“One of the best days of my life”
It is remarkable to think that, as he pulled out of the pit lane in a Scuderia Ferrari-prepared Formula 4 single-seater, 15-year old Jack McCarthy had never driven any kind of car before.
Yet here he was, at Fiorano, Scuderia Ferrari’s famous test track, living every young racer’s dream.
Having won the Euro Max Challenge and UK Super One karting championships, Jack had been invited to join three other up-and-coming drivers at the sixth-annual Ferrari Driver Academy, in association with Banco Santander.
The three-day event got underway on Monday 19th October with a morning photoshoot at Scuderia Ferrari’s iconic headquarters at Maranello, near the northern Italian city of Modena.
Following lunch at the factory, Jack and the other participants were put through a series of medical and physical tests, to assess their health and fitness. The quartet was joined by rising Chinese star, Guan Yu Zhou (whom had also raced with Jack’s team, Strawberry Racing) and Italian GP2 ace, Raffaele Marciello.
The following day, Jack’s reactions and co-ordination were tested and he was also assessed for his ability to cope with mental pressure. Then came his chance to climb into Scuderia Ferrari’s state-of-the-art Formula One simulator. During his one hour session, McCarthy was able to learn the optimum racing lines around the Fiorano circuit, in readiness for driving the real thing in a Formula 4 car, 24 hours later.
“The whole thing moved around, replicating what it would actually be like to drive round the circuit,” Jack, a keen gamer, explained, adding: “I’d never experienced that before!”
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