16-year-old Derryman Fionn McLaughlin has become one of the first young drivers signed to the elite Red Bull Junior Driver team as part of their ongoing Red Bull Driver Search.
The reigning Formula 1 world champions are on the lookout for the next generation of F1 stars, and held a worldwide scouting mission in order to find the next entrants into their prestigious driver academy.
11 drivers between the ages of 13 and 16 from around the world were invited to a three-day event at the famous Jerez Circuit in Spain, where they were tested for the first time in a Formula car.
The end result has seen young McLaughlin signed to one of the most successful academies in motorsport.
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16-year-old Derryman Fionn McLaughlin signs for Red Bull F1 academy
Fionn McLaughlin during the Red Bull Driver Search in Jerez, Spain on July 30, 2024.
The three-day test event was run by Red Bull Motorsports Advisor Helmut Marko, who will no doubt be familiar to regular viewers of Formula 1.
11 drivers were put to the test in Formula 4 and GP3 cars on the Circuito de Jerez and, at the end of the three-day session, Sweden's Scott Lindblom and Ireland's Fionn McLaughlin became the latest names to join the famous Red Bull junior team.
McLaughlin, from Magherafelt in Derry, will make the step up from karting to Formula 4 from next season on. His karting career began at the age of five, and he has had impressive performances thus far in the British Karting Championship and the FIA Karting World Championships.
Speaking after the session, Helmut Marko said, "We are looking for both talent and speed, a driver to win a Grand Prix. We are really focused on how good these drivers are under pressure and on qualifying simulations.
"We don’t buy stars, we make stars. We give them the chance – they can use our simulators in Milton Keynes, they will have support with training and nutrition. It’s perfect preparation for Formula 1."
For Derry youngster McLaughlin, this is an enormous opportunity. However, the 16-year-old showed impressive confidence in sharing his desire to go all the way to the top in Formula 1.
My goal in racing is to be a world champion. I never give up; I work hard until I’m at the top. I will keep working until I’m there.
The driver that got me into racing was Sebastian Vettel. He has always been an inspiration to me.
If McLaughlin can have half the career Vettel had, he will be a star of the sport for years to come.
German legend Vettel is one of the most prominent drivers to have come up through the ranks at Red Bull, having joined their junior karting programme in 1998 and stepping up to open-wheel cars when the junior driver programme in 2003.
Vettel would go on to break into Formula 1 in 2007, taking 53 race wins and four world championships during a prestigious 15-year-long career.
Current world champion and Red Bull driver Max Verstappen is another famed graduate of the junior driver programme.
Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel are both former graduates of the Red Bull driver academy (Photo: Shutterstock)
Verstappen joined the driver programme midway through 2014 and, just a year later, was in a Toro Rosso race seat in Formula 1. A year later, he would win his first F1 race at just 18 years of age for Red Bull, and he has since gone on to win three world championships.
Fellow academy graduates Daniel Ricciardo, Carlos Sainz, and Pierre Gasly have all won Grands Prix and continue to race in F1 to this day.
The news of Fionn McLaughlin joining the Red Bull Junior Team follows the recent news of Offaly's Alex Dunne signing with the McLaren Driver Academy.
This is certainly an exciting time for Irish motorsport.
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