Cooper Shipman Clinches Championship, Sets Record with Ninth-Consecutive Victory

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    Cooper Shipman Clinches Championship, Sets Record with Ninth-Consecutive Victory

    ALTON, Va. (September 21, 2025) – Cooper Shipman dominated to capture his ninth-consecutive victory in Formula 4 United States Championship (F4 U.S.) competition at VIRginia International Raceway (VIR) on Sunday afternoon. The victory was enough to lock in his status as the 2025 F4 U.S. Champion, and secure the scholarship to compete in Formula Regional Americas Championship in 2026. The victory allowed Shipman (No. 14 Kiwi Motorsport Ligier JS F422) to break a record set by Cameron Das during the inaugural season of F4 U.S. competition, and set a new standard for consecutive wins in the FIA-certified championship.

    Shipman didn’t just win at VIR on Sunday—he dominated. Immediately taking the point position, he held a 15.453-second margin by the time the checkered flag waved. Behind him, second-place starter Alex Popow (No. 55 Dr. Michael Thompson MS DDS PPLS / MLT Motorsports Ligier JS F422) defended his position, while Demitri Nolan (No. 5 Crosslink Motorsports Ligier JS F422) climbed from a fifth-place starting position to cross the finish line in third. Nolan faced a fierce battle with Luke Powers (No. 51 Corporate Commercial Group / Toney Driver Development Ligier JS F422) during the final laps of the race, but completed the pass just in time to see the white flag wave, and continued to hold the position all the way to the checkered.

    Entering the weekend with the hope of carrying the championship battle in to the final round at Barber Motorsports Park, Kekai Hauanio (No. 29 N-E-Where Transport / Crosslink Motorsports Ligier JS F422) climbed from his ninth-place starting position to finish fifth, but the effort wasn’t enough to keep him in the championship fight. Instead, Hauanio will go head to head with Popow to contend for the Vice Championship, as the two enter the final round separated by just 10.5 points.

     

    > > REPLAY THE STREAM: Stream Round 15 from VIR

     

    Notes of Interest:

    • Cooper Shipman won his ninth race of the 2025 season, while locking in the championship title and setting a new record for most consecutive victories in F4 U.S. competition.
    • Finishing second, Alex Popow earned his 10th podium of the year, and second runner-up finish of the weekend.
    • Demitri Nolan earned his second podium of 2025, finishing third in Sunday’s event.
    • Both Luke Powers and Oliver Savoie tied their career-best finishes, crossing the line fourth and sixth, respectively.

     

    > > SEE MORE:  Round 15 Official Results

     

    “The record of nine wins in a row is great, but the main goal for this year, and for this weekend, was to wrap up the championship,” explained Shipman after climbing from the car. “I’m super glad that I was able to do that. When I saw that Kekai got behind me at the beginning, I thought I might have a fight on my hands, but it looked like they were battling super hard behind me. Once I saw that going on, I just had to chill out and run my own race. It was great to be able to put in the pace like that and to stretch the lead, which is something we’ve been looking to do all year. Thanks to my parents, to Kiwi Motorsport and everybody that’s been helping me be fast every single weekend.”

    F4 U.S. will wrap up the 2025 season next month at Barber Motorsports Park during the Barber SpeedTour, October 17-19. The event, like all 2025 races, will be streamed live on SpeedTour.TV. Additional news and updates from the weekend will be posted on the series’ Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Prospective drivers looking to learn more about F4 U.S. are encouraged to visit the championship’s website at F4USChampionship.com.

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