Pinnacle Motorsport will have a fresh driver lineup as the FIA Formula 4 UAE Championship powered by Abarth reaches its halfway point. Come the 3rd event this February 5/6, the Motorsport Ireland-licensed team is entering 2 cars with Jef Machiels and Robert De Haan behind the wheel.
Machiels was already confirmed earlier in the year. He takes over fellow Belgian driver Jules Castro who drove in the first 2 events with the team. The 17-year-old was part of the pre-season test at the Dubai Autodrome back in December and is expected to be up to speed when he hits the track this weekend.
Robert De Haan, on the other hand, will drive Pinnacle Motorsport’s second entry in F4 UAE. The Dutchman is an accomplished karter winning the Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals back in ’18, finished 2nd in the IAME International Finals in ’19, and claimed the German Junior Kart Championship in the same year. The 15-year-old then moved up to cars where he won the ’21 Ginetta Junior Scholarship and finished 4th in the championship with 3 wins. This, however, will not be his first competitive outing in single-seaters as he raced in the Italian F4 Championship’s season finale last year at Monza.
Both Machiels and De Haan will be racing with Pinnacle Motorsport in the last 3 events of the 2022 F4 UAE season. There are 2 consecutive rounds to be staged at the Dubai Autodrome before the season ender at Yas Marina.
John O’Hara, Team Director: “Robert will be a great addition to Pinnacle Motorsport’s lineup in F4 UAE. He already has a long list of accomplishments at his young age and we hope to add to his list over the next 3 weekends.”
Accompanying Pinnacle Motorsport on their F4 UAE Championship Certified by FIA campaign is Motorsport Ireland.