Cooper Webster has won the first ever Formula 4 (F4) Indian Championship after securing a total of eight race wins, nine podiums and 244.5 points. This is the 20-year-old Australian’s first race car championship victory; he started off his motorsport career as a sim racer before switching to real-life racing last year.

• Webster wins total of eight races
• Rajeev finishes second overall

The F4 Indian Championship made its debut this year, featuring the FIA-homologated Gen 2 Mygale F4 car (also used in the French F4 championship) run by MP Motorsport. Along with a bunch of up-and-coming national talent, the championship also attracted a number of international racers it offered Super Licence points, which are necessary to qualify to race in F1.

Quite a few tweaks were made to the calendar since the Hyderabad and Chennai street races were cancelled. This left the inaugural season with a total of four rounds, all of which were held at the Madras International Circuit.

Cooper started the season on a strong note, but encountered a few hiccups, mainly due to tyre issues. Nevertheless, he headed into the finale with a lead of 44.5 points over Akshay Bohra. He put himself in prime position to win the title after securing pole position in both qualifying sessions. Qualifying 1 set the grid for Race 1, while Qualifying 2 set the grid for Race 3. The results of the two races then set the grids for Races 2 and 4, with the top six positions reversed.

He converted both pole positions into race wins (Races 1 and 3), securing enough points to win the championship with a lead of 62.5 points over Rishon Rajeev.

Rajeev won Race 2, ahead of Alex Sawer and Webster after Rishab Jain was handed a 30 secs post-race penalty for overtaking under yellow flags. The final race of the season was won by Shahan Ali Mohsin, ahead of Sawer and Rajeev.

“We had trouble at the beginning with the first couple of rounds with tyre issues and what not. But I put my head down and worked hard, and found some really good pace at the end of the season. So yeah, I’m really stoked about getting my first championship in race cars and also working with MP [Motorsport]; what an amazing squad they are,” said Cooper. “I’ve enjoyed my time here in India and I’m looking forward to next year where I’m going into Euro Cup 3.”