Sport: Next big name in British motor racing to step up to senior karting

The next big name in British motor racing, a Sheffield-based rising star, is taking the next step in his journey as he goes from Junior to Senior Karting.

Since the age of five, Rowan Campbell-Pilling has competed in kart racing across the UK most weekends, winning a multitude of trophies along the way.

In his third season in the Daniel Ricciardo Series, he was crowned UK junior karting Champion, the youngest ever winner of the National Series, at the age of 14. Now as a 16-year-old, he is beginning to compete in the senior ranks of karting in both Iame X30 Series and the Daniel Ricciardo Series.

In his Iame x30 senior karting debut at Kimbolton International Kart Circuit on February 12, Rowan impressed against a strong field taking the win in the final by over four seconds and was the only driver not to be passed on the circuit all weekend.

Around his karting, Rowan is one of less than 40 young drivers in the country testing Formula 4 and GB4. He has been racking up mileage at the very best of UK circuits such as Silverstone, Oulton Park, Donington and Snetterton in a Formula 4 single seater race car as part of the prestigious Arden’s Young Racing Driver Academy programme.

Arden provides a unique pathway from karting to F1 and is headed by the well-known Horner Family who have worked closely with drivers from karting to race cars and Formula 1.

Rowan has spent hundreds of hours driving race car simulators, similar to those used by Formula 1 drivers, regularly practising high speed handling and the 16-year-old has already covered over 5,000 miles of actual racetrack high-speed testing at speeds of up to 150mph.

Rowan said: “My focus for 2023 is to win the Daniel Ricciardo Series UK Senior Championship. Even though it will be my first season in senior karting, I have committed a lot of time to training as this could be my last year in karting before taking to racing cars full time.”

“Testing Formula 4 has been amazing, it’s an incredible experience and I have loved every minute preparing and testing in the race car as I continue to progress through my two-year Formula 4 testing programme with Arden.”

Rowan’s Chief Race Engineer and Team Manager, Jack Woodhouse, said: “This young racing driver continues to impress as he moves from karting to full race spec cars. His application and focus have been exemplary and he is standing out as someone to keep a close eye on.”

This month, Rowan has visited Ice Drive Sweden, with Tom Canning from Aston Martin Racing, to drive a BMW 130i on a frozen lake. He will be following in the footsteps of many Formula 1 stars such as Kimi Räikkönen and Valtteri Bottas who honed their craft there.

By spending five-hours a day driving in extreme conditions with the help of a professional ice driver, Rowan will drive on the ice for the first time outside of karting and will be able to fine-tune his skills to perfect his car control.

Conscious to give back, Rowan was also recently announced as an Ambassador to The Children’s Hospital Charity. He has supported many charities over the years but feels a particular affinity to the Children’s Hospital team.

He was born in the Jessop Wing, just around the corner from the hospital, and then he was admitted there two months later for a serious chest infection. He also recently needed an x-ray and again made use of the outstanding facilities at Sheffield Children’s Hospital.