A talented teenager who is chasing the championship title of a prestigious motorsport series and has ambitions to compete at Le Mans is celebrating securing top grades in his A Level results today (Tues August 10).
Lorcan Hanafin, 18, a student at Bradford Grammar School (BGS), has had to juggle his studies with forging a successful motorsport career. He’s currently competing in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB, where he’s one of the youngest drivers in the series.
Today (Tuesday) he was celebrating top scores in a different discipline – his A Level results where he achieved an A* in economics, A in geography and A in politics.
“I’m really happy with my results, although it’s not quite the same as winning a race,” he laughed. “But it’s still a good feeling. I put in a lot of hard work and it’s paid off which is great.”
Lorcan, of Ilkley, started karting before moving to the Junior Clio series and Ginetta Junior Championship and now drives a powerful 485bhp Porsche 911 GT3.
Said Lorcan: “My dad rallied in Ireland and parts of the UK and bought me my first go-kart when I was five. It was his love of the sport that brought me into it. Without him I wouldn’t be racing in the first place. I’ve come a long way since karting.
“I can remember my first test in the Porsche and my neck was aching from being thrown back in my seat when I hit the throttle. It was so much more powerful than anything I’d driven before.
“The first year was about bedding into the championship (Carrera) but this year it’s about pushing for the title.”
Lorcan is with Joe Tandy Racing and is looking to take a year out after his studies to pursue his motorsport ambitions. He is sitting a point behind the leader having won two of his six races in the 16-race cup, including gaining pole position twice and two fastest laps.
“I would love to be employed by a manufacturer one day, like Ferrari, or to compete in Le Mans would be incredible,” he added.
Dr Simon Hinchliffe, headmaster at BGS, said: “Lorcan is having a fantastic season in the Carrera Cup series and has shown a great deal of talent, hard work and determination in his ambitions to race for Ferrari one day. He’s managed to balance all that successfully with his academic studies and we wish him all the best with his racing career in the future.”
“Lorcan is having a fantastic season in the Carrera Cup series and has shown a great deal of talent, hard work and determination in his ambitions to race for Ferrari one day. He’s managed to balance all that successfully with his academic studies and we wish him all the best with his racing career in the future.”
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