The seventh and final round of the Italian F4 Championship got underway at Mugello with the qualifying sessions. David Cosma-Cristofor set the fastest overall time, delivering an outstanding lap around the Tuscan circuit in the cold conditions of the final weekend of October, which made it particularly important to maximise every opportunity.
In the first group on track, Finland's Luka Sammalisto, already crowned 2026 Italian F4 Champion, set the fastest time. The US Racing driver was on course to improve his benchmark on his final attempt, but had to slow down following the deployment of yellow flags due to gravel on the track. His time was nevertheless enough to secure pole position for Race 1, while Cosma-Cristofor will start from the front of the grid in both Race 2 and Race 3. The results of the first three races of the weekend will then determine the starting grid for Sunday's Final.
The 49 Tatuus single-seaters entered for the weekend took to the track in two groups. In the first session, Sammalisto set the pace, taking the lead in the early stages and holding on to the top spot until the chequered flag with a best lap of 1’49.375.
Jenzer Motorsport's Levi Arn finished second, 0.139 seconds behind. Third place went to Prema Racing's Christian Costoya, sporting the papaya colours of the McLaren junior programme, at 0.210. US Racing's Indian driver Ary Bansal followed in fourth place, 0.307 seconds off the pace, ahead of teammate Edward Robinson, fifth at 0.397.
PHM Racing's Oscar Repetto posted the sixth-fastest time, 0.523 seconds behind, ahead of Poland's Alex Ruta. The Van Amersfoort Racing driver recorded a gap of 0.553, finishing ahead of Prema Racing's Chinese driver Kwan Ho Kingsley Zheng, eighth at 0.676.
Ninth place went to R-ace GP's Payton Westcott. The Californian, who races in F1 Academy in Mercedes colours, showed a strong connection with the Tuscan circuit from the opening day, carrying her impressive free practice pace into qualifying. She finished 0.687 seconds behind Sammalisto. Completing the top ten was Van Amersfoort Racing's British driver Thomas Bearman, 0.717 seconds off the pace.
In the second session, Brazil's Augustus Toniolo initially moved to the top of the timesheets with a lap of 1’50.176. US Racing's Sicilian driver Ludovico Busso then took the lead with the fastest overall time at that stage, 1’49.349. Germany's Elia Weiss went even quicker with a 1’49.339, before David Cosma-Cristofor lowered the benchmark to 1’49.144.
The Romanian Prema Racing driver held on to the top spot until the end of the session, securing a double pole position for Race 2 and Race 3. Weiss finished second, 0.195 seconds behind, followed by Busso at 0.205. Fourth place went to R-ace GP's Kenzo Craigie, representing the Mercedes Junior Programme, 0.216 seconds off the pace. His French teammate Andy Consani, also a Mercedes junior driver, was fifth at 0.225.
Sixth place went to Alp Aksoy, Prema Racing's Ferrari Driver Academy driver, who currently leads the Rookie standings and sits second in the overall championship behind Sammalisto. The Turkish driver finished 0.371 seconds off the pace. US Racing's Oleksandr Savinkov was seventh at 0.455, ahead of Trident Motorsport drivers Dominik Simek and Augustus Toniolo, respectively, 0.580 and 0.695 seconds behind the leader. R-ace GP's Canadian driver Jensen Burnett completed the top ten at 0.735.
David Cosma-Cristofor: "Taking two pole positions here at Mugello is great, considering it's a very demanding track, also physically. You have to adapt very quickly to the conditions because the track temperature changes. I'm really happy with the team as well, with how we worked on the car and with my lap. The track was quite fast. When it gets a bit colder, you can build up a sequence of laps, rather than having just one push lap, as happens when it's hotter. I prefer these conditions because I can build up my pace and feel more confident. The thing we were definitely missing at the last round here was the start: I was struggling a little during the first laps. Now I'll make sure to work on those aspects. I'm ready for tomorrow and Sunday."
Luka Sammalisto: "The lap was really good. I could have improved a little more, but there was gravel on the track on my last lap, so we had to slow down under the yellow flags. It was really good, and I think qualifying went very well. We raced here before the summer break, but the conditions are completely different now: it's much colder. It's nice to be on pole again. We struggled during practice today, but we found a way to secure pole position. I'm really happy with the team and the way we worked together. It's a great way to start the final weekend of the Italian Formula 4 season."
Only four races remain before the 2026 Italian F4 Championship season comes to a close. The action will resume tomorrow, Saturday, October 31, with Race 1, featuring Groups B and C, starting at 10:05. Race 2, reserved for Groups A and B, will follow at 14:40. Sunday's schedule, November 1, will begin at 08:40 with Race 3, featuring Groups A and C. The season will then come to an end with the Final at 12:15, reserved for the top 36 drivers from the qualifying races.
All races will run over 25 minutes plus one lap and will be broadcast live on ACI Sport TV and the championship's social media channels, as well as through the international broadcaster network bringing the Italian F4 Championship to fans around the world.