A teenage racing driver from Northern Ireland has received an exciting opportunity to join the Red Bull Racing academy, a renowned Formula 1 team.
Fionn McLaughlin, 16, from Magherafelt, emerged from a highly competitive evaluation week, being one of 11 candidates invited from various countries, including the UK, Ireland, France, Italy, Netherlands, Sweden, Lebanon, and Mexico.
From this talented group, McLaughlin and Sweden’s Scott Lindblom were the first drivers selected for the program.
The three-day evaluation took place at the Jerez circuit in Spain, where aspiring drivers tested open-wheel F4 and GP3 racing cars in a shootout format.
Joining the Red Bull junior driver development program aligns McLaughlin with current F1 drivers like Max Verstappen, Carlos Sainz, and Daniel Ricciardo.
McLaughlin began his karting journey at the age of five and was competing in various championships across Ireland by the age of seven. He has achieved success at British, European, and world levels and is currently competing in the OK class, representing Kart Republic with the VDK racing team.
He has claimed victories in his last two events, including the German round of the IAME Euro Series in Wackersdorf and the Champions of the Future event in Kristianstad, Sweden.
Despite his young age, McLaughlin’s notable achievements include being the vice-champion of the 2022 British Karting Championships and the vice-champion of the 2022 IAME World Games.
In 2023, he participated in the CIK-FIA European Championships, finishing seventh overall in his first year in the category, and also competed in the 2023 FIA Karting World Championship.
“My goal in racing is to be a world champion,” said McLaughlin. “I never give up and I work hard until I’m at the top. I will keep working until I’m there.”
He cited former F1 champion Sebastian Vettel, a graduate of the Red Bull junior driver program, as his racing role model. “The driver that got me into racing was Sebastian Vettel,” he added. “He has always been an inspiration to me.”
