Mathilda Paatz concluded her debut French F4 Championship season at Circuit Paul Ricard, gaining valuable experience in a wet race 3 to finish in 25th position, rounding out an encouraging season where she secured a top-10 result and set a solid foundation for her future in single-seater racing.
Mathilda Paatz ended her debut season in the French F4 Championship with a challenging weekend at Circuit Paul Ricard. After qualifying less than a second outside of the top-6, Paatz suffered a pair of unfortunate retirements in the opening two races of the weekend. The young German driver gained valuable experience in a wet race three to finish in 25th position to round out an encouraging season of single seater racing.
Paatz has enjoyed an excellent second half of the season in the French F4 Championship, taking significant strides forward in terms of both speed and racecraft as she gains confidence in the car.
The young German racer has improved on her season’s best finish in the past two meetings, while securing her first ever top-10 result last time out at Dijon-Prenois. Paatz showed exceptional racecraft to move through the field while gaining 20 positions across the event and was looking to build upon this at Circuit Paul Ricard.
The race weekend began on Thursday with the French F4 Championship drivers taking part in five separate test sessions. At the end of the day, Paatz recorded a best result of 21st position which came in session two among an expanded grid of drivers for the season finale. Friday’s action got underway with a sole practice session taking place in the morning ahead of qualifying. The young German driver set the 22nd fastest time, less than a second away from the top-10.
Qualifying took place on Friday afternoon and was set to be a crucial session at Circuit Paul Ricard. Paatz was extremely consistent during the twenty-five-minute session and was able to make good improvements late in the session. Setting her quickest time on the final lap of qualifying, Mathilda’s time of a 2:08.264 placed her 23rd overall.
Race one of the weekend took place on Saturday morning with Paatz lining up from 23rd on the grid. It was a tough start for the young German racer who received contact into turn five and spun, dropping her to the rear of the field. Fortunately, the safety car was deployed for a further incident at the end of lap one and this allowed her to catch the rear of the field.
During the safety car period, Paatz received the black/orange flag and was forced to pit to repair damage but did so as the safety car was withdrawn. As a result, Paatz was cut adrift from the field when racing resumed, however she remained on the lead lap.
After repairs were made, Mathilda got back up to speed before pitting for a second time on lap five to retire the car. It was an unfortunate end to race one at Circuit Paul Ricard with Paatz therefore keen to bounce back in the two races which followed.
Grid positions for race two of the weekend were based on the fastest times set in qualifying with a partial reversal at the head of the field. Paatz lined up from 22nd after a penalty for a rival ahead and was looking to move forward, however she received contact on the opening lap.
Although Mathilda was on the fringes of the top-20 as the safety car was deployed, she was forced to pit at the end of lap one with damage to the car. Unfortunately, this brought her race to an early conclusion with Paatz aiming for a positive third race of the weekend on Sunday.
For the final race of the weekend, conditions were different as heavy rain forced the race to be started behind the safety car. Paatz’s second fastest lap saw her line up from 24th position and when the racing got underway, she made a good start and gained one position in the tricky conditions. With no wet weather running prior to the race, it was a challenge for the drivers to acclimatise to conditions and there were multiple spins throughout the field.
Paatz was running a consistent pace while improving her times and although she fell behind Paul Roques on lap three, she was gaining valuable experience. A good battle with Lisa Billard then saw her fellow female driver move ahead, with Mathilda falling to 25th position at the end of lap four.
In the second half of the race, Paatz continued to build up her knowledge and set her quickest time on the final lap of the race. The young German racer ended a challenging weekend with a 25th place finish at Circuit Paul Ricard.
Although it was a tough end to Paatz’s debut French F4 Championship season, it has been a productive campaign for the young German racer. Scoring an excellent top-10 at Dijon-Prenois, Mathilda should be encouraged by her late-season pace as she consistently challenged for positions within the top half of the field.
Paatz will be targeting a return to single seater competition in 2025 where she can build upon the experience of her rookie season to make further progress.
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