Shift Up Now Athlete Hannah Greenemeier earned a top-ten finish and earned valuable points in the F4 US Championship series during the New Jersey Lottery SpeedTour at New Jersey Motorsports Park on Sunday, July 29, 2023.
Sunday’s race was the third of the weekend. Thursday and Friday were testing and practice days, respectively. By the final session on Friday, Greenemeier was able to run lap times that were deep into the top ten.
Qualifying and the first race took place on Saturday, followed by a double-header on Sunday.
Weather conditions for qualifying were sunny, hot and humid, with several damp spots on the racing line. Greenemeier found it difficult to get proper spacing early in the session and wasn’t able to get a clean lap in before a red flag fell.
Eight minutes remained in the session when it was back to green. Although Greenemeier found the spacing needed and was happy with the speed, she had already use the best of the tires. She would start 15th.
Race one began on Saturday afternoon with a standing start. Greenemeier got a solid launch off the line and avoided a collision in turn one. Early in the race, she was running 12th and found herself behind an excessively-defensive driver. When she accidentally dropped a wheel off the track, the car got sucked into the wet grass. She regained control but lost four positions. When the checkered flag flew, Greenemeier had worked her way back to 13th place, and was awarded an 11th-place finish after post-race penalties were assessed.
During the first race, Greenemeier had the 15th-fastest lap time, dictating her starting position for the second race the following day.
On Sunday morning, race two started under sunny, humid conditions. Following a storm that had passed through on Saturday evening, the track had several damp sections. Greenemeier lost a few spots on the start. Then, going into turn six, she tried to give another driver room on the inside, but in doing so, got off line into a damp area.
Unfortunately, it sent the car into a tank-slapper, where Greenemeier was able to catch the first direction but not the second. She spun into the grass and came to a stop. She threw the car in reverse and backed up slightly. When the gearbox ECU wouldn’t allow her to select a forward gear, she cycled the ignition a few times to no avail. The corner workers came to rock the car into gear but when it didn’t work, Greenemeier was forced to retire with a DNF.
Without a recorded time from race two, she would start the final race in 23rd. Despite not gaining any positions at the start, she did advance one spot midway through the first lap just before the straightaway. A massive crash occurred, red-flagging the race for cleanup.
During the single-file restart, Greenemeier gained a couple of spots. Only 20 minutes remained in the race and by lap seven, she had advanced to 15th with the fifth-fastest time in the race.
Starting the final lap, she was in 12th place. Heading into turn four, another driver spun and made contact with the driver in front of her. Through heads-up driving, she was able to avoid the collision and crossed the finish line in 10th place, earning her first point of the season.
“I am happy with the progress my team and I made this weekend,” said Greenemeier. “Race two was a real bummer, but I just let that frustration fuel me for race three to move forward. I am really excited to get my first point and will try to continue this forward momentum into VIR this October.
“With plenty of time before VIR, we will get some testing done, and I will continue to work with the team mechanics and engineers to get everything we can out of the car and myself.”
The F4 US Championship series will head to VIRginia International Speedway in Alton, VA, for the Andy Scriven Memorial at the VIR SpeedTour on October 5-8, 2023.
