A teenager touted as the next big thing in racing has received a prestigious award as he follows in the footsteps of racing legends.
Gus Burton, from Kelvedon has been announced as a 2021 British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star in recognition of his achievements last season.
The honour is bestowed upon just a handful of British and Commonwealth drivers.
The 17-year-old Felsted School student follows in the footsteps of driving legends such as Sir Lewis Hamilton and British Touring Car Champion, Ash Sutton.
BRDC operations executive, Luke Evans said: “We are delighted to welcome Gus to the British Racing Drivers’ Club as a Rising Star.
“The Club’s Rising Star Scouts have been following his progress for a number of years now and were delighted to see how competitively he performed in the 2020 Ginetta GT4 SuperCup.
“With his campaign including multiple visits to the podium, numerous race wins and a close fight for the championship in such a competitive category, it sets up a fantastic season ahead for Gus in 2021.”
The award comes with privileges including access to the club at Silverstone to entertain guests for any event, including Formula 1.
Gus continues to have a successful relationship with Century Motorsport which runs the only BMW team in the UK and is fully supported by BMW Motorsport.
When he isn’t on the track he is busy completing his International Baccalaureate Diploma studies.
Read more:
- Former Essex schoolboy Alex Albon races his way to F1 podium place
- Former Essex schoolboy Alex Albon takes place on grid for Red Bull F1 debut today
Gus is not the only racing success story in Essex.
Former Littlegarth School student, Alex Albon, 24 is currently a part of the Red Bull family as their reserve and development driver.
The British-Thai driver, who races under the Thai flag, became the first Thai driver to race in Formula 1 since Prince Birabongse, who raced in the early 1950s.
Alex Albon
Albon was called up to a Red Bull seat during the summer break of 2019, even though at that time he had only half a season of experience in Formula 1.
Last year the 24-year-old scooped up his first podium finish after he placed third in the Tuscan Grand Prix.
He finished behind Mercedes pair Valtteri Bottas and reigning world champion Hamilton.
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