Porsche Cars Great Britain Ltd is delighted to announce Charlie Eastwood (Belfast) as the 2016/2017 Porsche Carrera Cup GB Scholar. The 20-year-old Ulsterman will now enjoy the incredible opportunity to be part of the UK’s fastest one-make series and build a career as a professional sports car racer with one of the most illustrious marques worldwide.
On top of £80,000 per year towards his 2016 and 2017 Porsche Carrera Cup GB budgets, bespoke training plans with Porsche Human Performance and world-class media training, he will also gain priceless exposure to the international Porsche Motorsport family.
Eastwood overcame incredibly tough competition from three other highly talented drivers who participated in a challenging assessment day at Silverstone at the end of October: Sam Brabham (Banbury), Ashley Crossey (Bristol) and Hannah Pym (Staines-upon-Thames).
The four undertook a series of on and off track assessments including a drive in the Porsche 911 (Type 991) GT3 Cup Car, high-intensity fitness evaluation tests and media workshops in order to find the perfect ambassador for the rejuvenated series and the winner of one of the biggest prizes in UK motorsport.
Eastwood follows in the footsteps of current scholar Josh Webster, who broke multiple records on his way to becoming the youngest ever winner of the Championship and the first Porsche Scholar to win the title in their inaugural season. He was on the podium in all 19 races in 2014 and followed that up with more sensational performances to clinch third in the overall standings this season.
Porsche UK Motorsport Manager James MacNaughton said: “It’s been an incredibly competitive process from start to finish. Having received a record-breaking number of applications, the quality of our four finalists was hugely impressive. We really put them through their paces at Silverstone and all of them stepped up.
"Sam, Ashley and Hannah are three supremely talented individuals on and off the track and made it such a difficult decision for us. I’d like to thank them all for their passion and dedication throughout the process and hope that all three still have Carrera Cup GB firmly in their sights.
“We are very much looking forward to working with Charlie as our 2016/2017 Porsche Carrera Cup GB Scholar. It is a fantastic opportunity for him and one that I am sure he will grab with both hands. It will be fantastic to watch him grow and develop over the course of his two-year scholarship.”
2016/17 Porsche Carrera Cup GB Scholar Charlie Eastwood commented: “It feels absolutely amazing to become the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Scholar! There were lots of different stages to the application process so to come through and be selected is something I’m really proud of. We were all really nervous on Saturday night and so it was such a relief to secure the two-year scholarship. It means an awful lot to have the backing of such a prestigious manufacturer and I really can’t wait to get cracking now!”
“Firstly it’s going to be a big change for me as I’ll be going from single-seaters to sports cars which is a new avenue in my racing career. It really is a once-in-a -lifetime opportunity that could make such a huge difference to me in the future. There are not many drivers who can claim to have the most successful sports car racing marque behind them.”
