ANNOUNCEMENT OF 2023 BRDC SUPERSTARS

BRDC SuperStars 2023

The British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) is delighted to announce the full roster of talented youngsters on its prestigious BRDC SuperStars programme for the 2023 motor sport season. It has focused on developing the most promising young British drivers for 16 straight years, positioned above the Club’s introductory Young Driver programme, the BRDC Rising Stars.

Founded in 2008, a host of talented young drivers from single seaters to touring cars and endurance racing have been selected to be part of the programme, benefitting from the unique experience and guidance the scheme has to offer, both from the BRDC’s Members themselves, as well as tailored training, development, and fitness programmes. Former BRDC SuperStars have gone on to race in Formula 1, at Le Mans, and earned factory drives.

Andy Meyrick continues his role as BRDC SuperStars Director in 2023, having himself been on the programme from 2009-2011, meaning he has first-hand knowledge of the benefits that can be gained from fellow BRDC Members.

Joining the BRDC SuperStars for the first time this year will be Adam Smalley, Callum Voisin, and Louis Foster, while Kiern Jewiss makes a return, having been a BRDC SuperStar in 2019 and 2020.

Adam, previously a BRDC Rising Star, is the current Porsche GB Junior Driver and finished runner up in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB last season, his first in the series. A successful karter, the Lancastrian won the Ginetta Junior Scholarship in 2016, clinched the Ginetta Junior Winter Series in 2017, the Ginetta Junior Championship in 2018, and the Ginetta GT4 SuperCup in 2021. He returns to the Carrera Cup this season, joining leading outfit Team Parker Racing for a title push.

Callum, also a previous BRDC Rising Star, excelled in 2022, just his second year out of karting, as he scored three victories in the GB3 Championship Partnered by the BRDC, had six podium finishes, and clinched five pole positions which earned him the Jack Cavill Pole Position Cup. In 2021 he had seven victories in the Ginetta Junior Championship as well as nine Rookie wins and has his eyes firmly on the GB3 title this time out, as he returns with Carlin.

Louis comes into 2023 as the Indy Pro champion, a finalist in the Aston Martin Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award (AMABA) and received the Henry Surtees Award for the most outstanding performance by a BRDC Rising Star. A race winner in the Ginetta Junior Championship, MRF Formula 2000, Euroformula Open, and Indy Pro, Louis will be a force to reckon with in Indy NXT (formerly Indy Lights), the main feeder championship to the IndyCar Series, as he joins top team Andretti Autosport this year.

Finally, Kiern makes a return to the BRDC SuperStars after two outstanding seasons in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB, where he clinched the Rookie title in 2021 and followed up with the overall championship last season. He dominated the F4 British Championship in 2018, claiming six wins en route to the title and was a race winner in what is now the GB3 Championship, before switching to sportscars. His exciting plans for 2023 are yet to be publicly confirmed, but he will remain one to keep an eye on.

Coming back as BRDC SuperStars this year will be Ollie Bearman, Luke Browning, Jonny Edgar, Tom Gamble, Harry King, Zak O’Sullivan, Seb Priaulx, and Matthew Rees.

Ollie makes the step up to the FIA Formula 2 Championship this season, remaining with Prema Racing, and continues to be a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy. He was a race winner in the FIA Formula 3 Championship in 2022, finishing on the podium eight times, and was an AMABA finalist.

Remaining in FIA Formula 3 will be Zak O’Sullivan and Jonny Edgar, both of whom will compete with new teams this season. Zak, who enjoyed his first laps aboard F1 machinery in an Aston Martin AMR21 at Silverstone in October – part of his AMABA prize – joins Prema Racing, while Jonny, who made a remarkable return at Silverstone in July after being diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease early last year, joins MP Motorsport.

Luke had the 2022 of his dreams, not only being crowned the GB3 champion with five wins and 13 podiums but winning the Aston Martin Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award. His plans for this year are yet to be announced, but he has been keeping sharp in the early months of 2023, taking part in the Virtual 24 Hours of Le Mans and rounds of the Formula Regional Middle East Championship.

Also in single seaters, Matthew Rees makes a return to the GB3 Championship after claiming one victory and two podium finishes last season. Having clinched both the Rookie and Drivers’ titles in the F4 British Championship in 2021 he will aim to be a title challenger this time out, continuing with JHR Developments as he looks to consistently finish at the front.

Tom was a race winner and podium finisher in the European Le Mans Series in 2022, also adding GT performances in the Asian Le Mans Series and at the Daytona 24 Hours in an impressive resume for a 21-year-old. Seb, meanwhile, clinched two GTE Am victories in the FIA World Endurance Championship during 2022 and raced at Daytona as part of a full IMSA campaign this year, albeit hampered by Porsche’s Balance of Performance constraints.

Finally, Harry will race in the Porsche Carrera Cup Germany with Allied Racing this season, aiming for the championship title. He dominated the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux in 2022, scoring nine victories in ten races, and was victorious at the 6H Abu Dhabi in January, his first endurance win. He will also return to the Porsche Supercup after a successful 2022 in the championship. His programme has yet to be announced but he will surely be a title contender.

The 12 drivers make up some of the United Kingdom’s brightest motorsport talents and will proudly carry the BRDC SuperStars badge throughout 2023, promoting the Club and its young driver programmes to the rest of the world.

Adam Smalley

“To be recognised by such a prestigious club is an amazing achievement for myself and it's a privilege to be on the programme. Looking at the list of drivers who have been a SuperStar and gone very far in motorsport means I'm really looking forward to working with the programme and Andy to further my career.

“I'm really looking forward to coming up with a bespoke programme to see the elements I need to work on. It’ll be great to gain knowledge from the likes of Andy and BRDC Members, giving me that help and advice so I can go further and see what's required on and off the circuit to be a professional racing driver. Andy has had a great deal of experience, as in GTs and in LMP racing, which is the avenue that I want to go down. If I can gain some of his knowledge and advice it is going to be very valuable to me and I'll be working hard to make the most of this opportunity.”

Callum Voisin

“It's a great opportunity and to be chosen for such an elite group of young and up and coming drivers is really something quite special, so I can't wait to get involved and get started. I had a chat with Andy then met him a few days later, and he told me about how it works, and how it's the in between part from your junior career to trying to become a professional racing driver.

“There are so many BRDC Members who are rich in experience and who know what to do in different cars, so with me only having driven single seaters so far, it'll definitely help in the future. Testing has been really good ahead of the GB3 Championship season and there's only really one aim and that is to win. I'm excited to get the season started.”

Louis Foster

“I’m super excited to be a part of the BRDC Superstars programme for the 2023 season. It’s a real privilege to be selected amongst the best drivers Britain has to offer and to be amongst such a talented group of people. I’m looking forward to working with Andy and the team ahead of my 2023 Indy NXT campaign with Andretti Autosport and representing the Club and the SuperStars in the United States.

“For me to be able to draw on the experience and knowledge of BRDC Members on top of the Andretti family here in the States means a lot to me and I hope I can make everyone proud as I get up to speed as quickly as I can in Indy NXT. I know this year will be a big step up, but I am confident that the team and I are ready for the challenge and that I can do the BRDC proud.”

Kiern Jewiss

“It is really nice to be back as a BRDC SuperStar. It was disappointing losing my place before, but as I didn't even finish the season last time it wasn’t too surprising. I am a lot more certain where I am going in my career now, whereas at that point I was going with the flow and seeing what happened.

“I’m happy that a strong season in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB has been good enough to earn me a place back on programme and I feel like I am back to where I was a few years ago. Hopefully, It's a real pleasure to be part of such a prestigious Club and I'm very grateful to be invited back. I’m on a much more structured route and pathway for where I want to go at this point, so hopefully it provides a bit more security for me in the future.”

To keep up to date with BRDC SuperStars activities, and their achievements on-track, please consider following the Programme's Twitter and Instagram channels.