Ferrari Driver Academy launches in Australia

Fancy yourself as the next Charles Leclerc or Carlos Sainz? Motorsport Australia has some good news.

Aspiring Formula 1 drivers in Australia will soon have an opportunity to be part of Scuderia Ferrari’s global driver development program.

Motorsport Australia has teamed up with the Prancing Horse to develop an Asia Pacific/Oceania pool for the Ferrari Driver Academy.

Open to Asia Pacific applicants from more than 20 countries including Australia, the development program is designed for aspiring racers aged 14 to 17.

Once successfully completing an initial testing phase, applicants will be based out of a new purpose-built facility within the Sydney Motorsport Park in western Sydney to commence their training.

“A select number of the best drivers from the initial group will then be invited to continue in the next stages of the program, where Motorsport Australia and FDA will come together to determine the best two drivers of the year from our region,” Motorsport Australia said in a release.

“Those top two drivers will then be invited to Ferrari’s Fiorano racetrack in Italy, where they will compete against drivers from academies around the world. The winning driver from the various academies will then be offered a drive with FDA in a European Formula 4 Championship.”

Officials say construction of a new $6.5 million Sydney Motorsport Park facility, which was also originally slated as a home for a Sydney-based Supercars team under a NSW government plan, will begin in the coming months.

The Sydney-based academy will use a fleet of Formula 4 racing cars and potentially karts across the SMP circuits. Classroom-based theory lessons will be undertaken in the new $6.5 million facility, along with workshop repairs.

“Our up-and-coming open wheel drivers will now have an even better opportunity to be part of the Formula 1 system at an early age,” said Motorsport Australia president Andrew Papadopoulos.

“Australians have proven throughout history that they can compete with the best in the world – and ultimately we believe this program will help us find the next Daniel Ricciardo or Mark Webber, and hopefully the next Australian FIA Formula 1 World Champion.

“Ferrari has a proud and wonderful history in motorsport and are arguably the team most young drivers aspire to be a part of. We are delighted to be partnering with FDA and look forward to developing a strong relationship between our two organisations.”

For its part, Ferrari says the academy will help identify young drivers from within the Asia Pacific region that may otherwise slip through the cracks.

Like most forms of motorsport, however, the academy will incur some expense on the part of the drivers and their families, with travel to and from Australia to be handled by the applicants themselves.

“Today’s signing with Motorsport Australia, after the partnerships already established with the Italian Motoring Federation ACI and with Karting world powerhouse TonyKart, is a key step forward in our Scouting Strategy in order to ensure that we continue to secure the best talent of the future,” said Laurent Mekies, head of Ferrari Driver Academy.

Countries that will be part of the Oceania Ferrari Driver Academy based in Australia include: Australia, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei, Philippines, Japan, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and China.