British teenager’s Macau masterclass
Congratulations to Team UK member Arvid Lindblad not just on winning the 70th Macau Grand Prix Formula 4 Race, but also on a totally dominant weekend on the historic Guia Circuit.
The 16-year-old rising start, who is a member of Motorsport UK’s ‘Futures’ programme as well as a full member of the Red Bull Junior Team, dominated both last Sunday’s wet Qualifying Race and then the prestigious Final Race from pole positions having topped the qualifying time sheets on the uniquely challenging barrier-lined circuit.
“It was a fantastic day, and I’m super happy,” enthused the delighted London-born Lindblad, who has both Swedish and Indian ancestry.
“We had a bit of a difficult situation in the morning, with unexpectedly wet conditions. We had to react quickly with no references and no idea of what was going to be like. I think we did a great job, and we tried to keep the same pace for the afternoon. It was a really good race. I knew it was important to try and maintain the lead. It was close, but I managed to hold on for the win. I’m really grateful to SJM Theodore PREMA Racing and everyone in Macau for organising such an amazing weekend.”
Fellow Brit, Bambino alumnus and PREMA Racing team-mate for the weekend, Freddie Slater was another of the star performers on the hallowed streets of Macau. The talented 15-year-old had an extremely positive pace all weekend finishing second in the Qualifying Race and running Lindblad close in the early laps of the Final before being delayed by an electrical problem – even then he managed to finish in the top-10 with phenomenal speed after the setback.
“Awesome week in Macau, what a race! I can’t wait to come back here hopefully next year, and more years after that,” said Slater who contested the final few rounds of this year’s ROKiT British F4 Championship. “Just an unfortunate issue in the final race, but that’s motorsport at the end of the day but we showed everybody what pace we had.”
Boosted by his win in Macau, Lindblad will now step up to the FIA Formula 3 Championship with PREMA Racing in 2024. In the meantime, this year’s crop of ambitious young F3 drivers is all set for their own FIA Formula 3 World Cup race in Asia as the 70th Macau Grand Prix heads for its second weekend of road racing.