F4 CEZ: Mathilda Paatz fights back for points after early setback at Most
- MIKA BÖCKER
- 4 hours ago
- 3 min read
Mathilda Paatz, Kiara Henni, and Michalina Sabaj faced challenges at the F4 CEZ round at Most, but still secured positive results, with Paatz fighting back from the rear of the field and salvaging points in Race 2 after an early retirement.
It was a mixed race weekend in the Czech Republic for the women of the F4 CEZ championship saw Mathilda Paatz, Kiara Henni, and Michalina Sabaj all face challenges across the three races. However, Paatz — already a podium finisher in the series and a Wild Card entrant in F1 Academy since — was able to turn around an unfortunate start to the weekend by scoring points in Race 2 from the back of the grid.
At Autodrom Most, Paatz was the fastest woman in qualifying and lined up sixth for Race 1. Sabaj and Henni, meanwhile, started from 14th and 16th respectively.
The opening phase of the race ran cleanly through the first few corners, but trouble struck on the first lap: Walther in the #7 car attempted to pass Paatz around the outside, overestimated the available space, and made heavy contact with the German on corner exit.
Both cars sustained significant damage and were forced to retire. A third car was unable to avoid the incident and also had to retire. The safety car was immediately deployed, followed shortly by a red flag with 19:20 remaining on the clock.
Following recovery and two additional laps behind the safety car, the race restarted with 15 minutes remaining. Kiara Henni, who had avoided the chaos, resumed in 10th place, while Sabaj remained in 14th. But with 11:30 to go, Henni went off-track and spun into the gravel in the penultimate corner while trying to defend her position. The safety car was deployed once more, and due to the lengthy recovery, the restart came with just 2:30 left on the clock. Sabaj managed to move up to 13th, finishing as the only female driver to reach the chequered flag.
The Race 1 finishing order determined the starting grid for Race 2, leaving Henni 15th and Paatz 17th — an unfortunate consequence of their earlier misfortunes. A minor collision occurred at the start in the first chicane but had no major consequences; Sabaj slipped to 14th and Henni to 16th, while Paatz made a strong start, climbing to 13th.
In the opening laps, Gáspár’s #69 car ran too wide over the kerbs and damaged his rear suspension, but he managed to park safely and no safety car was required. The female drivers gained positions as a result, with Henni now directly behind Sabaj and Paatz continuing her charge toward the top ten in 11th place.
With 16:30 remaining, Paatz overtook Bocquet with a clean move into Turn 1. At the same time, Henni had to yield to Sabaj but held onto 15th. Eight minutes later, Paatz advanced again, climbing to 9th overall and securing third in the rookie classification. A lap later, Henni went off-track again but continued without damage, though she dropped down the order. Sabaj moved up to 13th, where she would ultimately finish.
In Race 3, the female drivers once again started from the rear of the field. Another heavy collision occurred at the start — again involving Walther — who continued but used the safety car phase to pit for front-end repairs. He rejoined at the back of the lead lap.
Meanwhile, Gáspár’s car stalled on the grid and only got moving once the rest of the field had cleared. Paatz and Henni had to take the escape route due to the start-line incident and could not gain any positions.
The race resumed with 17:30 left. Multiple drivers took shortcuts through the chicane, and at this point Sabaj was the leading woman in 9th, followed by Henni in 11th and Paatz in 12th. Henni struggled under pressure and fell to 16th, while Paatz also lost a position. Sabaj initially improved to 8th but was passed by Walther with 13 minutes to go. Around the same time, Paatz reclaimed 12th.
However, Sabaj soon began to lose pace and positions, dropping back toward Paatz. Although the two never engaged in direct battle, Sabaj went off track with 6:30 remaining and crashed into the barriers. She was unhurt, but her race was over. The incident prompted a red flag, and the race was not restarted.
Despite a challenging weekend, Mathilda Paatz remained the top-ranked woman in the overall championship, albeit now down to ninth. The next round takes place at the Slovakia Ring from August 22nd to 24th, where the female drivers will aim to bounce back and return to form.