Ferrari to establish Australian base for Driver Academy in Sydney

Australia will host a new base for the Ferrari Driver Academy at the planned Motorsport Australia Centre of Excellence at Sydney Motorsport Park, Motorsport Australia and Ferrari announced today.

The $6.4m Centre of Excellence was promised to Motorsport Australia by the NSW Government as part of the state Liberal party’s 2019 election platform.

The Driver Academy will be the local outpost for the Italian manufacturer’s recruitment efforts from 24 different countries in the region.

Plans are underway for construction to begin on the centre in the coming months, with Sydney Motorsport Park currently facing a different construction project, installing permanent light fixtures around the circuit.

The Ferrari Academy will make use of Motorsport Australia’s stable of Formula 4 cars, which have been left idle since the series was shuttered last year.

Motorsport Australia will conduct the initial stages of the program, with drivers aged 14 to 17 eligible to participate - although they must fund their own travel to Australia.

Selected drivers will be invited to the final stage of the program, where representatives of Motorsport Australia and Ferrari will determine the best two drivers of the year.

These drivers will be invited to take part in testing at Ferrari’s Fiorano racetrack, competing against drivers from the global Ferrari Driver Academy for the chance at a Ferrari-sponsored seat in a European Formula 4 championship.

This is similar to the ‘Road to Indy’ scholarship shoot-out, where the winners of participating categories are invited to the United States to compete for a USF2000 scholarship. The winner of the Australian Formula Ford Championship is currently invited to this program, with Aussie Hunter McElrea winning the 2019 seat.

Motorsport Australia President Andrew Papadopoulos said ‘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,”

“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.

“We can also confirm we will be making use of our existing Formula 4 cars here in Australia for this program for development and assessment purposes, given the ultimate prize is a Formula 4 drive in a European Championship with FDA.

“This partnership with Ferrari Driver Academy is a historic moment for Motorsport Australia and certainly a significant boost to the development opportunities that exist here in Australia.”

Laurent Mekies, Head of Ferrari Driver Academy, said “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.

“We have a long standing relationship with our friends at Motorsport Australia, and we trust that together we will build a fantastic selection program for the region that will inspire and attract many young drivers.”

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.