Ferrari F1 Junior Bearman Moves One Step Closer To F1

November 29, 2022
Driver Management, FIA F2, FIA F3, Formula One, Ollie Bearman, Sports Sponsorship, WHS

Ferrari junior Ollie Bearman will step up to Formula 2 next season with Prema.

It will be the Briton’s second year with the team, having joined the Italian outfit for the 2022 FIA Formula 3 Championship which he came third in with one race win.

He moved up to F3 straight from Formula 4, having won the 2021 ADAC and Italian championships in the entry-level category.

“I’m really excited to continue another year with the Prema family, this time in F2,” said Bearman.

“I’m really happy with how my first season went in F3. It was a really nice introduction and I felt like the team coached me throughout the year really well.

“I will continue to work hard over the winter with the Ferrari Driver Academy, in order to be fully prepared for 2023. It will be a tough challenge, but everyone works so hard and I’m really looking forward to the challenge. I’m already really excited for the test in Abu Dhabi and for the first round of 2023 in Bahrain.”

Prema team principal Rene Rosin commented: “We were amazed by how quickly and successfully Ollie transitioned from F4 to F3 racing.

“He is a really talented driver, and while he will be making his first steps in the FIA F2 championship, we are confident he will improve race by race with the support of our team and the Ferrari Driver Academy as well.

“It won’t be easy, because the step from F3 to F2 is considerable, but we are confident in his potential for the season ahead.”

Oliver Gray Joins the Williams Racing Driver Academy

March 7, 2022
Driver Management, FIA F4, Formula One, Karting, Motorsport, Sports Sponsorship, WHS

WH Sports are delighted to announce the Ollie Gray is officially part of Williams Racing and their Driver Academy.

“Today is a special day in my career as I can officially say I am part of Williams,” the British teenager said on his first day at Grove. “Williams is a team with so much history and success in Formula One and I hope to one day be able to add to that.
“As I begin working with the team, my immediate goals are to develop as a driver both on and off the track, as well as focus on my 2022 season; I can’t wait to get started. “There are lots of people who have played a role in my motorsport career so far and I would like to thank everyone, particularly Sven, Jost and the team at Williams Racing for their belief in me.”

The young racer from Surrey enjoyed a stellar debut season in British F4 with two wins and two pole positions to his name, whilst later competing in the final two rounds of the Italian F4 Championship.
There was plenty of success for Ollie early in his junior career as well, claiming multiple Motorsport UK and British Kart Championship titles at the X30 Junior level, before finishing as vice-champion in the 2019 IAME Euro Series.
The team is pleased to confirm that for 2022, Ollie will compete in the British F4 Championship with Carlin.

Williams Sporting Director Sven Smeets is understandably pleased to welcome a new member to the team, saying: “We are incredibly pleased to welcome Oliver to the Williams Racing Driver Academy.
“He showed great talent during his karting career and the team was impressed with his debut year in single seaters. “We are all looking forward to working with Oliver to best support his progression through the junior motorsport ladder, and I’m confident that he will prove a great asset to our team.”

As part of his role in the Williams F1 Driver Academy, Ollie will be fully immersed at Grove, working closely with departments across the business to support his development.

Ollie Bearman becomes a Ferrari F1 Junior

November 20, 2021
Driver Management, Formula One, WHS

Ferrari’s signing of 16-year-old double Formula 4 champion Ollie Bearman may feel like a faraway irrelevance to its Formula 1 ambitions, but it may have just secured its next F1 star.

While much more fanfare is made of the merits and pitfalls of Red Bull’s F1 driver academy, Ferrari’s recent efforts have often been overlooked.

The initiative began following the success of Felipe Massa, who was mentored through his Sauber years by Ferrari and then promoted to the senior team, helping it to back-to-back constructors’ titles across 2007-08, and almost adding a drivers’ crown in the latter.

It helped Sergio Perez, Jules Bianchi and Lance Stroll reach F1 and enjoy success with other teams, before it finally was able to reap the rewards for itself when Charles Leclerc stepped up to Ferrari in 2019.

Mick Schumacher became the latest Ferrari Driver Academy member to step up to F1 when he joined Haas for his maiden F1 season this year after claiming the 2020 Formula 2 title.

Behind Schumacher, there’s something of a ‘Ferrari’s next big thing’ void that Bearman will likely imminently fill.

Just over halfway through 2020, it looked like Schumacher’s F2 team-mate and FDA stablemate Robert Shwartzman was destined for F1 graduation, having won FIA F3 in 2019 and found an edge over the more F2 experienced Schumacher.

But Shwartzman’s starring rookie F2 season fell away and his 2021 title charge has never really got going. He’s 43 points off rookie championship leader Oscar Piastri and his name was scarcely mentioned in any F1 2022 silly season conversations.

It was a similar fate for Schumacher’s 2020 F2 title rival Callum Ilott, who has effectively ended his pursuit of F1 by signing a multi-year deal with Juncos Racing in IndyCar.

Kiwi Marcus Armstrong looked every bit as good as Shwartzman through Formula 4 and FIA F3 but has never looked F1-material during his two difficult years in F2.

Looking further back to FIA F3, Arthur Leclerc was no match for his Red Bull-backed title-winning Prema team-mate Dennis Hauger, finishing 10th in the drivers’ championship – the lowest of any Prema F3 driver since 2017 (ironically that was Schumacher, but in a much stronger field in the ‘traditional’ F3 championship rather than the one born out of GP3).

Of course, an improved second year in FIA F3 could land Leclerc the title and put his prospects of joining his brother Charles in F1 back on track.

But he’s going to face stiff competition from Ferrari’s newest junior Bearman, who has the potential to blow them all away.

Bearman made his car racing debut just after he turned 15, in the highly-competitive ADAC F4 series in Germany and dovetailed that campaign with a part-time Italian F4 stint.

It only took Bearman until the third ADAC F4 round to win a race at Hockenheim, and he followed this up with a win in Italian F4 at Vallelunga.

He placed seventh in the ADAC F4 drivers’ championship with a heap of bad luck that likely cost him a top five, but his potential was recognised by the Van Amersfoort Racing outfit that has helped the likes of Max Verstappen and Mick Schumacher on their way to F1.

VAR signed him for 2021 and allowed Bearman to obliterate the Italian F4 field, going on what would have been a nine-race winning streak had he not lost one of those wins to a disqualification.

There were weekends at Vallelunga and Imola when he was just completely untouchable and Bearman – a quietly confident character out of the car – looked a class above.

He won the Italian F4 title by over 100 points and followed that up by clinching the ADAC F4 title at the Nurburgring this past weekend ahead of Ferrari’s announcement that he’s earned a place in its junior ranks on Monday.

Bearman racked up 17 wins in 2021 across the two most competitive F4 championships in the world with the kind of flawless domination that only future stars enjoy.

He also won a race and earned two poles on his three-round cameo in the GB3 (formerly BRDC British F3) series, proving he’s more than ready for the next step.

That next step is likely to be FIA F3 with Prema, which he tested with in the championship’s post-season session at Valencia’s Ricardo Tormo circuit. He set the seventh quickest time in a field that featured many of the top 2021 drivers.

Success as a 16-year-old in FIA F3 will be difficult for Bearman, but Sauber junior Theo Pourchaire almost won the title at that age in his rookie season in 2020, and like Bearman, he’d come off the back of a second title-winning year in F4.

However, unlike Pourchaire – and every other F4 champion before him – Bearman is the first driver to win both the Italian and ADAC F4 championships in the same year.

It’s an impressive feat that, along with his quick adaption to FIA F3 in the post-season test, points to a very bright future for Bearman and Ferrari’s continuing conveyor belt of future F1 talents.

Story from Josh Suttil
The Race

ICM.com Become Official Partner of Scuderia Alpha Tauri

May 20, 2021
Formula One, Sponsorship, Sports Sponsorship, WHS

WH Sports have brokered ICM.com’s first partnership within F1, as the forex brand join Scuderia AlphaTauri’s F1 team on a multi-year basis.

The partnership, which begins at this weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix, will be aimed at raising global brand awareness for ICM.com. This will be achieved by running several marketing campaigns on AlphaTauri’s digital and social platforms throughout the year.

In addition, ICM.com will receive prominent branding on the race suits of drivers Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda, as well as on team kit and in the garages.

“I’m pleased to announce this exciting partnership with ICM.com who, like Scuderia AlphaTauri, operates on a global scale every day,” said Franz Tost, AlphaTauri team principal.

“As a team that competes in an international championship, we are exposed to FOREX transactions daily, which is one of the core competencies of the ICM.com business.

“It’s great to welcome such a future-oriented company to our team and we look forward to building a strong relationship together this season.”

Turkish Grand Prix cancelled as F1 reshuffles 2021 calendar

AlphaTauri have also announced a partnership with global blockchain platform Fantom.

Gasly secured a brand ambassador deal with Fantom earlier in the season, with his partnership with the company set to continue.

As part of the deal, Fantom’s logo will feature on AlphaTauri’s AT02 car during the Monaco and Abu Dhabi Grands Prix

British kart star Ollie Gray joins WH Sports ahead of single-seater debut

March 11, 2021
Driver Management, Drivers, FIA F3, FIA F4, FIA WEC, Formula One, Karting, Motorsport, Sports Sponsorship, WHS

Rising British motor racing star Ollie Gray has added another string to his bow ahead of his single-seater debut with Fortec Motorsports in the F4 British Championship certified by FIA – powered by Ford EcoBoost this year, after joining WH Sports’ stable of talented athletes.

The forthcoming campaign will represent Gray’s graduation to car racing, following a tremendously successful stint in karts. In 2019, the Chipstead-born ace won both the prestigious Motorsport UK Kartmasters Grand Prix and British Kart Championship at X30 Junior level, while simultaneously finishing as runner-up in the IAME Euro Series.

Last year, Gray stepped up to the international stage full-time under the colours of Ferrari Formula 1 driver Charles Leclerc with the Leclerc by Lennox Racing outfit. Contesting both the FIA World and European Championships as well as various WSK competitions in the OK class, he notably sped to an eye-catching victory in the WSK Euro Series at Sarno in Italy.

Now, the 15-year-old is ready to accelerate his career up through the gears after signing to race for reigning champions Fortec in Britain’s FIA Formula 4 series, which benefits from the considerable kudos and exposure of being on the ITV4-live televised British Touring Car Championship package. Not only that, but it has in the past helped to catapult the likes of current McLaren Formula 1 ace Lando Norris onto the fast track towards superstardom.

As Gray prepares to take his own first steps on the FIA single-seater ladder, the highly-rated Surrey teenager will do so with the full support of WH Sports – an organisation that has already carved out an enviable reputation in the industry for spotting and nurturing future motorsport stars. The ten-weekend British F4 season will get underway at Hampshire’s high-speed Thruxton Circuit on 8/9 May.

Ollie Gray, Athlete, WH Sports, said:

“This is a big year for me and my career. Having achieved success in karting – both nationally and internationally – I am well aware of the importance of maintaining that momentum as I move into cars. I obviously have a lot to learn in single-seaters, but I’m confident of being able to do so quickly and having a team of people around me to guide and support is a resource that will be absolutely vital. I am really happy for that to be WH Sports.”

Chris Harfield, Director, WH Sports, added:

“There’s no question that Ollie has been one of the top British karting talents in recent years, and we are delighted to be representing his career. He has excelled on the world karting scene and is now ready to tackle the next stage of his burgeoning career in British F4.

“With Richard [Dutton – Team Owner] and the entire staff at Fortec around him, Ollie will have a great environment in which to learn and progress. Fortec are hugely experienced at bringing promising young drivers on – you only need to look at some of the guys that have raced for them before, like Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen and Stoffel Vandoorne, and what they have since gone on to accomplish to appreciate the team’s enviable track record of success.

“Ollie has already conducted a number of tests in the car, the results of which have been very encouraging, and I have no doubt that he has a very exciting year ahead of him!”

Bearman joins VAR for 2021 FIA F4

January 25, 2021
Driver Management, Drivers, FIA F3, FIA F4, Formula One, Karting, Motorsport, Race Teams, Sports Sponsorship, WHS

Up-and-coming racer Ollie Bearman has taken a big step in his motorsport career by signing for leading FIA F4 team, Van Amersfoort Racing (VAR).

Chelmsford-based Bearman caught Van Amersfoort Racing’s eye during the course of a successful rookie season last year, with wins in both the German and Italian FIA F4 Championships. With VAR, Bearman should be granted many more opportunities to add to his victory tally in 2021 – not to mention challenge for title glory.

His results last year were achieved despite having the shortest preparation time for the campaign – only racing due to a pandemic-enforced delay in the motorsport calendar that allowed him to turn 15 just in time to compete in FIA F4.

His move to single-seaters was made with a mere handful of tests under his belt, yet he still out-raced and out-qualified many more experienced drivers, scoring several podiums in addition to his two wins.

VAR is a multiple title-winning outfit and following such an impressive first season in cars, the team’s CEO Rob Niessink said he was extremely happy to have Bearman on-board.

“While we were on our way to winning the championship with our Red Bull Junior drivers last year, Ollie was one of the guys always giving us a hard time, and when we subsequently tested with him in December, we immediately ‘clicked’, giving both sides confidence that our co-operation would be successful,” Niessink said. “With Ollie, alongside the other drivers that we will announce soon, we know we again have a strong line-up to fight for the title. Let’s go for it!”

Bearman’s success last year came off the back of clinching both the Junior European and Junior World karting crowns in the X30 class in 2019. The King Edward VI Grammar School student also had a triumph in the X30 Winter Cup in Valencia to his name, before taking the step up to single-seaters.

On this latest move, Bearman said: “I’m really pleased to be joining VAR for the 2021 season in F4. We had a very positive test at the end of last year and I am confident that we have the ability to be really strong together. There are a lot of good teams and drivers in F4, but our goal is to finish 2021 with a championship title. I am looking forward to getting on-track and preparing with the team for a big season ahead.”

Sophia Floersch joins WH Sports athlete roster

January 7, 2021
Driver Management, Drivers, Endurance Racing, FIA F3, FIA WEC, Formula One, Karting, Sports Sponsorship, WHS

Rising German racer Sophia Floersch is the latest addition to WH Sports’ stable of talented athletes, further endorsing the credentials of an organisation that has already carved out an enviable reputation in the industry for spotting and nurturing motorsport stars, while brokering major sponsorship deals at the very highest levels of global sport.

Following a formative career in karting, Floersch initially made a name for herself in the BTCC-supporting Ginetta Junior Championship in 2015, re-writing the record books at Thruxton by becoming not only the youngest driver ever to triumph in the single-spec series, but also the first rookie to win both races over the course of a single weekend.

The following year, she continued to make waves as the first female competitor to score points in Germany’s ADAC Formel 4 single-seater championship – this time on her debut. Two races later, she very nearly reached the rostrum.

A second season in the series in 2017 yielded a brace of podium finishes and fastest laps, before Floersch was catapulted firmly into the global spotlight – quite literally – on 18 November, 2018. While contesting the famous Macau Grand Prix, contact with another car on the main straight resulted in a front-left suspension failure that pitched her sideways into the notorious Lisboa Bend at more than 170mph. Flying over the catch fencing, the spectacular impact left the 20-year-old with a spinal fracture that required surgery.

Demonstrating her steely resolve to succeed, barely 100 days later, Floersch was back behind the wheel and back on-track, in recognition of which, she was presented with the ‘World Comeback of the Year’ accolade at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.

Last year, she again made history – twice – as the first woman to race in the current FIA Formula 3 Championship and as a member of the first all-female crew to enter the LMP2 category in the legendary Le Mans 24 Hours, widely regarded as one of the toughest races on the planet. Sharing the Richard Mille Racing Team prototype with Tatiana Calderón and Beitske Visser, the Bavaria-born ace impressively placed ninth in-class out of the 17 LMP2 finishers, underscoring her raw pace, rapid learning abilities and versatility.

As she prepares to take the next step in her career in 2021, Floersch will do so with the full support of WH Sports – and she is excited to begin working with the agency.

Sophia Floersch, Official Athlete, WH Sports, said:

“I am very happy to be working with WH Sports moving forward. It’s important in such a relationship that we enjoy working together and share the same mindset. I want to drive for the best teams to have the best chance of winning. I want to get to the top and I am going to do everything I can to achieve that. I will participate in every training and preparation session, simply because I love it.

“I think in WH Sports, I have found the right agency and most importantly, the right people to help me to reach my maximum – from the management side to coaching both at and away from the track, nutrition and mental help. They will help me in every small aspect to make me a better all-round athlete.

“For me, it’s important to be able to prove what I am capable of – winning and driving great races. Motorsport is about opportunities and making the best of them, and WH Sports will help me to secure those opportunities to show what I can do. The upcoming years are very significant for my career, and it’s good to have people with a lot of knowledge about the sport around me. This isn’t about being the best woman – it’s about beating the men.”

Chris Harfield, Director, WH Sports, added:

“We are all delighted and excited to welcome Sophia on-board at WH Sports. Since the start of her career, Sophia has achieved great things in motorsport. Her focus and determination to reach the very top of the sport is something I really admire, and she is a great role model and example to future generations of motor racing drivers. She works extremely hard on the track and equally hard off the track, being a brand ambassador for many multi-national companies. At the age of just 20, Sophia is breaking records in every series she enters, and we have no doubt that trend will continue.

“The accident in Macau would have ended the career of many a less determined driver, but above all else, Sophia is a fighter and she simply refused to let it hold her back or define her. Her attitude and approach are exemplary, and in what has traditionally been a male-dominated sport, she is increasingly breaking down barriers and outperforming her male counterparts in equal machinery.

“Sophia has no interest in being the best female driver on the grid – she wants to be recognised, irrespective of gender – and for that, she is to be thoroughly commended. We have assembled a team around Sophia that will equip her with everything she requires to continue forging her way to the pinnacle of the sport, and we are looking forward to our journey together!”

WH Sports appoints ex-F1 Sporting Manager to fulfil key management role

December 28, 2020
Aquisition, Driver Management, Drivers, FIA F3, FIA WEC, Formula One, Indycar, Motorsport, Sports Sponsorship, WHS

Multi-faceted sports agency WH Sports has appointed Enzo Mucci as its Sporting Director, with the former single-seater and sportscar racer set to head up the organisation’s driver development programme going into 2021.

Mucci began his motorsport career behind the steering wheel, winning multiple national championships prior to specialising in sport-specific performance coaching in 2004.

Between 2004 and 2006, Enzo served as a BMW Scholarship Programme Coach, stepping up to the role of BMW European Chief Coach for the following two years. From 2008 to 2010, Mucci was a Performance Coach for Gravity Sport Management, before joining Lotus Renault F1’s Junior Team as Sporting Manager between 2010 and 2012.

Over the past two decades, the 44-year-old Briton has worked with drivers that have competed in Formula 1, North America’s IndyCar Series, the FIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC), the pan-European DTM touring car series and FIA Formula E, including 2020 F1 stars Esteban Ocon and Romain Grosjean, two-time DTM Champion Marco Wittmann, fellow DTM front-runner Christian Vietoris and Formula E race-winner Alexander Sims.

Mucci leverages his experience and expertise to help drivers improve their mental strength, technical understanding and performance both inside and out of the cockpit, teaching them the specific personal skills required to win in motor racing and forge a successful long-term career in the sport.

His appointment by WH Sports adds to the kudos of an organisation that has already carved out an enviable reputation in the industry for spotting and nurturing the next generation of motorsport stars, while simultaneously brokering high-profile sports sponsorship agreements.

 

Enzo Mucci, Sporting Director, WH Sports, said:

“I have always admired the way in which WH Sports has helped drivers over the years. The WHS team offers a truly professional service, which is evident in the outstanding results its drivers have achieved across a variety of championships and disciplines.

“For a driver to succeed, it is imperative that they have the right people around them. They need a team of people who are commercially astute, have a large network and can help to improve their overall performance. In joining WH Sports, I can confidently say that we can give drivers everything they need to develop and maintain a successful racing career.”

 

Chris Harfield, Director, WH Sports, added:

“We are immensely proud to confirm Enzo as WH Sports’ new Sporting Director. He has been a leading professional in relation to developing top-class drivers for more than two decades, and he brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the table, to assist both our current and future drivers.

“As Sporting Director, Enzo will be overseeing the ‘on-track’ aspects of our drivers’ careers and ensuring that the environments in which we place them, provide them with the opportunity to succeed. Whilst as an agency, we believe we are an industry leader in the commercial and sponsorship space, Enzo’s appointment will enable us to provide our drivers with an edge on the sporting side, which is something we are all really excited about.”

REBELLION RACING ACE DENIED PODIUM BY MECHANICAL MISFORTUNE

REBELLION RACING ACE DENIED PODIUM BY MECHANICAL MISFORTUNE

March 25, 2019
Drivers, FIA F3, FIA WEC, Formula One, Gustavo Menezes, Motorsport, Race Teams, Red Bull, Sponsorship, Sports Sponsorship, WHS

Gustavo Menezes put on a spectacular show for the appreciative home crowd in last weekend’s 1,000 Miles of Sebring – round six of the fiercely-disputed 2018/19 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) – but mechanical woes ultimately denied the talented young American a popular podium result.

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