Motorsport Week spoke to Williams Academy Driver Luke Browning shortly after his accomplished debut in the FIA Formula 2 Championship in Azerbaijan to discuss his career to date and aspirations for the 2025 season and beyond.

Many heads have turned due to the exploits of Franco Colapinto, Williams’ Academy prospect excelling in Formula 1 after his mid-season debut at Monza. The future is clearly bright for Colapinto, and the strength of Williams’ Academy is evident through the Argentine’s results. Next in line on the Williams pipeline is rising star Luke Browning.

How Luke Browning attracted the interest of Williams

Browning’s rise in single-seaters has been littered with success. The Briton secured the British F4 title in 2020 and backed it up with title success in GB3 during his 2022 campaign. A Williams Academy deal came calling in 2023 as he embarked on his maiden season with Hitech in the FIA Formula 3 World Championship. Browning ended 2023 by winning the world-famous Macau Grand Prix, a race won by Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher and David Coulthard in years gone by.

His rise through the junior ladder hasn’t gone unnoticed and Browning won the coveted Autosport Young Driver Award in 2022 and turned heads during his prize-winning test in the Aston Martin AMR21 at Silverstone a year later.

Winning that award was key to Browning’s career, attracting Williams’ interest.

“I think having the opportunity to go against, I mean, such big names now like Ollie Bearman and Louis Foster’s [who has] just won the Indy NXT title, to win it against those guys really put my name out there and showed to Williams that, ‘hey, you can do a good job,'” Browning told Motorsport Week. “I think also the F1 test I managed to get, it was super successful. I think that’s really what attracted what attracted Williams.”

Oliver Oakes is crucial to Luke Browning’s success

Browning credits Hitech, and its founder Oliver Oakes, who manages his career, as key to advancing his motorsport journey.

“The biggest thing is being a part of Hitech. Ollie Oakes is obviously a massive name in the paddock now being a Team Principal of Alpine and has been my manager for a few years. He’s been looking after me and he’s been a massive, massive help to my career. I think without him, it wouldn’t be possible. He’s the one that picked me up and said, ‘hey, I think this kid’s got something’.”

Being a part of the Williams Academy is a massive boost for Browning, who lives just five minutes from the F1 team’s Grove headquarters.

“I’m in when I’m called upon to do simulator work,” Browning explained. “It’s just awesome being close by. I’ve got the opportunity to learn from experienced engineers and I think the main thing is just being in and around the team. You know, I go to the gym every day in the team and just experience what a Formula 1 team is like. For a 22-year-old, that’s so impressive. Walking into the Williams factory and going, ‘hey, this could be a focus of me over many years’ time’. It’s quite exciting, really. You see everyone, so many people working towards a combined goal and it’s really interesting to see it from a slightly outside perspective.”

Through Williams, Browning has been able to develop on the world stage and after a year finding his feet on new circuits and a new car in his 2023 F3 campaign, the Briton pushed on in 2024.

Browning ‘didn’t achieve’ F3 title goal

Browning burst out of the starting blocks with victory in the 2024 F3 season opener at Bahrain and maintained a title challenge through to the final round of the year, just coming up short at the final hurdle. Still, two wins, three podiums and third in the championship is a fine result.

Moreover, Browning’s exploits granted him a mid-season F2 debut at Baku with Art Grand Prix. So, was the F3 campaign a case of mission accomplished? Not quite.

“I’m only here to win, to be honest. That’s what I wanted to do this year. That was the goal. We didn’t achieve it, to be truthful. We had the most pole positions. We were so, so fast in the races. There were races that we dominated in the middle of the year. I think if you look at it, if Silverstone had gone the other way, we’d have won the championship.

“If, if, if, if, if. What [Leonardo] Fornaroli did on [the] last lap to clinch the title was fantastic and he deserved it. He was the deserving champion. He did a great job and it just shows how tight this year is. Five drivers could win it coming into the last round. I think it was the highest-performing second-year driver season ever in Formula 3. We had the highest points total over the top four drivers. It was naturally going to be really tight.

“You didn’t really have anyone dominating and getting wins. I was really proud of the middle of the year where we had back-to-back pole positions. In Bahrain, we came out and made a statement in the first race. If I hadn’t crashed in Monaco, we could have been on pole and that would have won the race. But, no, I’m happy with the result. I’m happy with third. Ultimately, it’s given me the super licence points I need for F1 free practice if it’s possible. I’m one step closer and it’s given me the ability to move up.”

Stepping up to F2

Browning made an accomplished F2 debut at Baku, a track he’d never raced at before. After finishing 11th in the Sprint, Browning got his maiden F2 points in the Feature race with seventh, showing he’s well adept at stepping up to the next level.

“It was incredible, really. I got a call on Sunday after Monza that said, ‘right, next week you’re in Baku racing Formula 2’. So, yeah, a bit of a shock. But a really welcome shock. I love the opportunity to hop into something having never driven it. I’d never driven an F2 car. I’d never tested anything. I’d done nothing. So I was getting into it going, ‘OK, brand new team, brand new car, it’s going to be difficult’. But I think we made the most out of it. P7 in the feature race in my first race in F2. I’m happy. And I think it could have been a lot better.”

Browning has two more rounds with ART GP in 2024, Qatar and Abu Dhabi, to continue his F2 education in preparation for an expected full campaign at his spiritual home, Hitech.

Williams’ British prospect is well aware of the peril facing F2 drivers on their quest to reach F1 and how those who excel straight away are given preferential treatment. As a result, Browning’s target in 2025 is simple, to go all in for the F2 title.

“Formula 2, you’ve got one year to do it, is the way that I look at it. You look at the second and third-year drivers that have won the championship and they’ve just not been given the opportunities. For me, the goal is to win it in the first year and I’ll be well prepared for it. I’ll have the correct amount of testing. I’ve had three rounds prior before going into the start of the season. I’m in the best place I could be. And I’m lucky to be surrounded by people that are supporting me. So the goal at the moment is to learn as much off of ART as I can.”

Luke Browning targeting F1 with Williams

Browning has his mind on one thing, to succeed as much as possible to reach F1 as soon as possible. Colapinto has benefitted from Williams’ support, scoring points in just his second Grand Prix and giving team-mate Alex Albon a run for his money. Browning can’t help but be encouraged by the Argentine’s example.

“What’s fantastic is sometimes the name of rookies has been tarred a little bit over the past four or five years, whatever it may be. And now it’s showing that the team principals are really getting into the rookies. You’re seeing rookies get in and be within a tenth of Albon. That’s crazy, you know. So it shows that it’s possible. What’s really nice is that Williams takes the leap to bring the junior drivers through. James [Vowles] has said he wants to bring them from his own stable, which is super nice. I feel like that. I feel nurtured. I feel supported. And I feel like what Williams is doing is making us well-prepared. So I can understand why Colopinto has done so well getting in for the first time and I’d hope to do the same.”

There’s talk that Colapinto could be loaned by a rival team to continue his F1 journey and with Oakes in his corner, Browning potentially has Alpine as a route into F1 too. However, Browning is clear on the team he wants to make his F1 debut with.

“Williams is my sole focus. What’s amazing is I feel nurtured, and the opportunity will come. There’s no harm with having a year as a reserve driver and doing a year of testing before hopping in. I think the main thing is to make sure that when you get in, you’re ready and you can do it. That’s what Colapinto’s acclimatised so well to, hopping in and doing it. It just shows the standard of the Formula 2 grid at the moment. I mean, he was P6 in Formula 2 and he’s gone in and is doing that. It shows what the other drivers on the grid would do if they were getting into a Formula 1 car. Look at, for example, [Kimi] Antonelli. Outside the top-10 in the first half of his year in the championship and he’s signed for Mercedes. It shows that as long as you’re performing in that Formula 1 car and you’ve got the super licence points, there are possibilities.”

If Browning’s career so far is anything to go by, if allowed to test with Williams or hop into the team’s 2025 car during a free practice session, he too can show he’s ready to join the Grand Prix elite.

READ MORE – Luke Browning claims dramatic F3 British GP pole position

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Christian Mansell and Luke Browning will make their FIA Formula 2 debuts in Baku this weekend after both men impressed in Formula 3 this year.

Australian Mansell, who finished fifth with ART in the final F3 standings, will take the place of Roman Stanek at Trident, whilst Williams Academy driver Browning, who fell just short of the title in third, will take Zak O’Sullivan’s drive at ART.

Upon the news of his promotion, Mansell said: “I can’t wait to make my FIA Formula 2 debut with Trident Motorsport.

“I’m extremely happy to race with this Italian team on the Baku street circuit and in the next two events before the end of the season. It will be a fiery debut on a challenging track like the Azerbaijani one, but I must confess I’m more excited than nervous.”

Team Manager Giacomo Ricci said: “We are extremely delighted to field Australian driver Christian Mansell in the next three rounds of the FIA Formula 2 Championship. I consider him one of the most talented emerging drivers we have seen this year in the FIA Formula 3 Championship, where he was in contention for the title until the final round in Monza.

“Christian is a complete driver, quick in qualifying, and extremely good at managing tyres and overtaking. Making his debut in Baku will certainly be an ambitious goal, not easy at all.

“We have carried out dedicated preparation work with him, and I am convinced that it will pay dividends, especially if there will be no interruptions in the free practice session. I am sure there are all the conditions to do well.”

Browning’s inclusion at ART transpired through O’Sullivan’s incapability to complete the year due to funding issues.

Writing on his X account, O’Sullivan, a fellow Williams Academy driver, said: “Firstly, I want to thank ART GP and Williams Racing for all of the support they have given me. This year we have had some incredible moments, multiple wins and a big highlight of winning the feature race in Monaco.

“Unfortunately in our sport, there are more factors at play than just the stopwatch. The simple issue comes down to funding, I won’t be able to complete this F2 season with ART GP.

“I’m gutted to not be able to show my talents for the rest of the year, but I want to say thank you to all of my sponsors, Williams and all of the supporters who are alongside me during this journey. Your support has been invaluable and I can’t wait to be able to drive for you and with you again soon.”

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Hitech driver Luke Browning converted his pole position into a Formula 3 Feature race win worth the lead of the Championship. Prema’s Gabriele Mini and Dino Beganovic completed the podium places.

While Tim Tramnitz dropped to P7 after being close to going into anti-stall during the start, Browning kept his lead relatively comfortably.

Right behind, Beganovic overtook multiple cars, including his teammate Arvid Lindblad to go from fifth to second place, chasing the race lead.

It was a two-three-four for Prema Racing after the first few laps of the race, with Beganovic followed by Lindblad and Mini.

Noel Leon, who started from 13th on the grid had a spectacular start and first few laps, moving up to sixth splitting the two Campos cars of Oliver Goethe and Sebastian Montoya.

Alex Dunne was also on the hunt during the first stage of the race, as he moved two places up from ninth to get past Nikola Tsolov and Montoya.

On Lap 7, Leon managed to sweep Dunne to keep making places, claiming fifth. Meanwhile, Montoya went to the pits to retire his car after contact with Tramnitz.

While the two leading Prema cars stayed in their positions, Lindblad descended to seventh after Goethe collided with his rear going into Turn 3, causing a bad exit for the Briton.

The incident was noted by the FIA briefly, with an investigation into the Montoya and Tramnitz incident also announced shortly after.

The first virtual safety car was summoned on Lap 12 as Campos driver Mari Boya, who won the Sprint Race at the last event in Spain, collided with Nikita Bedrin into Turn 3.

After a very brief VSC, the race was green-flagged and Leon wasted no time trying to make more places and move up into the podium.

Nonetheless, he had contact with Goethe and caused a puncture on his VAR Motorsport car, causing him to go into the gravel and lose everything he gained at the early stages of the race.

Tramnitz received a 10-second time penalty over his incident with Montoya with Dunne following briefly after with the same penalty for causing a collision. The MP driver was running in fifth and the penalty would make him drop off the point-scoring positions.

Boya also got a 10-second time penalty for his incident with Bedrin.

In the lead of the race, while Browning led all laps relatively comfortably until Lap 17, he started to get heavily pressured by Beganovic, who was close to the Briton’s mirrors.

The gap between the race leader and the Prema car was down to two-tenths into Lap 18, with Beganovic waiting for his opportunity to try a move for the lead.

Christian Mansell, who was running surrounded by his ART teammates for the majority of the race made the move on both Tsolov and Lindblad for sixth.

The charge didn’t stop there for Mansell, as he swept Goethe to claim fifth place with five laps to go.

Meanwhile, in the lead, Browning kept ahead relatively smoothly but Beganovic was still less than half a second behind, looking for an opportunity to make a move.

Nonetheless, Beganovic was the one under the thread as Mini tried to claim second place with a move into Turn 3.

Ultimately, the Swedish driver kept his place with only two laps to go, successfully defending from Mini and Mansell, who were looking to get into the podium places.

This didn’t last long, as Mini was able to move past his Prema teammate with a fantastic move around the outside of Turn 4.

Nonetheless, Beganovic fought back with a move into Turn 3 on the last lap, with Mini re-gaining the place again repeating his move into Turn 4.

This battle granted a huge gap to Browning, who comfortably crossed the line in first, moving into the lead of the Formula 3 Drivers’ Championship.

Prema completed the podium after their fantastic fight for second between their drivers, with Mini bringing it home ahead of Beganovic.

Mansell, disappointed after what he felt was a missed shot for the win yesterday during the Sprint, just missed on the podium places and had to settle with fourth. Nonetheless, It was an impressive comeback from eleventh on the grid.

Right behind was Goethe in fifth, with ART’s Tsolov finishing sixth after his win on Saturday.

Lindblad, Laurens Van Hoepen, Leonardo Fornaroli, and Dunne completed the top-10 after the penalties were all applied.

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Williams prospect Luke Browning powered through concerns about technical issues to hold off Christian Mansell to take the win in Formula 3’s Bahrain Feature race.

Polesitter Beganovic got off to a disastrous start, dropping to the midfield while Browning in the Hitech sped past to lead the entire pack into the first corner.

Red Bull Junior Tim Tramnintz climbed from seventh to third with an excellent first corner, while Sami Meguetounif found a place on the podium by the second lap.

Browning led as chaos ensued behind, with Campos’ Mari Boya picking up a rear left puncture from a collision before collecting a five-second penalty for speeding in the pitlane.

As DRS opened on Lap 2, the battle commenced between the top runners as Mansell dived around the inside of Meguetounif before setting his sights on Tramnitz.

The Hitech driver established a strong lead while Mansell snatched the second podium place from Tramnitz to leave him vulnerable to Meguetounif tailing behind.

Tramnitz and Meguetounif relived their FRECA fights on track, with Meguetounif eventually passing the Red Bull academy member as Browning cruised ahead.

Hitech’s Martinius Stenshorne overtook Max Esterston to put himself in contention for the points midway through, as Alpine junior Gabriele Mini climbed the field.

As tyre wear became an issue in the latter half of the race, Mini passed Leonardo Fornaroli and Sprint winner Arvid Lindblad to target Santiago Ramos in fifth place.

Browning held off the ART driver behind despite technical concerns with his Hitech, breaking the DRS train to lead Mansell by 1 second as the Australian driver began to struggle with his tyres.

Oliver Goethe jumped from P17 to P10 in his Campos, as Alexander Dunne put himself in the points places to give MP two cars in the top 10.

In the closing stages, Tramnitz lunged down the inside of Meguetounif to steal back the final podium spot, while Beganovic recovered from his first lap fiasco to finish 13th.

Final Classification:
Browning
Mansell
Tramnitz
Megeutounif
Ramos
Mini
Fornaroli
Lindblad
Dunne
Goethe

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Williams Racing Academy Driver Luke Browning set the pace in Formula 3 pre-season testing in Bahrain, topping the timesheets in the final two days of running.

The action got underway at the Sakhir International Circuit on Sunday, February 11 and ran through to Tuesday, February 13.

On the opening day of action it was the rookies who stole the limelight, with MP Motorsport’s Alex Dunne setting the fastest time in a rain hampered morning session and fellow rookie Noel León of Van Amersfoort Racing setting the benchmark of 1:46.657s in a drier afternoon session after 19 laps of running.

León’s time was 0.015s quicker than second place Oliver Goethe of Campos Racing (who completed 20 laps) and 0.171s faster than third place driver Tim Tramnitz of MP Motorsport (who completed 22 laps).

“Really happy with the lap,” said the 2023 Euroformula Open Champion after going fastest on the opening day of the test.

“We did an amazing job. Thanks to the team for the car, obviously it is a lot of work to do, we still have two more days but always happy to be on top.

“To be honest it was the first time in the car since last year, so I was really excited to be back. “It feels great but obviously we are going to work a little bit more to be competitive on the other days. Obviously, I’ve never driven in Bahrain, so I am learning the track.

“But just super happy to be able to put P1 on the board today. We still need to learn a little bit more and get used to the track, and to get used to the car once again. But obviously it’s a really good day.”

Day 2

Conditions improved on the second day of running, allowing drivers to get more laps under their belt.

After the morning session had concluded, Jenzer Motorsport’s Charlie Wurz stood at the top of the timesheets with a 1:46.963s laptime set within 30 laps of running.

Into the afternoon and it was Hitech’s Browning who ascended to the top of the leaderboard, completing 32 laps in the session and making his fastest tour in a time of 1:46.819s.

Browning’s effort was just 0.066s faster than MP Motorsport rookie Dunne (who completed 36 laps), who continued to impress after topping the rain-affected morning session on Sunday.

Third at the end of the second day’s running was Dunne’s MP Motorsport team-mate Tramnitz (35 laps) with a time of 1:46.976s, 0.157s off of Browning’s time.

Browning will undoubtedly be a title favourite going into the 2024 season with a rookie campaign under his belt along with a 2023 Macau Grand Prix victory and after topping the second day of running he outlined his title ambitions.

“The amount that I’ve learned from last year to this year, it’s been massive,” said the WIlliams Academy Driver.

“I’ve been picked up not only by Williams but by the structure and the support team I’ve got around me, it’s really good and that is thanks to them. We are in the right place; I think we’ve got the right team around us and hopefully that will show why we are hopefully going to be title contenders this year.”

Day 3

With the afternoon session being dedicated to predominantly race runs, it was Tuesday morning’s action that saw the ultimate pace settled.

Browning continued to impress in the final morning session of the three-day test, setting the fastest lap (1:46.566s) and completing the most amount of laps (35).

After completing 32 laps, ART Grand Prix’s Nikola Tsolov was second fastest with a time of 1:46.825s, with Jenzer’s Max Esterson third after setting a fastest time of 1:46.836s across his 26-lap stint.

ART GP’s Martinis Stenshorne (1:46.979s/31 laps) was fourth, ahead of fifth-placed León (1:47.196s/33 laps).

There were three ART GP drivers in the top 10 thanks to sixth place Laurens van Hoepen, who set a time of 1:47.298s in his 32 laps of running.

Next up was a trio of Trident runners, led by seventh-place Sami Meguetounif (1:47.323s/32 laps), followed by Leonardo Fornaroli (1:47.372s/28 laps) and Santiago Ramos (1:47.343s/28 laps).

Dunne completed the top-10 (1:47.381s/30 laps).

In the afternoon race run focussed session, Browning was also amongst the top places, solidifying his candidacy for the most impressive driver throughout testing.

The Hitech driver placed third in the afternoon session, completing 31 laps and setting a fastest time of 1:48.365s.

He was bettered by second place León, with the Van Amersfoort Racing rookie continuing to impress after topping the opening day of running.

The Mexican completed 29 laps and set a fastest time of 1:48.360s on Tuesday afternoon.

Topping the final session however was PREMA’s Dino Beganovic, who clocked 33 laps of the Sakhir International Circuit and posted a fastest time of 1:48.285s.

Beganovic returns to F3 for a second campaign in 2024 with the highest 2023 standing of all sophomore drivers.

After scoring four podiums and finishing sixth in last year’s ranking, Beganovic was happy with his race runs across the test, particularly in the final session when he achieved the fastest lap.

“It was a positive test, really really happy to be back on track after a long winter break,” he said.

“I’ve not been in the car since Macau. Really happy to be back racing and to be back driving the car.

“It’s been an intense three days of testing, we definitely learned something, and we know what we need for the weekend here, which is really good.

“I’m happy about this, especially that we learned something because that’s what testing is for, not to put a good lap time but it’s a bonus to put a good lap time, and I’m happy to finish off the test like this and to have a good feeling going heading into the race.

“The race sims looked pretty good from our side. Also to finish off today with a good performance run was nice. But I’m mainly happy that we learned so much from this test.”

The Formula 3 season begins in Bahrain on February 29 – March 02.

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Williams Driver Academy member Luke Browning will remain with Hitech Pulse-Eight for a second season in Formula 3 in 2024, the team has confirmed.

The Briton graduated into F3 this past season and scored one podium – second place in the Barcelona Sprint race – to finish 15th in the standings with 41 points.

Browning will return to the third-tier series with Hitech again next year, after concluding the current racing season with a win at the famed Macau Grand Prix.

“I am super excited to announce I’ll be joining the grid with Hitech Pulse-Eight for the 2024 Formula 3 season,” Browning confirmed.

“I have an abundance of faith in the team around me, with the things we learned throughout the season last year I believe we will be able to build on our skills and ability to execute which we showed a glimmer of most recently in Macau.”

“This Championship will never be easy with the standard of drivers but also with just the nature of the Championship. However, having visited all of the tracks we’re going to next year once before, I believe puts us in a great position to score points in every race weekend going forward.

“I’m super grateful to Williams Racing and Hitech Pulse-Eight for their support going into the new season. Consistently delivering is the goal, and one I look forward to achieving next year.”

The 21-year-old previously competed with the British Hitech outfit in 2022 when he won the GB3 Championship, with five race wins and 13 podiums that season.

Those exploits helped to earn him the Aston Martin Autosport BRDC Award for that year, earning him a test run in the Silverstone-based squad’s 2021 AMR21 F1 car.

Browning, who has also conducted a test run in a Formula E car for McLaren earlier this year, was recruited into the Williams Driver Academy in April 2023.

Hitech Team Manager Paul Bellringer added: “We are delighted to have Luke racing with the team again in his second season of FIA Formula 3.

“We are confident in his ability to fight for wins and come away with a consistent set of results. Following our win in Macau together last month, we are eager to be fighting upfront from the get-go when the 2024 season commences in February.”

Meanwhile, it was revealed earlier this week that Oliver Goethe will embark on a second campaign in F3, moving across from Trident to the Campos team.

The Red Bull Junior Team racer, who wound up eighth in his debut season in F3 with a victory at Silverstone, is the Spanish outfit’s first confirmed driver for 2024.

“I am excited to be back with Campos Racing for a full season! They helped to make my entrance to FIA F3 as smooth as possible back in 2022,” Goethe said.

“This year we completed a successful post-season testing programme and the Macau GP together which makes me feel positive about what’s coming next. My goal is to fight for wins and podiums from the start and be consistent. That’s what matters the most in this Championship.”

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Williams has added Formula 3 racer Luke Browning to its Driver Academy, the Formula 1 outfit announced on Thursday.

Browning is currently contesting his debut season in F3 with Hitech, and holds 10th in the championship after the opening two rounds, which were held in Bahrain and Australia.

The Briton won the British Formula 4 title in 2020 and last year secured the GB3 Championship.

READ MORE: Tsunoda ‘really surprised’ by Tost’s impending step back

Browning joins fellow Formula 3 racers Zak O’Sullivan, Franco Colapinto and Oliver Gray in Williams’ academy.

“I’m really looking forward to being a part of the Williams Racing Driver Academy,” he said.

“A huge thank you to everyone at Williams Racing for the opportunity to shoot for the stars. To be welcomed into the family is a dream come true, the heritage of this team is phenomenal. I can’t wait to see where we can go, our journey starts here.”

Sven Smeets, sporting director at Williams Racing, added: “We’re pleased to have Luke join the Williams Racing Driver Academy.

“He’s a highly talented driver with several major achievements already under his belt, including the 2022 Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award, the 2022 GB3 Championship and the 2020 British F4 Championship.

“Everyone at Williams Racing is looking forward to working closely with Luke throughout the year as he competes in FIA Formula 3 with Hitech Pulse-Eight.

“He’ll have the opportunity to develop his abilities while providing useful feedback through simulator work at Grove.”

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2022 GB3 Championship winner Luke Browning is set to make his Formula 1 test debut with Aston Martin next year.

Browning will be handed the outing after being announced as the winner of the 2022 Aston Martin Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year on Sunday.

As well as the private F1 outing, Browning also received £200,000, full BRDC membership and an Arai crash helmet.

Browning joins a prestigious list of winners of the award, with previous names associated with it including Dario Franchitti, Jenson Button and Lando Norris. 

“This was such an awesome experience, it feels so good to be the winner,” said Browning. “It’s incredible to be a part of such an amazing award with such an illustrious list of former winners. 

“It feels pretty special to now have my name among them. Words can’t describe how grateful I am to all the people that have helped me to get here. 

“It’s unbelievable to think that a year from now I will be testing an Aston Martin Formula 1 car.”

Browning bested Ollie Bearman, Louis Foster and Jamie Chadwick to the accolade.

Each driver participated in a two-day shootout at the Silverstone Circuit, where they underwent a series of driving and fitness tests.

Four-time F1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel, who retired from the sport at the end of last month’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, presented Browning with the award.

Zak O’Sullivan won the award in 2021, and recently took part in his own Aston Martin test.

READ MORE: The company behind Zak O’Sullivan’s motorsport rise

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