“When you are fitted in a racing car and you race to win, second or third place is not enough” – Ayrton Senna
This can be said of the Kenyan racing rising star Jeremy Wahome whose dream is to one day win the Formula 1 Championship. Speaking to Capital FM Kenya a week ago, he says, his ultimate goal is to get to Formula 1 and also be the first Kenyan and African to win it.
The 17-year-old racer joined the BRDC British Formula 3 this year as its second driver for the full campaign. Talking to the Team Principal Chris Dittmann, about signing Wahome, he said:
“It’s great to finally announce Jeremy as our second confirmed driver for 2016. He tested with us in the new car at the end of last year and really impressed us with how quickly he adapted to the car and learned the circuit.”
“With his previous experience in the Asia Cup Series and a strong pre-season testing package lined up, I’m confident Jeremy can quickly become a consistent front-runner in the championship. He will have the added challenge of balancing his schooling with his racing commitments; however, I’m sure with enough hard work he will be able to succeed in both.”
Wahome said: [perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]”It feels great to be in the BRDC British Formula 3 Championship with Chris Dittmann Racing. I wanted to join the championship in 2015 but I’ve got the chance this year so it is really exciting. When I decided I wanted to graduate from karting, BRDC F4 was the championship I wanted to join and with the introduction of the new car, it has made it even better.”[/perfectpullquote]
Wahome’s racing pursuits:
Wahome was born on Dec. 14, 1998, in Nairobi Kenya to Anthony and Julie Wahome. He began to go-kart racing at the age of eight in Nairobi and went ahead and represented the county in various championships including the Rotax Africa Open in Pretoria, South Africa in Sept. 2014.
After go-karting, he moved up the ranks and graduated to ‘real’ cars; with the Formula BMW Asia Cup Series where he scooped three rookie wins, two second-place finishes and one-third place from the world famous Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia (same place where the Malaysian Grand Prix is held) in 2015.
The Asia Cup series is a championship specifically designed for young drivers who intend to transit from kart racing to cars and to ultimately gain entry into the world famous Formula 1 racing championships. The Asia Cup championship consists of 15 races and 5 races per round.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“Participating in the Asia Cup series was a great experience for me as I got to learn a lot on and off the track. I enjoyed close wheel to wheel racing with my competitors,”[/perfectpullquote]
he said.
The rising race star moved to Cheltenham in the UK in 2016 so as to focus on both his racing career and school. He is currently studying at Cheltenham College. Whereas it would be expected to be challenging for him to properly balance school and racing, Wahome says the school has been supportive as he is allowed to go and take part in racing, practice and other related activities and at the same time find the school work he missed available for him.
Wahome is currently self-sponsored and he hopes to capture the attention of teams and get sponsorship and this can be done through getting the results. “I thank God for these results and for giving me the opportunity to chase my dream of becoming a Formula 1 world champion. I look forward to my upcoming races and promise for more to come,” Wahome said.
He looks up to Lewis Hamilton and hopes to one day drive for the winning team, be it Mercedes or Ferrari or Red bull. Speaking to Amina Abdi on K24, he said Max Verstappen gives him extra motivation because he is proof that young drivers can also win the famous racing championship.
For the young man who not only does this for himself or family but for the country, and only one stage away from the Formula 1, we can say that the light is already beginning to show at the end of the tunnel.
Featured Photo: Courtesy of Daphine Kamurungi
