Seb Morris has been named as one of six finalists for a renowned award counting Formula One World Champion Jenson Button and Grand Prix racer David Coulthard amongst previous winners – and has revealed the next step in his fast-moving career.
This is the 18 year old Loughborough College student’s second consecutive year amongst the young, single-seater racer elite contesting the McLaren Autosport BRDC title, with a prize including £100,000 cash and a test drive in a McLaren Formula One car.
In a campaign including two race victories at Silverstone and Assen in The Netherlands and three other podiums, Seb this year finished third overall in his maiden Formula Renault 2.0 Northern European Cup season and has revealed he will make his GP3 Series test debut next month with Status Grand Prix at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.
“The GP3 Test is a great opportunity. There is only one more level between this and Formula One, there will be F1 team bosses and drivers there and the three days of races will be televised to a global audience.
“I am training intensively every day to prepare. I can expect temperatures of 45 degrees, rising to 60 degrees in the cockpit. There is also a significant increase in complexity and power from the 2.0 litre Formula Renault I have been racing to the 3.4 litre GP3 Series car. The strain on my arms and neck will be unbelievable.
“That is why I am undergoing heat acclimatization and having simulator sessions and fitness training.
I will then go out to Abu Dhabi a week early to get used to the time difference and the temperature.
“There is a chance here for me to move into the F1 support category next year. It would be amazing to go to GP3 at 19. Lewis Hamilton won at GP3 and at GP2 and was racing in Formula 1 at 22.”
Meanwhile, hopefully in a taste of things to come, Seb is looking forward to a test day in a Formula Renault 3.5 ‘World Series by Renault’ car, awarded as part of his prize for his third place in the 2014 NEC Cup.
“The cars are equivalent to GP2 but are faster than F1 round corners. I will be pulling some serious G-force.”
As in 2013 Seb, who is on the Loughborough College MSA AASE programme, will again join finalists at Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit in Northamptonshire to be assessed at the wheel of a Formula 2 single-seater, a DTM Mercedes touring car and a McLaren GT3 sportscar as well as being interviewed by a judging panel.
“It is fantastic to be nominated as a finalist again. I really enjoyed all of the different challenges last year and it showed me how hard I’ll need to push this time around. I think I am better prepared for faster cars, such as the DTM Mercedes. It’s going to be an amazing experience again and I intend to make the absolute most of it.”
The official end-of-season test outing begins in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, 27th November.
The winner of this year’s McLaren Autosport BRDC Award will be announced at the annual Autosport Awards evening in central London in early December.