F4 CEZ: Mathilda Paatz returns to the top-5 in Brno
Mathilda Paatz narrowly missed out on a podium in the Formula 4 CEZ fifth round at Brno in Race 1, while Ella Hakkinen recovered from the back of the field to claim the Female Trophy in Race 2, and Michalina Sabaj took the same honour in Race 3. Ivonn Simeonova scored her first championship points in only her second weekend of car racing.
Mathilda Paatz narrowly missed out on a podium in the Formula 4 CEZ fifth round at Brno in Race 1, while Ella Hakkinen recovered from the back of the field to claim the Female Trophy in Race 2, and Michalina Sabaj took the same honour in Race 3. Ivonn Simeonova scored her first championship points in only her second weekend of car racing.
The F4 CEZ Championship headed to Brno for its fifth round of the 2026 season, with the female representation still protagonist with four entries.
In 2026, the Central European Zone championship has featured a total of nine female drivers entering at least one round; among the newcomers are McLaren Development Driver Ella Hakkinen, German F1 Academy racer Mathilda Paatz, Austrian More than Equal athlete Ivonn Simeonova and Polish driver Michalina Sabaj.
Hakkinen arrives with strong Formula 4 credentials in her rookie campaign, having already established herself as one of the revelations of the year with five top-ten finishes and points in all but one of her races, including a top-ten result on her championship debut. Paatz, meanwhile, combines her family-run Mathilda Racing programme in F4 CEZ with her rookie F1 Academy season and has already twice finished inside the top five, including a season-best fourth place, while also celebrating her maiden F1 Academy victory with Aston Martin.
Simeonova made her competitive F4 debut last time out in Most after spending the past months testing Formula 4 machinery through the More than Equal driver development programme, with Brno now providing the Austrian with her first opportunity to translate that preparation into more racing experience.
Sabaj, meanwhile, brings considerably more experience to the field as a third-year F4 CEZ competitor, having already scored three points finishes in 2026 and achieved a personal-best 12th place at the at Slovakia Ring and Most.
Unable to race in F4 CEZ this weekend was Swedish driver Alexia Danielsson, was has been selected for the F1 Academy Rookie Test in Spain and thus scheduled to run on Friday in the all-female championship's assessment test.
The Central European Zone championship adopted a particularly busy format in 2026, with the large entry list split into two qualifying groups before being divided into three groups for the opening three heats, with the highest-placed drivers from those races progressing to the fourth and final race of the weekend.
In a wet session unlike the previous practice day, Hakkinen qualified 13th in the first qualifying group with a 2:17.975 lap, while the second group produced an impressive performance from the Mathilda Racing pairing of Paatz and Simeonova. Paatz set a 2:15.114 to qualify fourth, while Simeonova followed only one tenth behind with a 2:15.226, an encouraging result for the Austrian in just her second competitive weekend in single seaters. Sabaj qualified 16th with a 2:18.082.
Paatz started the opening race from fifth alongside Hakkinen in 17th and Sabaj in 19th, and immediately made an excellent launch, moving into third within the opening corners and quickly putting pressure on Karhan for second place. Hakkinen also made progress, gaining two positions during the early stages, while Sabaj's race was immediately compromised by an issue that forced her into the pits.
At the front, Elia Weiss led Karhan and Paatz as the German settled into third place and began building a rhythm, only for the first Safety Car period to interrupt the race following Francesco Pio Coppola's off. The restart came on lap three, with Sabaj rejoining at the back of the field in 23rd but immediately beginning to recover ground.
Hakkinen was passed by Borenstein for 15th, while Sabaj produced a strong recovery drive, first passing Cezary and Kocsis to move up to 21st before continuing her charge. The Polish driver was particularly quick through the middle part of the race, overtaking Noelken and Lipovics before another incident involving Poulsen triggered a second Safety Car period. Paatz remained third and had been settling into a strong rhythm before the caution interrupted her momentum, while Hakkinen was 17th and Sabaj 18th.
With four laps remaining, the race restarted once again, but Simon Rechenmacher was able to pass Paatz for third, denying the Mathilda Racing driver a potential podium finish. Hakkinen produced another strong restart to climb back to 15th, while Sabaj slipped back behind Noelken and Lipovics and found herself in 20th.
Paatz ultimately finished fourth, narrowly missing the podium after another interrupted race, while Hakkinen continued to gain positions and was promoted to 14th after the finish. Sabaj, despite her early pit stop, completed an impressive recovery to 19th.
Race 2 brought together Groups B and C, with Simeonova starting from sixth and Hakkinen from 17th. Simeonova slipped to eighth on the opening lap, while Hakkinen immediately became involved in the midfield battle and gained two positions to move into 15th.
The Austrian then ran slightly wide through the final corner, managing to keep the car on track but losing momentum and dropping to 10th, while Hakkinen continued her recovery by passing Cezary and moving to 14th before attacking Alexander Louza. She completed that move on lap three and then overtook Tomas Rudokas by the end of the same lap to climb to 12th.
With clear track ahead, Hakkinen was able to demonstrate her pace, setting a 1:59.812 lap that was competitive with the cars fighting at the front of the top ten. She soon caught Simeonova, who was simultaneously attempting to put pressure on Felipe Reijs, setting up a direct battle between the two female drivers for the Female Trophy.
Hakkinen attempted to move alongside Simeonova on the main straight on lap seven, but the Austrian successfully defended her position. Both drivers were circulating in the 2:00s, pulling away from the cars behind while gradually losing contact with the train fighting for the overall top ten.
Hakkinen continued to apply pressure and finally made the decisive move stick on lap 10, taking the Female Trophy lead after having started 17th on the grid. The Finnish-Czech racer then caught Reijs during the final lap, with Simeonova remaining close behind, and the two crossed the finish line in 11th and 12th respectively.
For Hakkinen, it was an outstanding recovery drive from 17th on the grid and another demonstration of the pace that had already made her one of the revelations of the 2026 season.
Paatz started the third race from fourth, with Simeonova seventh and Sabaj 21st. Paatz again made a strong launch and immediately attacked for third, but her race went wrong at Turn 1 when contact with Paulsen caused damage to her car. She was forced to pit at the end of the opening lap, effectively taking her out of contention.
Simeonova, meanwhile, moved up to sixth and looked capable of challenging for a top-five finish, with Benet Gaspar immediately behind her and David Walther ahead. Sabaj also made significant progress, climbing to 18th before being passed by Pedersen for 19th, although she quickly established a solid margin over Orscholski behind.
Paatz eventually rejoined the race but was already a lap down, while Simeonova continued to defend aggressively against Gaspar. The battle lasted several laps before Gaspar eventually found a way through on lap five.
Sabaj was meanwhile producing one of her strongest drives of the weekend. She returned to 18th and then climbed to 17th on lap seven, matching the pace of the cars ahead and putting herself into contention for the Female Trophy. Simeonova subsequently dropped down the order and was forced to pit on lap seven, meaning both Mathilda Racing cars were now in the pits.
That left Sabaj at the head of the female classification, and the Polish driver continued to fight for position with Olert for 16th, with Poulsen also involved just ahead. Sabaj set a 1:59.773 lap, showing pace comparable with the drivers fighting inside the overall top ten, and remained right behind Olert while looking for an opportunity to pass. The close battle also allowed Pasko to close the gap from behind.
Sabaj ultimately took the chequered flag in 17th and secured the Female Trophy victory in Race 3.
All four female drivers qualified for the weekend's final race, with Paatz starting 13th, Hakkinen 18th, Simeonova 21st and Sabaj 28th. Paatz immediately moved up to 12th, while Simeonova also made progress to 19th and Sabaj climbed to 25th. Hakkinen's race, however, was compromised by an early issue that forced her into the pits, dropping her to the back of the field.
A major crash between Orscholski and Olert subsequently brought out the Safety Car, with Paatz running 12th, Simeonova 17th, Sabaj 22nd and Hakkinen 26th when the field was neutralised.
Racing resumed with ten minutes remaining, and Paatz found herself immediately involved in another battle, having to defend from Pedersen and eventually dropping to 13th. Simeonova continued to make steady progress, moving into 16th on lap seven, while Hakkinen passed Rudokas for 24th.
Sabaj was also fighting hard, passing Kepak for 21st before setting a 2:00.376 lap, her best of the race, as she began to pull away from the immediate group while closing on Gaspar. The Polish driver was caught in an extremely tight battle, however, with six cars separated by only a few tenths, and Kepak managed to regain the position a lap later. Hakkinen was now also within striking distance of the group.
Simeonova continued to improve her pace, circulating in the 2:00.7 range, before another Safety Car period with one minute remaining effectively brought the race to its conclusion. Paatz finished 13th, Simeonova 16th, Sabaj 23rd and Hakkinen 25th, completing a weekend in which all four female drivers reached the final race.
Despite the difficult final classification, the weekend produced several significant positives.
After five rounds, Paatz now leads the female drivers in the overall championship standings in 10th place with 89 points, while Hakkinen is 12th overall on 75 points. Sabaj has 13 points, with Simeonova joining the championship classification on four points following her first scoring result at Brno.
The 2026 F4 CEZ Championship will now head into its season finale at the Hungaroring on October 23-25.
