Andy Richardson makes the move to single-seaters from Ginetta racing

28 March, 2013 - On the eve of the opening round of this years Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain, two more drivers have announced that they will join the grid for the coming season. One is Sam Brabham, 18-year-old son of Le Mans 24 Hours winner David Brabham and grandson of three-time World Champion Sir Jack, and the other is 21-year-old sports car racer Andy Richardson.

Brabham is set to graduate from senior karting and has signed with reigning champion team JTR. His first race will be at Donington Park next month. Richardson, meanwhile, will make the move into single-seater competition for the first time with the Richardson Racing team, which will also be embarking on its first season running an open-wheel machine.

Brabham moves up to Formula Ford following success in junior and senior karting over the last five years. Starting with arrive-and-drive podium form and impressive Mini Max club level results, he quickly underlined his top 10 potential on his 2011 Formula Kart Stars Junior Max debut, and proved more than a match against experienced drivers across British and European Senior Rotax Max events in 2012.

With another steep learning curve ahead adapting to the new EcoBoost-powered Mygale while learning the UKs top racing circuits, Brabham couldnt be in better company at JTR as he joins its three-car championship title defence alongside Camren Kaminsky and Dan Cammish.

Following his father into Formula Ford 28 years after David took his first single-seater victory in Australia, Brabham will make his switch with support from Liberty Mutual Insurance, Ellis Clowes, Arbuthnot Latham, Auto Windscreens, Grand Priv and Forresters.

Said Sam Brabham: Its a fantastic feeling to be signed with one of the top and most experienced UK Formula Ford teams. Graduating to single-seaters will be my biggest challenge yet, so its important for me to be working with a strong team alongside experienced team-mates. I may have been racing only a few years, but the intensive learning curve Ive encountered will only help me to quickly adapt, get to grips with the EcoBoost-powered JTR Mygale and learn all the top UK circuits.

Added David Brabham: Its great news for Sam to be stepping up from karts to the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship, driving with a team like JTR. Its a bit of a historical moment for the family as another third-generation driver progresses through the sport. Matthew already has his career well underway and to now have Sam doing the same thing means its an exciting time for all the family.

Were extremely excited to be welcoming Sam into our team for 2013, said JTRs Nick Tandy. He has limited race experience but being part of the Brabham family means hes been in and around motor racing his entire life and he obviously has a great deal of knowledge and experience very close by to help and guide him. JTR will also be using all of our years of training and race-winning expertise to fast-track his learning curve as much as possible and I know the partnership will work very well.

Weve taken what was absolutely the right decision to start his season from Donington Park onwards, it will give us all a bit more time to prepare Sam for his car-racing debut and that should pay off over the course of the year.

Andy Richardsons eleventh-hour entry into the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain sees the team racing to take delivery of its new Ford EcoBoost-powered Mygale chassis in time for at Brands Hatch, ready for the opening rounds of the new season at the Kent circuit this weekend.

Due to the late nature of the deal, the two test sessions due to be held at the Kent circuit tomorrow will mark the first opportunity that Andy has had to get behind the wheel of his new car, while it will also be the first chance that the team has had to work with the Mygale.

When the opportunity arose to enter Formula Ford, it was too good to turn down and this is a great way for me to try my hand at single-seaters, Andy said. We have been working hard to make the deal happen for some time, and have to thank Ford, Mygale and ATL for their support in putting it all together.

Andys only previous experience of the new Formula Ford EcoBoost 200 machine came in a brief run behind the wheel at Silverstone during a sampler day held late last year. As a result, he is realistic in his targets for the weekend ahead as he embarks on a new phase in his career.

There is no doubt that this is the biggest challenge that the team has faced, he said. We are going straight into the first race meeting of the season with no testing and with a car we will have just collected, so we are going to be learning all weekend.

As a racing driver, I only go on track to win, but I have to be realistic this weekend given how late everything has come together and the main target has to be three solid races so I can make the most of our time on track and learn as much as possible about the car.

While I enjoyed my time racing in Ginettas in both the Challenge and then the Supercup, I have always had a desire to race in single-seaters and now the opportunity has come along, I cant wait to get started.