Britain's youngest Formula E driver says talent isn't enough anymore

8 hours ago 6

Taylor Barnard wears a black racing suit. He is taking an earpiece out of his ear and looking off into the distance.

ByNaomi Clarke

BBC Newsbeat

Making split-second decisions while driving up to 200mph probably seems like a crazy task for most of us.

But Britain's youngest Formula E driver is learning to take it in his stride as his second season in the series draws to a close.

Back in 2024, Taylor Barnard became the youngest person to start an E-Prix and since then he's broken several other records - including becoming the youngest driver to secure a podium, pole and points in the sport.

So what's the 22-year-old got his sights set on now? The ultimate title, of course, world champion.

Barnard tells BBC Newsbeat he feels he got into racing by the "skin of my teeth", due to the extreme costs it takes to climb the motorsport ladder.

The immense financial backing needed to become a professional driver has been long known, with stars like Sir Lewis Hamilton speaking openly about the sacrifices his family made to get him a seat in Formula 1.

And Barnard feels if he was trying to climb the ranks now, he wouldn't make it due to prices being "so blown out of proportion".

Taylor Barnard drives in a black Formula E sports car with gold trim. There is another car chasing behind him which is black and white.

Barnard, who's from Norwich, says the driving bug was passed down from his father, who was a karting driver in his younger years.

He rose through the ranks of British and European karting, before his talent helped him secure backing to get through Formula 3 and 2.

Barnard finally secured a seat in Formula E with McLaren, and transferred to DS Penske for the current season.

"It sounds very simple but trust me, it's anything but that," he says.

"It's super expensive, super difficult. And where my family and I've come from, we've always been on the difficult end of that journey."

The driver recalls being raised in a "very normal, working family", and at one stage they had to re-mortgage their house so Barnard could continue his racing career.

"We really did put everything on the line for me to be able to make it," he says.

"I would be lying if we're still not stinging from when we did that."

'It's only getting worse'

Now that he's getting paid as a professional, he says he's trying to pay his parents back "for everything they've done".

Barnard also wants to support young talented drivers who he feels are being left behind - as he feels not everybody that's made it into top-flight sports "deserves to be there".

"There's definitely people that have bought their way in or haven't earned their way," he says.

"And there's definitely been people out there, younger guys or girls that have the talent and the skill to be able to make it, which just gets shut out by financial issues.

"That's not right. And the way that it's going in the last few years, it's only getting worse."

Barnard says he's not sure how motorsport's governing body the FIA or racing teams can best address this issue as he recognises it is a business.

There are various academies and driver development programmes run by professional teams, but they are often very competitive.

Newsbeat contacted the FIA for a comment on this.

Taylor Barnard wears an orange racing jumpsuit. His hand is outstretched and finger pointing out. In his other hand he is holding a silver trophy.

Barnard's journey has made him "appreciate the little things a lot more", he says.

And the end of this season will be made sweeter as he gets to drive in front of his family and friends at his home race when the 2025-2026 series closes at London's Excel this weekend.

It will be a tense double-header as nine drivers are currently in contention for the championship title, with fellow Brit Jake Dennis currently topping the table.

Barnard's future for next season is still slightly uncertain as DS Automobiles, the manufacturer behind his team, is set to leave the sport.

And with Penske yet to confirm its plans for the next era of Formula E cars, dubbed Gen4, the young Brit is focused on finishing the season on a high.

Barnard says fans can expect to see a lot of the grid going "side-by-side [at] almost every corner" and probably "a few crashes".

"Throughout the weekend we obviously do the duals in qualifying, which is super exciting.

"Next year the cars are going to be even faster, which is going to be even more exciting.

"I would actually argue Formula E has the best racing that you can view anywhere."

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