2024 Formula Pro USA Western Championship

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The 2024 Formula Pro USA Western Series was the fifth season of the championship for Formula Regional and Formula 4 cars established in the West Coast of the United States. The championship was promoted and organized by Exclusive Racing and Exclusive Auctions, and was run under the same sporting regulations as the FIA-sanctioned Formula Regional Americas Championship and Formula 4 United States Championship.

It began in March, with the championship spanning six weekends until November. In the FPUSA-3 class for Formula Regional cars, Kiwi Motorsports driver Landan Matriano Lim won the championship at the penultimate race, while World Speed Motorsports driver Valentino Garbarino won the FPUSA-4 class championship with two races to spare.

Teams and drivers

Drivers were able to enter either the FPUSA-3 or the FPUSA-4 class, with the former using a Ligier JS F3 car and the latter a Ligier JS-F4 car. All cars were powered by Honda and use Avon tires. [1] A female-only class called Formula Pro Women's Racing Series was to be introduced, running alongside the main championship and also using the Ligier JS-F4, but it received no entries for any of the events. [2]

TeamNo.DriverRounds
Formula Pro USA 3 (FPUSA-3) entries
Jensen Global Advisors 1 Flag of the United States.svg Jake Pollack5
World Speed Motorsports8 Flag of the United States.svg Frank Vezer5
13 Flag of the United States.svg Larry Schnur1–2, 4
37 Flag of the United States.svg Jay HorakAll
Kiwi Motorsports02 Flag of the United States.svg Jett Bowling2
55 Flag of the United States.svg Jonathan Collins3–4
73 Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim1–4, 6
Atlantic Racing Team77 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg James Lawley1, 6
Crosslink Kiwi Motorsports131 Flag of the United States.svg Barrett Wolfe6
Formula Pro USA 4 (FPUSA-4) entries
World Motorsports00 Flag of the United States.svg Alexander Cornfeld2–4, 6
Jensen Global Advisors 1 Flag of the United States.svg Athan Sterling4–6
2 Flag of the United States.svg Ethan Brobston4
7 Flag of the United States.svg Robert Krayevsky6
World Speed Motorsports4 Flag of the United States.svg Valentino GarbarinoAll
Kiwi Motorsports74 Flag of the United States.svg Drew Szuch1
95 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Brad Majman1–2, 4
Sources: [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8]

Race calendar

The 2024 calendar was held over twelve races spanning across six weekends. [9] The series raced at the same four circuits as the previous year. A one-round winter series was scheduled to be held at the beginning of March, but it was instead converted into two days of open testing. [10]

RoundCircuitDateSupport billMap of circuit locations
1R1 Thunderhill Raceway Park, Willows March 23San Francisco Region SCCA Series
Formula Car Challenge
R2March 24
2R3April 20 SCCA Majors Championship
Formula Car Challenge
R4April 21
3R5 WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, Monterey June 8San Francisco Region SCCA Series
Formula Car Challenge
R6June 9
4R7July 6San Francisco Region SCCA Series
Formula Car Challenge
R8July 7
5R9 Sonoma Raceway, Sonoma August 30San Francisco Region SCCA Series
Formula Car Challenge
R10August 31
6R11 Buttonwillow Raceway Park, Buttonwillow November 16California Sports Car Club
Formula Car Challenge
R12November 17

Season report

The 2024 season began at Thunderhill Raceway Park, where Kiwi Motorsports driver Landan Matriano Lim secured pole position for both races. Lim delivered a commanding performance in the F3 class, claiming victories in both events and recording the fastest lap in each. In the F4 class, the competition was closely contested, with Brad Majman of Kiwi Motorsports and Valentino Garbarino of World Speed Motorsports each winning a race, leaving the two tied on points at the end of the weekend. [11]

In the second round, held at the same venue as the season's opening event, Lim extended his winning streak by claiming victory in the first race, while his teammate Jett Bowling secured first place in the second race. However, as Bowling did not participate in the first round, Lim was able to further increase his championship lead over Horak in second. Meanwhile, in the F4 class, Majman and Garbarino continued their rivalry, each earning wins and fastest laps to maintain their identical points progression.

The championship proceeded to Laguna Seca, where Lim delivered a commanding performance in the F3 class. He secured two pole positions, set two fastest laps and claimed two victories. Horak finished second in both events, leaving him 52 points behind Lim in the standings. In the F4 class, Majman did not participate, allowing Garbarino and Alexander Cornfeld of World Motorsports to each claim a win. Garbarino therefore capitalized on this opportunity to build up a 47-point gap over Majman. [12]

The fourth round, also held at Laguna Seca, saw Lim continue his unchallenged dominance. He achieved another weekend sweep, securing 54 additional points and extending his lead, with Horak trailing by 73 points. In the F4 category, Jensen GA’s Athan Sterling made his series debut, immediately claiming two second-place finishes as Garbarino secured two more victories. Meanwhile, Majman returned to the competition but managed only fifth place in both races, enabling Garbarino to extend his lead to 81 points. [13]

Sonoma Raceway hosted round five, and only three drivers entered the F3 class. Lim was not among them, leaving Jensen GA’s Jake Pollack to take both race wins on his debut weekend. Horak claimed two more second places to shorten Lim’s standings lead to 35 points ahead of the final event. The F4 class also saw only two competitors, with Cornfeld’s absence allowing Garbarino to notch two more race wins and claim the F4 class title in the process. Sterling, the only other F4 competitor, took two more second places. [14]

The final round, held at Buttonwillow Raceway Park, saw Lim return to competition in style as he beat his teammate Barrett Wolfe to race one victory to clinch the championship. That allowed him to skip the second race, which was won by Atlantic Racing Team’s James Lawley, while two third places for Horak saw him finish the season 32 points behind Lim. The F4 class finished its season without any change at the top of the order, as the top two for both races were Garbarino ahead of Sterling for the third weekend in a row. [15]

Race results

RoundCircuitPole positionFPUSA-3FPUSA-4
Fastest lapWinning driverFastest lapWinning driver
1R1 Thunderhill Raceway Park Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of Australia (converted).svg Brad Majman
R2 Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of Australia (converted).svg Brad Majman Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino
2R3 Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Jett Bowling Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of Australia (converted).svg Brad Majman
R4 Flag of the United States.svg Jett Bowling Flag of the United States.svg Jett Bowling Flag of the United States.svg Jett Bowling Flag of Australia (converted).svg Brad Majman Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino
3R5 WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of the United States.svg Alexander Cornfeld
R6 Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino
4R7 Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino
R8 Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino
5R9 Sonoma Raceway Flag of the United States.svg Jake Pollack Flag of the United States.svg Jay Horak Flag of the United States.svg Jake Pollack Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino
R10 Flag of the United States.svg Jake Pollack Flag of the United States.svg Jake Pollack Flag of the United States.svg Jake Pollack Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino
6R11 Buttonwillow Raceway Park Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg James Lawley Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino
R12 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg James Lawley Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg James Lawley Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg James Lawley Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino

Championship standings

Points were awarded as follows:

Position 1st  2nd  3rd  4th  5th  6th  7th  8th  9th  10th   FL  
Points2518151210864212

Drivers' standings

PosDriver THU1 THU2 LAG1 LAG2 SON BUT Pts
R1R2R3R4R5R6R7R8R9R10R11R12
Formula Pro USA 3 (FPUSA-3)
1 Flag of the United States.svg Landan Matriano Lim111211111DNS232
2 Flag of the United States.svg Jay Horak323322232233200
3 Flag of the United States.svg Larry Schnur43443284
4 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg James Lawley244169
5 Flag of the United States.svg Jake Pollack1152
6 Flag of the United States.svg Jett Bowling2147
7 Flag of the United States.svg Jonathan Collins334DNS42
8 Flag of the United States.svg Barrett Wolfe2236
9 Flag of the United States.svg Frank Vezer3330
Formula Pro USA 4 (FPUSA-4)
1 Flag of the United States.svg Valentino Garbarino212121111111299
2 Flag of the United States.svg Alexander Cornfeld3312433DNS115
3 Flag of Australia (converted).svg Brad Majman121255110
4 Flag of the United States.svg Athan Sterling222222108
5 Flag of the United States.svg Drew Szuch3330
=7 Flag of the United States.svg Ethan Brobston3427
=7 Flag of the United States.svg Robert Krayevsky4327
PosDriverR1R2R3R4R5R6R7R8R9R10R11R12Pts
THU1 THU2 LAG1 LAG2 SON BUT
ColourResult
GoldWinner
SilverSecond place
BronzeThird place
GreenPoints finish
BlueNon-points finish
Non-classified finish (NC)
PurpleRetired (Ret)
RedDid not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
BlackDisqualified (DSQ)
WhiteDid not start (DNS)
Withdrew (WD)
Race cancelled (C)
BlankDid not practice (DNP)
Did not arrive (DNA)
Excluded (EX)

Bold – Pole

Italics – Fastest Lap

References

  1. BDM_FPU, Admin. "About FPUSA". Formula Pro USA. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
  2. Maurini, Elena (December 20, 2023). "Exclusive Racing Announces a New Female Only Racing Series for the West Coast". Formula Pro USA. Retrieved December 21, 2023.
  3. "SFR Championship Series Regional 3&4 - Group 1 qualifying results".
  4. "SFRSCCA Majors Restricted Regional 5&6 - Qualifying results for Group 4~FA,FA2,FA3,FM,F4".
  5. "SFR Championship Series Regionals 7&8 - Qualifying results for Group 1".
  6. "SFR Championship Series Regionals 9 & 10 - Group 1 - Qualifying 1".
  7. "SFR Regional Races - Qualifying results for Group 1".
  8. "California Sports Car Club Meeting 16 November 2024 - Group 2 FX,FA,F3,F4,P1,P2 Qualifying Saturday".
  9. Maurini, Elena (November 9, 2023). "Tentative Schedules for Formula Pro USA Winter Series and Western Championships". Formula Pro USA. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
  10. "FPU 2024 Winter Series Schedule" (PDF).
  11. Maurini, Elena (March 25, 2024). "First Winners of 2024 at the Formula Pro USA Western Championships". Formula Pro USA. Retrieved November 27, 2024.
  12. Maurini, Elena (June 11, 2024). "Formula Pro USA Western Championship Sees Three Winners This Past Weekend at Laguna Seca". Formula Pro USA. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  13. Maurini, Elena (July 8, 2024). "Landon [sic!] Matriano Lim and Valentino Garbarino Win Formula Pro USA Western Championships at Laguna Seca". Formula Pro USA. Retrieved November 28, 2024.
  14. Maurini, Elena (September 9, 2024). "Valentino Garbarino Earns Formula Pro USA F4 Championship While F3 Title Will Go Down to the Final Weekend of Racing". Formula Pro USA. Retrieved December 18, 2024.
  15. Maurini, Elena (November 19, 2024). "Landon [sic!] Matriano Lim Secures Formula Pro USA Presented by Exclusive Racing F3 Championship". Formula Pro USA. Retrieved December 18, 2024.