Draft:Ariel Elkin

Ariel Elkin (אריאל אלקין; born 7 April 2007) is an Israeli racing driver who currently competes in USF Juniors for International Motorsport. He placed 3rd in the USF Juniors New Orleans Formula 4 race on April 6, 2024, and subsequently received media attention when during the podium ceremony he raised his racing helmet covered with pictures of the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas instead of the 3rd place trophy.

The gesture was acknowledged by the Israeli Foreign Ministry, who thanked the driver on its official Twitter account.

He is considered one of the best young race drivers.

Karting
Elkin began his racing career in the Israel Kart series, winning it in 2018, at age of 11, and again in several subsequent years. Competing in the top level of karting (KF2), he was ranked 5th in the International ROK Cup Final and 6th in the Andrea Margutti Trophy in Mini in 2018, and won the Karting Academy Trophy in 2020 after winning the last event in Lonato, Italy. He then placed 9th in the Karting World Championship in OK Junior. He won the IAME Italian Series in 2021 and again in 2022. He also won the Belgian IAME series in 2021

Formula 4
Elkin switched to formula racing in 2023, making his debut in the 2023 Italian F4 Championship, with his first race on the Imola Circuit. He also raced in the Formula 4 United States Championship for the International Motorsport team, coming in fourth at Circuit of the Americas in November 2023.

USF juniors
For the 2024 season, Elkin switched from US Formula 4 to USF Juniors, a relatively new series devised as an alternative to the US Formula 4. Elkin will race in car #25 for International Motorsport.

He came in 3rd on April 7, 2024, in the series' opening event at NOLA Motorsports Park.

On April 26,20204, he won the opening USF Juniors race at Barber Motorsports Park, setting a new track lap record