Cab Direct is delighted to announce the sponsorship of a young and promising racing driver, Ross Martin. 17 year old Ross is a sixth year pupil at Balfron High School in Stirlingshire but when he’s not hard at work in class he dedicates his spare time to formula racing.
Kicking off with karting when he was just six years old, Ross went on to compete with the British Youth Team in Sweden, Italy, France and Germany and in 2015 he won Formula Kart Stars. Now a proud Formula Ford (FF) racer, Ross plans to work even harder to achieve even more.
What is Formula Ford?
Formula Ford is held across 16 countries throughout the world is said to be the first major step on the road to Formula One (F1) racing after karting. All Formula Ford cars have the exact same Ford 1600cc Duratec engine meaning that the races are very close and competitive and the performance is based purely on the drivers’ skill. The cars don’t have the aerodynamic wings that you’re used to seeing on F1 cars, making them one of the most distinctive looking open-wheeled cars in racing.
Many of the world’s top F1 stars have come through the ranks of Formula Ford, including David Couthard, Martin Brundle, Brazilian champion Ayrton Senna and Ross’ hero, Alan McNish.
First National Championships
Hoping to follow in the footsteps of the big names, Ross has been working hard to build his confidence on the track and hopes to perform well in the Scottish FF1600 Championship as well as the British National Championship. His busy schedule started only a few weeks ago and already Ross has had some positive results.
He said: “At my first national race, at the beginning of May in Oulton Park, qualifying felt fast, the car was stable and I had good confidence to push for a few extra tenths. Finishing the session with a solid 4th place ensured I had a look in at the first row into turn one.
“As the race settled, an incident through the first chicane allowed me to push into 3rd place. Slight contact with a car behind me caused a dramatic trip but I still managed to bring the car back to a solid 3rd position giving me a place on the podium in my first national race. So, overall a very solid start to my national campaign with many positives and a good pace running at the front.”
Learning Curve
Ross is aware that there’s still a lot to learn about the race craft but he’s positive that, with the advice from his mentors, he can achieve big things.
He commented: “I’m still learning and I always welcome positive and negative feedback alike so that I can adapt and become a better driver. One thing I’d like to perfect is the balance between racinghard but fair – the races are so close that it’s one of the main skills you need.
“I’m also still working on accepting defeat but I think that will always be a difficult one to swallow when you put in so much time and effort into the sport.”
Following the Success
We look forward to following Ross through his first national championships with Formula Ford and wish him all the very best in the 2017 season.
Keep up-to-date with the Ross and the sport by following him on Twitter.