After finishing third in 2024, Ethan Nobels was considered one of the title favourites in Brazilian F4 entering his second season in 2025. He spoke to Feeder Series at the opening round at Interlagos about his weekend and what he’d learned from his previous campaign.

By Laura Anequini

Nobels had a strong rookie season in Brazilian F4 last year. Frequently battling at the front of the grid, he finished the year third in the standings with 238 points and won the rookie title. He was also the best-placed driver from his team, Cavaleiro Sports. 

After he was confirmed to be doing a second season, there were no doubts that he would be one of the title favourites. He was also set to race with AKM Motorsport in the Formula Winter Series rounds in Valencia and Barcelona, but he ultimately did not participate. 

“This year was a bit tough,” Nobels said, adding that he still has plans to race abroad. “I might do a few races or some testing, but the focus is here, the Brazilian F4 championship.”

Nobels delivered strong performances in the first Brazilian F4 round at Interlagos. He qualified second, finished second and fourth in the first two races, and won race three. Weeks later, he was penalised for a mid-race incident with Ciro Sobral and lost the victory.

After the opening round, he spoke about the lessons he learned from his rookie season and the changes he made in the offseason that helped shift his mindset and initially led him to the win.

“I’ll quote something important from a competitor of mine: ‘You don’t need to win every time, but you need to score points every time.’ That’s something I’ve really taken to heart this year,” Nobels told Feeder Series in Interlagos. “In the first race, I didn’t win, but I scored points. In the second, I could’ve pushed for third, but I held onto fourth because fourth was already great in terms of points. And today, I managed to take the win.

“What changed was learning from last year’s mistakes where I had a lot of DNFs. I could’ve scored points and even started the season leading overall, but I ended up with a DNF, so this year I’m really focused on coming strong into the final round and trying to win the title.”

Nobels said he thought the 2025 season would be ‘really exciting’ given the competitiveness of the grid. He is one of just four full-timers to have done a previous season in the series, meaning he also faces rookies who have had strong seasons so far.

For Nobels, the diverse field presents both a challenge and an opportunity to grow alongside his rivals.

“Every driver evolves,” he said. “We’ve reached a level where there’s always room to grow, but it’s going to be less noticeable now. There are a lot of rookies this year, so they’ll keep improving and getting closer. Some are already very close. I think this year will be a great battle. It’s never easy in any sport, but it’s also great to have competitiveness because as they evolve, I’ll evolve too as a driver.”

After two rounds, Nobels currently sits fourth in the standings with 47 points. Having lost his win, his best result now is his second-place finish in the opening race at Interlagos. He finished sixth, fourth and eighth in round two at Velocitta, demonstrating the consistency he aimed to achieve.

When asked what he would take from his win entering the rest of the season, he offered a surprising response.

“Bring a tear-off visor!” Nobels said with a smile. “The car in front of me was leaking oil and I thought it was water droplets. I tried to wipe it off and then I couldn’t see anything anymore. It was all fogged up and I had to drive the whole race just relying on my instincts.“Luckily, everything worked out, but now I know I’ll definitely need a tear-off visor next time!”

As for next year, Nobels is eyeing big changes in his career.

“We’re already looking ahead to the future,” he said. “Maybe next year, racing a faster car abroad. This year was a bit tough, but I think next year we’ll go for it and aim for a stronger category.”

Header photo credit: Bruna Nishida