Chinese Formula 4 returns for its 12th season this year with several new drivers and two new tracks on the calendar, which has expanded to six rounds from five. Feeder Series tells you everything you need to know about the series’ 2026 season. 

By Kaylene Lau

Last season, Simon Zhang took the championship title with 14 wins and a total of 424 points. The Chinese driver clinched the title with one round to spare in Chengdu and secured ACM Geeke Racing’s first teams’ title since 2020. 

This season’s opening round will be held at Shanghai International Circuit, replacing Ningbo as the season opener. The Tianjin V1 International Circuit and the Hunan International Circuit are the new additions to this season’s calendar, which features six rounds instead of five. 

The drivers will race in the Ligier JS F422 car, used since 2024. The car is powered by a four-cylinder, 1.3-cylinder turbocharged Alpine engine, which can deliver up to 180 horsepower. 

The calendar 

The 2026 season features six rounds instead of five. This season’s opening round will be held at Shanghai International Circuit, replacing Ningbo as the season opener.There are two additions to the calendar this year.The Tianjin V1 International Circuit, which opened in 2018, will host the second round. The Hunan International Circuit, formerly known as the Zhuzhou International Circuit, will host the fifth round this year. The circuit last hosted F4-level competition in 2023, when F4 SEA held its season opener there. It was also set to host Chinese F4 in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the start of the season. In February, the series announced that the fourth round, originally at Hunan, and the fifth round, originally at Chengdu, had been swapped. 

• Round 1: Shanghai International Circuit (17–19 April) 
• Round 2: Tianjin V1 International Circuit (22–24 May) 
• Round 3: Ningbo International Circuit (26–28 June)
• Round 4: Chengdu Tianfu International Circuit (28–30 August) 
• Round 5: Hunan International Circuit (25–27 September) 
• Round 6: Zhuhai International Circuit (16–18 October) 

The format 

A total of 24 races will be held throughout the season. Each weekend, two practice sessions will take place on Friday, both of which are 30 minutes. Two 30-minute qualifying sessions will also take place on Friday.

Two races each will take place on both Saturday and Sunday. The races will be 30 minutes plus one lap. 

Qualifying session one will set the grid for the first race on Saturday. Race two’s grid is set by reversing the results of the top 12 drivers of race one. Qualifying session two will set the grid for race three, which is Sunday’s first race. The grid for race four is set similarly to how the grid for race two is set, by reversing the top 12 drivers’ results from race three. 

Points will be allocated to the top 10 drivers following the standard FIA points system. The race winner will be awarded 25 points, second place 18 points, and third place 15 points. There are no extra points given for pole position or for fastest lap. The top two cars for each team earn points towards the teams’ championship.

There are three classes in the series, organised by age. The F4 class consists of drivers aged 15 to 20, the CFGP class consists of drivers aged 21 to 39, and the Master class consists of drivers over the age of 40.

The drivers’ champions for the F4 class and the CFGP class will be awarded 150,000 RMB in prize money, with second place in each awarded 100,000 RMB and third 50,000 RMB. Top three teams will receive prize money in the same allocation as well as 10, eight and five tyres for first, second and third respectively. The Master class champion will be awarded eight sets of tyres, second place five sets and third place three sets.

Where to watch

Races will be streamed on the series’ official Weibo account. It is also available on series organiser Mintimes’ WeChat channel, but users will require a WeChat account to access it. Within mainland China, the series can be streamed on CCTV-5, China Central Television’s sport channel. Live timing is available on timing.orbit.cn.

Teams and drivers 

Geeke Racing 

Geeke’s only full-time driver last season was Simon Zhang, who secured the drivers’ title and led Geeke to its first teams’ title since 2020. Fei Jun drove for the team in rounds one and two, and Shi Wei also raced for Geeke in rounds two and four. For the season opener, the reigning teams’ champions will only field one driver. 

Qi Diqin will join Geeke for his first season in Chinese F4. Qi competed in the CTCC China Cup last year, taking the title for Lynk & Co Zongheng Racing Team in the TC-2 class. The 22-year-old also raced in the Ningbo 4 Hours earlier this year with Geeke, finishing second in the D class. Qi also competed in the standalone Chinese F4 Masters round last December at Xiamen, where he finished fifth in race one and third in race two.

Champ Motorsport 

Champ Motorsport finished second in the standings last year with a total of 351 points. Champ will oversee three teams racing in the championship this year – Champ Motorsport, Champ Academy and Kai Fei Motorsport.

Ken Chow Wing Hong (#96) will be the first driver in Champ Motorsport’s line-up this year. This will be Chow’s first season racing in Chinese F4, and he will be in the masters’ class. The driver from Hong Kong raced in three rounds of the Hyundai N Cup in China last year but did not score points. He also raced in the final round of the Porsche Sports Cup China GT Challenge, coming second in the GTC class in race one and first in race two.

Completing Champ Motorsport’s line-up for the 2026 season is his son, Jason Chow Chun Shing (#26). This will be Chow’s Chinese F4 and single-seater debut. He also raced in the final round of the Porsche Sports Cup China GT Challenge, winning the GTC class in the first race and finishing second behind his father in the second race.  

Kimi Chan (#28), Champ’s only full-time driver last year, will return for a second season of Chinese F4 with the team, racing under the Champ Academy banner. Chan finished second in the standings last year with one win and a total of 291 points. The 18-year-old from Hong Kong also raced in the F4 World Cup in Macau and finished seventh in the main race.

Zhao Zijun (#67) will join Chan in Champ Academy’s line-up, but he will not participate in race sessions as he is only 14. The Chinese driver competed in European karting last year, with his best major championship result being 39th overall in the WSK Final Cup in the OK class. He was also classified 71st in the FIA Karting World Championship. 

Andy Law (#33) will return to race under the Kai Fei Motorsport banner this year. Law finished 15th in the standings last year with 14 points. His best finish was sixth in the third race at the season finale in Zhuhai. The 1975-born Hong Kong native will race in the masters’ class this year. 

Partnering Law to race under the Kai Fei banner is Patrick Tsang Wai Yip (#2). The Hong Kong native finished 25th in the standings last year with a total of three points. His best finish was ninth in the third race at the season finale in Zhuhai. The 57-year-old will also race in the masters’ class this year. 

Black Blade Racing 

Black Blade Racing, who finished third in the teams’ championship last year, will return to race in Chinese F4 this year. They oversee two teams in the championship, Black Blade Racing and Black Blade GP. 

Returning to the series this year is Chen Sicong (#63), who finished fourth in the standings last year with 197 points. Chen, born 1995, took one win last year, which he achieved in the first race at Chengdu. He will race under the Black Blade Racing banner. 

Yu Yan (#32), also known as Lucas Yu, will make the switch from Venom Motorsport to Black Blade this year, racing under the Black Blade Racing banner. The Chinese driver born in 2009 raced in rounds two to five last season and finished eighth in the championship. His best finish was third, which he achieved in race two in Chengdu. 

Zhang Jun (#25) will race in the 2026 season opener under the Black Blade GP banner. Zhang, born 1990, was entered for the season opener last year but withdrew before the races started. He also raced in rounds one and five of the 2024 season, finishing 16th in the standings. 

Jiang Wei (#99), a masters’ class competitor, will make his return to Chinese F4 this year under the Black Blade GP banner. He last raced in the series in 2023 with Pointer Racing, entering the first four rounds. He finished 16th overall that season with 32 points. 

Asia Racing Team 

Asia Racing Team (ART) will return for their 12th season in Chinese F4, having raced in the series since its inception. This year, the team will field two new drivers for their line-up.

Joining the team’s line-up for his first season in Chinese F4 is Timur Shagaliev (#27). The 15-year-old competed in the Russian Karting Championship in the OK class last year and finished fifth overall. He also competed in a partial season of SMP F4, with his best result being eighth at the finale at Grozny. Shagaliev also competed internationally with a neutral licence in round three of the WSK Super Master Series in Lonato in February of last year, ranking 44th overall. 

Feng Jiaxi (#17), also known as Josh Feng, will join the team for his single-seater debut, having karted in both Asia and Europe. The British-Chinese driver has raced in the IAME Asia Finals, the ROK Asia Finals and the Champions of the Future Academy Program round in Macau, all in their respective senior categories. In Europe, 15-year-old Feng has mainly raced in local championships in the UK.

Blackjack Racing 

ART also oversees another team in the championship, which runs under the Blackjack Racing banner.

Chen Zhuyuan (#18) will make his Chinese F4 debut with the team this year, stepping up from karting. The 19-year-old took the Chinese Karting Championship title in the Senior class in 2023. 

Completing the team’s line-up is Huang Chujian (#22). The 1992-born driver raced with the team for rounds two and four last season, with his best finish being 12th in race four at Chengdu. He finished 32nd overall in the standings. 

Venom Motorsport 

Last year, Venom Motorsport finished sixth in the standings with a total of 181 points. This year, the team will field a two-driver line-up. 

Joining Venom for his third full season in the series is Yang Peng (#24), who raced with the team last year under the Venom Pole Motorsport banner. Peng finished 16th in the overall standings last year, with his best race finish being eighth, which he achieved in race two of the third round at Zhuhai and race three of the finale at Zhuhai.

Huang Xiaofeng (#16) will join Venom for his first season of Chinese F4. The Chinese driver competed with the team in the standalone Chinese F4 Masters round in Xiamen last year. He finished sixth in both races one and two. 

Frankenstein by Pointer Racing 

This year, Pointer Racing and Frankenstein Racing have teamed up for a joint entry. Last season, Pointer Racing finished 12th in the standings, while Frankenstein Racing only entered the championship for the fourth round at Chengdu. 

Joining the team for the 2026 season is Yuanyang Zeshi (#59), who raced for Pointer Racing in rounds two to four last season. The 2004-born driver finished 26th overall in the championship, with a best finish of ninth in the final race at Chengdu. 

Partnering Yuanyang at the team is Liu Taiji (#3), also known as Alex Liu, who also raced for Pointer Racing in rounds two to four last year and finished 24th in the standings. The 21-year-old’s best finish was ninth, which he achieved in races one and two at Zhuhai. Liu also took part in GB4 testing earlier this year with Elite Motorsport. 

GYT Racing 

GYT Racing will return to Chinese F4 this year. Last year, they finished ninth in the teams’ standings with 20 points. As it stands, the team will field one driver in the championship this year. 

Tu Yate (#19) will be the team’s sole driver for the season opener. The Chinese driver raced in the season finale last year, with his best finish being 11th in races two and four. 

She Power Racing 

She Power Racing is a new team in the championship this year, and Shi Wei (#18) will be the team’s sole entry. Last year, 34-year-old Shi raced for Geeke in rounds two and four, with her best finish being 12th, which she achieved twice in the round at Shanghai. The Chinese driver also raced in the standalone Chinese F4 Masters round last year, winning race one and finished eighth in race two. Last month, Shi served as the F1 Academy wild card entry in Shanghai for the second year running, finishing 17th in race one and retiring in race two in Hitech’s third car. 

The grid at a glance

Team	#	Driver
Kai Fei Motorsport	2	Patrick Tsang Wai Yip (M)
	33	Andy Law (M)
Champ Motorsport	26	Jason Chow Chun Shing (CFGP)
	96	Ken Chow Wing Hong (M)
Champ Academy	28	Kimi Chan (F4)
	67	Zhao Zijun (F4)
Frankenstein by Pointer Racing	3	Liu Taiji (CFGP)
	59	Yuanyang Zeshi (CFGP)
She Power Racing	9	Shi Wei (CFGP)
Venom Motorsport	16	Huang Xiaofeng (CFGP)
	24	Yang Peng (CFGP)
Asia Racing Team	17	Feng Jiaxi (F4)
	27	Timur Shagaliev (F4)
Blackjack Racing	18	Chen Zhuyuan (F4)
	22	Huang Chujian (CFGP)
GYT Racing	19	Tu Yate (CFGP)
Black Blade Racing	23	Yu Yan (F4)
	63	Chen Sicong (CFGP)
Black Blade GP	25	Zhang Jun (CFGP)
	99	Jiang Wei (M)
Geeke Racing	57	Qi Diqin (CFGP)

Header photo credit: Chinese F4