Portimão round onwards with GRS Team. He went on to finish 40th in the standings with a best result of 19th. The American driver of Brazilian heritage also competed in the final round of Brazilian F4, taking a best result of 10th. 

Campos similarly made his F4 debut with GRS Team shortly after turning 15, competing in Spanish F4’s Jerez round as a guest driver. He then went on to represent Angola at the Motorsport Games but was disqualified from 18th in the main race for exceeding track limits too many times.

Tecnicar by Amtog

Tecnicar scored only two points in 2024, both of which came from Adam Al Azhari’s 10th-place finish at Aragón. For the winter championship, and under a new guise, the Valencian team will field three drivers in European F4 debutant Sacha van ’t Pad Bosch (#6), returnee Wiktor Dobrzański (#32) and Saudi Arabian F4 runner-up Andrej Petrović (#77).

Van ’t Pad Bosch, who turns 15 this Saturday, extensively tested with the team last year and also competed in the final round of the Ligier JS F4 Series with Scuderia Buell. The Dutch driver finished in fourth in race one and took victory in race three of the weekend at the Circuit of The Americas. Before his single-seater debut, he competed in the FIA Karting Academy Trophy, in which he finished 29th.

Dobrzański finished 38th in the Spanish F4 standings with a best result of 18th. Prior to that, the Polish driver competed in FWS with the team, in which he finished 44th in the standings with a best result of 23rd. The 18-year-old also competed in a partial Italian F4 campaign with AKM Motorsport and in the Spielberg round of F4 CEZ with AS Motorsport.

Petrović achieved three wins and eight further podiums on his way to second in the Saudi Arabian F4 standings. The Serbian driver then went on to compete in the first four rounds of Italian F4 with PHM Racing, finishing a best of 10th at Misano. He also competed in F4 CEZ’s Spielberg round with the team in their renamed guise of PHM AIX Racing, winning the first race of the weekend.

ART Grand Prix

French outfit ART Grand Prix make their debut in the Spanish F4 sphere with their 2025 F1 Academy lineup of Courtney Crone (#7), Aurelia Nobels (#26) and Lia Block (#57).

Crone participated in F1 Academy’s Miami round last year as the wild card driver and finished 14th and 11th in the two races. The 23-year-old’s main campaign was in the Pro-Am category of Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America, in which she finished 24th in the standings. The American will represent the Haas F1 Team for her first full F1 Academy season.

Block, the daughter of the late rallying legend Ken Block, represented Williams Racing last year and will continue to do so in 2025, including by having a team-branded livery in the winter championship. In F1 Academy last year, the 18-year-old American driver finished eighth in the standings with best finishes of fourth in both races at Singapore. She also competed in the first three rounds of FWS with GRS, the Portimão and Le Castellet Spanish F4 rounds with GRS and the final Italian F4 round with ART, but she scored no points on any of those outings.

Nobels was supported by Puma in F1 Academy last year and finished 12th in the standings with a best finish of fifth at Zandvoort. The 18-year-old Brazilian also competed in the first two rounds of F4 UAE with Saintéloc, Saudi Arabian F4’s Lusail round, British F4’s Zandvoort round with Phinsys by Argenti and Euro 4’s final round with ART. She will retain Ferrari Driver Academy backing for the third year in succession.

Header photo credit: Dutch Photo Agency