F4 Spain: Luna Fluxá wins Female Trophy title, Zoe Florescu ends rookie season with strong pace
Luna Fluxá secured the F4 Spanish Championship Female Trophy title in Barcelona, finishing as the highest-ranked female driver in the overall standings with six points scored during the season.
Luna Fluxá, Zoe Florescu and Maria Germano Neto brought their F4 Spanish Championship campaigns to a close with the final three races of the season in Barcelona, where Fluxá secured the Female Trophy title.
The F4 Spanish Championship season reached its conclusion in near-wintry conditions in Barcelona, with Luna Fluxá, Zoe Florescu and Maria Germano Neto joined on the grid by Maddie Colleran. The American made her first appearance in European formula racing after previously competing in USF Juniors in the United States, although her weekend would ultimately be cut short after Race 1.
Qualifying was heavily disrupted by red flags, with two stoppages in the opening minutes delaying the session's progress. The action eventually resumed with nine minutes remaining, and Florescu initially moved up to third with a 1:48.0, while Colleran posted a 1:50.5 to sit just outside the top three.
A third red flag followed with just under six minutes remaining, further interrupting the session. Once the track went green again, the times began to tumble, with Florescu improving to 1:46.4, Fluxá recording a 1:46.5 and Colleran lowering her time to 1:48.6.
Florescu eventually set a best time of 1:44.530 to qualify 20th, while Fluxá was unable to put together a representative lap and ended the session 30th with a 1:46.507. Colleran qualified 33rd with a 1:48.609, while Neto also struggled to find a clear lap, finishing 35th with a 1:51.594.
The opening race got underway without any initial collisions, although Burnett failed to get moving from the grid. With the car left in a dangerous position on the start-finish straight, the Safety Car was deployed on the opening lap. Florescu and Fluxá nevertheless made progress, moving up to 19th and 24th respectively.
The race resumed with 23 minutes remaining. Both drivers initially lost some of the positions they had gained, but Fluxá quickly recovered to 24th on the following lap, while Florescu slipped back to 21st. Fluxá continued to close the gap to the car ahead, drawing closer with 19 minutes remaining before making the pass four minutes later.
Two minutes afterwards, Jean Paul Karras spun into the gravel, allowing the women to gain another position without triggering a further neutralisation. Fluxá was now 19th, Florescu 22nd, Neto 30th and Colleran 34th.
Fluxá's recovery drive continued as she passed Arnaudo and then closed to within 1.5 seconds of Blascos. She completed another overtake four minutes later, moving further up the order and setting her sights on Micallef. However, with time running out, she was unable to make another move before the chequered flag.
Fluxá finished 17th, ahead of Florescu in 20th, while Neto dropped back to 33rd. Colleran, meanwhile, was forced to retire in the pits, bringing her first weekend in European formula racing to an early end.
Colleran subsequently withdrew from the remainder of the weekend. Fluxá lined up 23rd for Race 2, with Florescu starting 20th and Neto further down the grid. Once again, the Safety Car was deployed on the opening lap, this time after a car became stranded at Turn 1. Florescu had already gained one position and Fluxá three, while Neto remained towards the back of the field.
The race restarted with 18 minutes remaining, but the green-flag running was short-lived. Karras and Schormans collided and came to a stop at the side of the track, with the lengthy recovery process prompting a red flag. Following a further Safety Car period, the race resumed with 10 minutes left on the clock.
Florescu and Fluxá found themselves running together behind Micellaf, in 18th and 19th positions respectively. Neither was able to make a move on the other or on the car ahead, but another incident further up the order provided an opportunity. Nacho Tuñon and Noah Monteiro collided, allowing the two women to gain positions and move further up the classification.
Florescu ultimately crossed the finish line in 16th, with Fluxá immediately behind in 17th, while Neto finished 28th.
With Colleran no longer on the grid, Neto moved up to 34th on the starting grid. Florescu lined up 30th, while Fluxá enjoyed her strongest starting position of the weekend in 13th.
There was some confusion before the start, with the race delayed after several cars had taken up incorrect grid positions even before the formation lap. Once the field finally got underway, a car became stranded in the gravel at Turn 7, prompting the first Safety Car intervention. The three remaining female drivers managed to hold their positions through the opening phase.
The restart came with 21 minutes remaining, but the race was soon interrupted again when Neto ground to a halt with a technical issue. This brought out another Safety Car period, which lasted around five minutes. Fluxá briefly dropped back during the neutralisation but gradually fought her way up the order once racing resumed, while Florescu remained towards the back of the field.
With eight minutes remaining, Riccobono and Zhao collided, bringing out another Safety Car as the recovery operation got underway. With insufficient time to resume racing, the event finished behind the Safety Car.
Fluxá ended the season 20th in the overall championship standings with six points, making her the highest-ranked female driver and the only woman to score points during the 2026 campaign. She therefore secured the Female Trophy title, sealing the honour with a victory in the category in the final race of the season.
Florescu finished the final race 27th, making up some positions despite the disrupted closing contest, while Neto's weekend ended in disappointment after another technical problem. The Portuguese driver had endured a difficult couple of final rounds, with reliability issues interrupting her progress during her rookie season.
For Fluxá, the Barcelona finale provided a positive conclusion to the campaign, as she took the Female Trophy crown and finished as the championship's leading female competitor.
