RICHARDSON RACING ANNOUNCE 2021 RETURN WITH GEORGI DIMITROV
Richardson Racing have announced their return to the F4 British Championship certified by FIA – powered by Ford EcoBoost for the 2021 season with Ginetta Junior Championship front-runner Georgi Dimitrov as their first confirmed driver.
Dimitrov, currently fourth overall and second amongst the Rookies in the hotly-contested tin-top series, has widely impressed in his maiden season of car racing.
The 15-year old announced himself on the high-profile British Touring Car Championship package in some style, taking two victories and a further podium on his debut weekend at Donington Park back in August.
Since then, the youngster from Newmarket has continued to hit similar heights, including further victories at Knockhill and Silverstone, plus another brace of podiums. Prior to Ginetta Juniors, the British-Bulgarian racer also enjoyed a strong career in karting at national and international level.
Dimitrov becomes the latest in a succession of highly-rated rising stars to graduate from Ginetta’s stairway of talent to the FIA Single-Seater pyramid, with notable drivers including Jamie Caroline, Kiern Jewiss, Louis Foster, Seb Priaulx, current title contenders Luke Browning and Casper Stevenson and, of course, current McLaren Formula 1 driver Lando Norris.
His graduation to Britain’s FIA Formula 4 series also marks the return of Gwyn Richardson’s eponymous team, which last raced in F4 in 2019 with Browning, achieving two victories – including that infamous rain-soaked classic at Brands Hatch from tenth on the grid – and a further seven podiums en route to sixth overall.
The team has conducted an extensive testing programme in their absence from the action in 2020, with Dimitrov their first confirmed driver on their return to the fray for 2021.
“My goal has always been to race in single-seaters so I’m really excited by this opportunity, and it is great to be able to stay with the team after a strong first season together,” commented Dimitrov.
“I feel like I have been able to prove myself this year in the Ginetta and it has been a good place to start my car racing career, and British F4 is the next step.
“If you look at the top three in the championship this season, they all raced in Ginetta Juniors beforehand, and a lot of other drivers have followed the same route and gone on to do well. My aim is to follow people like that and try to work my way up the motorsport ladder.
“I don’t want to get too carried away about what to expect because I am still learning, and I’ll take the same approach that I took this season and see what happens. I’ll work hard with the team during the winter so that we can try and make sure we are as strong as possible when we get to the first round, and hopefully we can fight for some strong results.”
Team Principal Gwyn Richardson underlined his delight at retaining Dimitrov’s services for the team’s return to single-seater action, and says further announcements for the Corby-based squad are set to follow in due course, with a three-car outfit the plan.
“We’re absolutely delighted to be able to confirm that we will return to British F4 next season, and that Georgi is the first driver to sign up for the programme,” said Richardson.
“When he joined us at the start of the year to race in the Ginetta, we knew he was a talented driver from karting, but he has really exceeded our expectations.
“He hit the ground running from the very start of the season and has developed a lot over the course of the year, so we are confident that he will be able to make an impression in British F4 in 2021 and challenge for some strong results.
“We’re talking to a number of other drivers about joining Georgi in British F4 next season, with our goal being to put together a three-car programme for our return to single-seaters.”
The 2021 F4 British Championship season begins at Brands Hatch on 3rd-4th April, with the current campaign set to conclude in Kent this weekend [14-15 November], live on ITV4.
