Written by Cameron Gale, Edited by Ishani Aziz
There are many F1 drivers who have started their racing career from karting. Most notably seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button. More recently however, Lando Norris has exploded into F1 with remarkable talent. The karting-to-F1 route seems to be a common one, particularly among the British talent pool. So who are some of the up and coming talents in karting?
First up Mini Max driver; Noah Wolfe. He is currently 2nd in the Wera Tools British Championship behind Scott Marsh who is racing at European level. Noah has had some mixed races so far, with some good streaks and some less so. His position in the championship shows promise that he could have what it takes in F1, but he will need consistency and funding to get him there. The most difficult part will be the funding as many F1 teams don’t like to fund young drivers who can’t get sponsors.
The second driver I would like to focus on is Scott Marsh. Scott is currently 1st in the Wera Tools British Championship and also races in some European rounds. He is consistent and fast but like many kart drivers he struggles to get sponsorship from F1 teams. He is one of the fastest drivers in his class but if he wants to make it onto the single seater stage he will have to start racing in more European rounds and show the teams that he can race in championships that are a challenge for him.
The next driver is Junior max driver Brandon Carr. He currently races with KR sport in the Wera Tools British Championship and is one of the most consistent drivers in his class. He could make it into F1 but doesn’t yet have a European licence which you need to have if you want to race in the Formula 3 European championship. In order to get one of them he needs to have signatures from the clerk of the courses to upgrade his card and the money to obtain one. This is something that most kart drivers struggle with.
The fourth driver I would like to highlight is senior max driver Kai Hunter who is currently first in the Wera Tools British Championship and competes with Dan Holland Racing. The reason I am highlighting him is because he is on a 5 race winning streak ( at time of writing) and has some great funding behind him. He is also consistent and fast which is key to becoming a formula one driver. The only issue he has is the same issue as Junior Max driver Brandon Carr. He doesn’t have a European licence and needs one if he wants to try and gain money and more publicity.
Who do you think could be the next British talent who makes it into Formula One from Karting?