So... how does one become a professional race car driver?

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GTP_event / kevinr6287 (farming account)
Is being a professional race car driver something that only the very privileged and rich can do? I know it's a very expensive sport, but does one have to make 7 figures do do it? Let say that I want to become one so I can one day quit my job and race full time... where do I start?
 
Go into go karting. And if your good enough, you'll meet Michael Schumacher. And then he'll give you his blessings. Now you're ready!
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Do you guys know who that little kid is?
 
80Y 2C2
Go Karts.
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that's what I've been hearing. Can a 23 y/o start racing them? is there a league or something? I can't imagine a go kart being all that expensive... 4 or 5 grand maybe?

what steps would be involved afterwards? just do really well and then hope someone hires you to drive for them in a real car?
 
astrosdude91
Go into go karting. And if your good enough, you'll meet Michael Schumacher. And then he'll give you his blessings. Now you're ready!
f1-1999-gen-xp-0001.jpg


Do you guys know who that little kid is?
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Macaulay Culkin?
 
Omnis
Macaulay Culkin?
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some overprivilaged asshole kid with rich parents who have too much money so they spend in on the kid and happen to find something he's really good at. I could have been the next ayrton senna if my parents had money and could afford to let me race.

I remember my dad took us to a go kart race once. he even took us into the shop to look around at the karts for sale... too bad he wasn't rich and didnt have all the time in the world to buy me a kart and take me to events.
 
I think it varies greatly on which form of racing you want to get into on how to get noticed and move up. Geting noticed to run stock cars is much different than what it takes to get noticed driving sports cars or open wheel cars...know what I mean?
 
Karting or SCCA/Nasa events like trackdays and autocross. Go to a lot of them, get certified, be really good, go to more, become a certified instructor, practice more, get lucky.
 
Event
some overprivilaged asshole kid with rich parents who have too much money so they spend in on the kid and happen to find something he's really good at. I could have been the next ayrton senna if my parents had money and could afford to let me race.

I remember my dad took us to a go kart race once. he even took us into the shop to look around at the karts for sale... too bad he wasn't rich and didnt have all the time in the world to buy me a kart and take me to events.
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Wow. Way too sound like a jealous ass yourself.

Even if your daddy did buy you all the go-kart stuff in the world, that doesn't guarantee success. Plenty of people been karting for years & have yet to get anywhere.
 
There are plenty of ways to get going, as has been mentioned SCCA/NASA/NASCAR all have levels where you can compete with a relatively small budget(Probably around 5,000 a year after the initial purchases). I'm also not sure what they have in your area, but here there are a few go-kart places that have a "arrive and drive" series where they provide the kart and everything.
 
That was Sebastian Vettel if you haven't figured it out. And no, he was never an ass:censored: rich kid.

Edit: Tree'd by that guy^
 
1.Kidnap Lewis Hamilton

2.Lock him somewhere safe.

3.Get plastic surgery to make yourself look like him.

4.Steal his identity.

Done.
 
Event
some overprivilaged asshole kid with rich parents who have too much money so they spend in on the kid and happen to find something he's really good at. I could have been the next ayrton senna if my parents had money and could afford to let me race.

I remember my dad took us to a go kart race once. he even took us into the shop to look around at the karts for sale... too bad he wasn't rich and didnt have all the time in the world to buy me a kart and take me to events.
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Vettel wasn't rich... and neither was Lewis Hamilton. What they had were parents dedicated to their careers and a very, very early start in Karts. Anthony Hamilton, when he realized how talented his son was, worked extra hours to support him in karting, then eventually quit his job to become a full-time manager when sponsors started to notice Lewis. Uber-rich, they were not.

So... parental support, early start... and a whole crapload of talent.

You can start now, but you're never going to hit the top echelons without years of experience or gobs of God-like car handling talent. Go through racing school or attend autocross to pick up tips. Then spend some money to start competing in SCCA events... if you do well enough, you may get noticed. Or maybe not.

Consider yourself lucky. You live in the US where a middle-class person with an average salary can afford a relatively high-powered sports sedan like an MS6 and can afford to actually buy a Go-Kart and go racing. And the opportunities are all around you.

I'm what some people would consider upper-middleclass-rich here, and yet I get to see the track only two or three times a year. A set of brand-new performance tires (not r-comps, just performance tires) is about equal to my entire monthly salary, and just running one official race here will set me back maybe three or four times as much, just in rental and parts. I get the chance to hit the track without being put out of pocket because of connections or media events... but not quite as often as I'd like. And even if I did make it "pro" here (I'm reasonably quick... easily matching more experienced karters and usually at or near the top of timing sheets at amateur track events), I wouldn't have many places to go. There are no regional events quite as well supported as in the US or Europe. Maybe once in a while, a driver here gets to the Asian F3, but that's it.
 
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Event stated his age in the OP, so starting early isn't an option. I may be wrong but at his/her age I doubt he/she would be earning enough to pay for anything other than a set-up with a second-hand kart, and somehow I think it's unlikely he'll have generous parents backing him like Lewis Hamilton.
I've set some very fast times on local track days over the last two years and I'd love to race for real. Is there a way of getting noticed without having to get a second mortgage to pay for it? Is there such a thing as a track day try-outs with talent spotters?
 
SCCA Nationals? :D Unfortunately... at that level, the chances of getting spotted and singled out as an excellent driver are slim if you're going up against veteran runners.
 
Karts are expensive, but you certainly don't have to be rich to take up the sport. I've considered getting into it for a while now but I'm not serious enough about it to make racing my new hobby. It's a bit out of my price range at this point in my life.
 
Running a Kart for a year in events here would cost twice my yearly salary. Over there in the US, it's not as big a financial drain. Would cost a heck of a lot, but you could do it if it was your primary hobby.
 
Event
that's what I've been hearing. Can a 23 y/o start racing them? is there a league or something? I can't imagine a go kart being all that expensive... 4 or 5 grand maybe?

what steps would be involved afterwards? just do really well and then hope someone hires you to drive for them in a real car?
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I'll go ahead and pull out the old "your never too old to do it" quote. Of course it probably is a tad too late if you want the money you earn as a racing driver (if you end up earning any - which would require sponsorships, teams and someone elses deep pockets) - but if you want to be a weekend warrior and go race on weekend, then sure - go for it.

And 23 y/o shouldn't be too late to start I don't think. If you want to look up series and challenges, I'd say look up a local track and have a file through their calander, then take down the names and track down individual websites.

And yes, it is going to cost you - heaps. But when I get a decent income, it shall definatly considered as a prime hobby of mine...
 
Event
that's what I've been hearing. Can a 23 y/o start racing them? is there a league or something? I can't imagine a go kart being all that expensive... 4 or 5 grand maybe?

what steps would be involved afterwards? just do really well and then hope someone hires you to drive for them in a real car?
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IL = Illinois, USA?

I don't think the Americans have the traditional go kart progression like the rest of the world. I'll put it this way, if I had the relevant licences needed to compete, then I could buy a drive in almost any racing series in the world. The idea of talent scouts wandering around go kart tracks looking to give millions of dollars away to a random stranger is laughable. At least in Australia anyway.

Motorsport is a business.
 
Nice topic!

Vettel 👍

I wish i had asked myself this question much more seriously when i was younger...

then I wouldn't have to rely on Kaz and live vicariously through GT games :P
 
I'd love to be a driver in the British Touring Car Championship. Used to watch it all the time years ago when John Cleland an co. were big names. Have always had a love of that sport - it's the reason I bought TOCA for the PS1 and what got me into Codemasters racing games.

Anyway, to answer your question in this thread, I haven't a clue! But I'd like to do it. I think the GT5 time trial demo from a few months back was a genius idea -get good times on a console race game, and get entered into a real-life race! More companies should do this.
 
Golfman
More companies should do this.
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I'm sure they would if it weren't for the fact convincing a team to hire a person who just started racing real cars a couple weeks prior is near impossible. If it weren't for the fact that both GT Academy winners are basically pay drivers they wouldn't have gotten a ride(Not to say they aren't talented because they obviously are).
 
Golfman
get good times on a console race game, and get entered into a real-life race! More companies should do this.
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This gets overlooked so often..

Who's going to pay for this? Someone is going to donate money so someone else can live their dream? GT did it for advertising purposes (more games sold = more money). There's very few companies that can do this, Forza/Microsoft for one.

Motorsport isn't a fantastic lifestyle for all involved. Very few drivers are payed for their services. I'd say 7 - 10% worldwide and maybe 0.5% are being payed millions.
 
Right how to get into racing.

Go karting. A new kart is about 4-5grand (that is new top of range kit) or youi can get a decent secondhand for 1500 upwards (I'm talking in british sterling so it may need to be converted).

Go karting is definatly the way to go.
gearbox, 125 or 250. That is very fast (250's are the same time round a track as formula 3) however they are more expenisive than..../
non gearbox. kf2, rotax these are cheaper (more like the prices I said above.) they top out about 80mph but they are the basis of whatever racing driver started in.


You would need at least one season of practise then club racing to get yourself ready to race properly in any championship. If you are serious about getting far then you should get yourself envolved in a national/regional championship. To do well in that you would need to spend upwards of £20,000 a season on engine rebuilds, tyres, spares, entry.
A mate of mine races midpack of the uk championship and he spends about 40,000 a season.
There arn't many professional karts so you can't really quit your job to race karts so either you get noticed and sponsored or progress from now would be difficult. However if you have enough money then you could get into formula vee or similar. However if you are serious about getting far formula ford would be a better option however your inugural season in this could cost upwards of 50,000. Really without sponsorship or getting noticed progress from here would be near on impossible without bottomless pockets.

Hope that helps. ;)

LUKE
 
Event
Is being a professional race car driver something that only the very privileged and rich can do? I know it's a very expensive sport, but does one have to make 7 figures do do it? Let say that I want to become one so I can one day quit my job and race full time... where do I start?
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Karts. But you wanted to be starting about 16 years ago. ;)

To be honest. I bet there's less than 20 people in the UK who could actually class themselves as professional drivers. Others will have a backer/sponsor who'll pay for their drives. Most of those drivers will have to supplement their living costs with other jobs. A guy i know who races in a high level race series either works for his uncles construction company carrying hods or occasionally does some driver training for guys at lower levels.
 
McLaren
Wow. Way too sound like a jealous ass yourself.

Even if your daddy did buy you all the go-kart stuff in the world, that doesn't guarantee success. Plenty of people been karting for years & have yet to get anywhere.
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That's the right attitude for an F1 driver.
 
Well first buy a stock second hand as your race car. Your career will depend on what events you will use your car. If you want to race touring cars, buy a cheap saloon. Race at a track with other newbies and get noticed. Do more weekend racing till you are approached to a racing license. Now race one make cup cars. Keep getting better, get more licenses and race more powerful cars. One day, you could have pole posisition at an f1 race.
 
When I was 7-8 years old i wanted my parents to buy me a kart, it was my dream to become a Formula One driver.

They couldn't afford it. You can't find a sponsor before you start, not a chance.

End of my dream before it even started :guilty:

Attempting to go the Engineer route into the sport now instead...

How about GT Academy? :sly:

Karts are the best way, but 23 is pushing it a bit to become successful or attract a sponsor. You'll always have to pump money into it if you want a seat.
 
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Do we not have a Motorsport section? It annoys me that car related topics are always on the rumble strip.

It's all about sponsors, they get you the priority seats and treatment. Oh, and Hamilton was basically given £9m. Give anyone that amount of money and tell them to race cars it's pretty difficult not to get SOMEWHERE with it.
 

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