CAREER PROGRESSION
Building a successful career in motorsport rarely happens overnight.
Whether your ambition is to become a race mechanic, performance engineer, data engineer, aerodynamicist, marketing professional or ultimately work within Formula 1, the majority of successful motorsport careers are built through experience, progression and consistently developing your skills.
There is no single route into the industry.
Some people progress through university and graduate programmes. Others start volunteering with club-level race teams. Some begin as apprentices, while others build experience through Formula Student, karting, sim racing or independent race teams. What matters most is that you start building relevant experience and continue moving forward.
At Pitlane Development, we encourage people to think of their motorsport career as a ladder rather than a single jump into their dream role.
WHAT TYPES OF RACING IS THERE?
When we speak with someone that wants to work in motorsport we always ask them what their long term goal is. 9 times out of 10 the answer is Formula 1. As great as it is that people have these ambitions, its unfortunate that not everyone is going to end up there. If your goal is to work in high level motorsport the best way to end up there is by learning your trade (mechanics, engineering etc) in the lower level series. The national level teams (BTCC level and below) will normally publish vacancies on their company website, recruitment websites like Linkedin, Motorsport Jobs and Race Cars Direct. Be sure to keep scouting these avenues, especially around November – March time as teams are gearing up for the new season.
OPEN WHEEL RACING
Open wheel racing is a type of motorsport competition that features vehicles with exposed wheels, meaning the wheels are not covered by the bodywork of the car. The most well-known open-wheel race series is probably Formula One, which is considered to be the pinnacle of international motorsport. Other examples of open-wheel race series include IndyCar, Formula E, and Formula 2.
CLOSED WHEEL RACING
Closed wheel race series refers to motorsports competitions that feature vehicles with wheels are covered by the bodywork of the car. Closed-wheel race cars are typically heavier and less aerodynamic than open-wheel vehicles, and they are designed for stability and durability.
WHERE IS THE WORK?
The good news is that there are motorsport opportunities all over the world! Sometimes the hardest part is knowing who’s out there and where to look.
Although scatted around to some degree alot of motorsport businesses in the UK often operate in and around the Midlands and down to the Oxfordshire area. This is commonly referred to in the industry as the ‘Motorsport Valley’
Once you have a few years experience at national level in your chosen field you may be ready to look into the higher level race series. Some Formula 1 teams recruit though these external sites but they mainly advertise roles on their company website.