Louis Sharp presented with the Henry Surtees Award

Louis Sharp has been presented with the coveted Henry Surtees Award, an accolade presented annually to the most outstanding performance by a member of the British Racing Driver Club’s acclaimed BRDC Rising Stars initiative.

The prodigiously talented 16-year-old New Zealander was scouted for the scheme, which identifies and supports future champions, at the start of this season following his hugely impressive debut season racing in the UK in 2022. He now receives the coveted Henry Surtees Award having further confirmed his talent by winning the 2023 ROKiT F4 British Championship Certified by FIA.

The unique trophy honours the only son of Formula 1 and motorcycle World Champion John Surtees CBE who lost his life in a freak accident when racing in FIA Formula 2 at Brands Hatch in 2009. Henry was a BRDC Rising Star at the time of his death.

Adding to the kudos, previous winners include no fewer than three drivers on the current F1 grid: Daniel Ricciardo, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

Sharp was presented with the illustrious award by Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren Racing at the star-studded BRDC Annual Awards held at the London Marriot on Grosvenor Square yesterday (Monday 4 December) and comes just a few days after the talented Kiwi teenager was voted the UK’s National Racing Driver of the Year for 2023 in a poll conducted by Motorsport News.

Others to be rewarded by the BRDC included newly crowned 2023 World Champion Jos Verstappen, Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner and the 2023 Formula E Champion Jake Dennis. Norris and Piastri also picked up further trophies to add to their previous Henry Surtees Awards.

“It’s a real honour to have been chosen for this very special award which not only recognises my F4 title winning efforts in 2023 but, more importantly, commemorates the achievements, and unfulfilled potential, of Henry Surtees,” said a delighted Sharp. “It came as a big surprise to me and I must thank everyone at the BRDC. It’s so cool to see my name alongside all those drivers who’ve won this great award in the past. A number of them are now in F1 which, of course, is where I’d like to be racing in the future.”

As the winner of the 2023 ROKiT F4 British Championship Certified by FIA, Sharp will next attend this weekend’s prestigious FIA Gala Giving – the official award ceremony of FIA Championships – in Baku, Azerbaijan en route to spending Christmas at home in New Zealand.