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At Motorsport Tickets, we know there’s so much more to racing than what you might see on TV. Every weekend, young hopefuls battle it out to learn their craft, and work their way up to the pinnacles of motorsport. To find out what it takes to make it, we’re following the story of British F3 driver Louis Foster.
This is the first of a regular blog series where Louis will tell us how he balances life and racing. From his education to keeping fit, to the sacrifices it takes to make it, Louis will take us closer to the life of a racing driver.
Firstly, I’d like to thank the team at Motorsport Tickets for following my story this year in BRDC British F3. It’s another big step for me and in the early stages of my career, but one I am hugely excited about and already really enjoying. Before we get to that though, I suppose I should give a little bit of insight into who I am and how I got to this point!
As I’m 17, I’m still in full-time education. This year was my first year of A-Levels at Lord Wandsworth College. The school is fantastically supportive as it can be difficult managing school work alongside my racing. Quite often, I have to miss a few days every other week as we travel to different races or go testing. But that just means I have to hold up my end of the bargain and put in the extra hours to catch up!
Last year was a particularly big one for me. I was challenging for the British F4 title while completing my GCSEs at the same time. It was a case of finishing an exam on a Thursday morning, walking out the exam hall, and jumping straight in the car to drive to the track to get ready for the race weekend! It was stressful at times, but we made it work: I came out with some great grades and finished third in the championship.
Image credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography
My first time behind a wheel was when I was six years old. My dad, Nick, is a former driver himself so motorsport was always a big thing in my life growing u. It was no surprise when I got into karting at a young age. I dabbled in karting around the UK, but things started to get a little more serious when I got a bit older and moved into cars.
In 2017, I started out in the Ginetta Junior Championship, taking part in the last three rounds. I loved every second of it, so set about making sure I could come back for the whole season the next year.
That went really well, I finished as vice-champion and set a few records along the way; I became the youngest driver to ever win a race as I was just 14 when the season started. Not just that, but I was also the first driver to win all three races in a weekend, and the first to win five races in a row. As seasons go, it was a fantastic experience.
Every year of my career, I’ve made the step up to a new series. From Ginetta Juniors in 2018, I stepped up to British F4 in 2019, and I’ve done the same in moving up to British F3 this year.
I thrive on the learning curve and aim to improve myself every step along the way. It’s a method that works really for me, I won on my first weekend in British F4 last year and took a double pole position and my first podium on my British F3 debut a few weeks ago at Oulton Park.
Image credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography
I learn something new every time I get in the car, and spend a lot of my spare time going to the gym, out bike riding, and playing rugby and hockey at school. It all helps me stay as fit as I can be physically to handle the car.
We’ve got the year off to a positive start and it’s the second round of the season this weekend at Donington Park this weekend, so I’ve been busy preparing for that.
I know that I am one of the most inexperienced drivers on the grid but that isn’t stopping me and the Double R Racing team from doing all we can to be fighting it out at the front!