JAMES WHARTON – FEELING THE FORMULA FOR SUCCESS

James Wharton’s path to the 2025 FIA Formula 3 Championship grid flies in the face of a fast growing trend, and with good reason.

In a world which seems to move in ever diminishing increments of time, lines become blurred.

It’s the new norm in formula sports, where drivers play fast-paced, high-stakes ‘Snakes and Ladders’ in the quest for a place on the F1 grid.

We may one day refer to it the Verstappen approach.

The now four-times F1 World Championship driver leaped from Karts to the European F3 Championship and became the youngest ever Formula one driver the following season at just seventeen years of age.

Teams have reacted in like manner, moving away from the promotion of junior champions and electing to roll the dice on the bravado of youth in a near-fixation of finding another Max.

That may well prove to be James Wharton, though he has chosen to take the more traditional route.

Wharton first showed his extraordinary talent by winning the inaugural FDA Driver Academy Shootout in 2020.

At just fourteen years of age, he was too young for an international motorsport licence and bided his time instead with another year of karting, supplemented by behind the scenes work with Ferrari.

For Wharton, that gap year was simply another learning experience, which highlighted a level of maturity and respect which had impressed the FDA judges.

“It was all anticipation at the end of the day. I was too young to actually go to circuit racing and you can’t really do too much about the rules,” Wharton explained.

“I think, that in a way it was kind of a good for my development anyway. I got a year inside Ferrari so I could really build myself up. In a way that was really beneficial. It prepared me well for the first year.”

And what a first year that turned out to be!

In just his second weekend of racing James recorded wins in three of the four race format at the Dubai Autodrome. He then ended the season with another victory at the Yas Marina circuit and fifth overall.

Wharton then headed to the Italian F4 Championship where he also placed fifth in the point score with five podiums to his credit.

“To be honest it was a surprise to be there so quickly, but at the end of the day I don’t think that my expectations changed for the European season,” Wharton stated.

“I went into the Europe as a rookie in a new car and on new tyres. I was still learning as I began the season, so it was completely different.”

“But, of course, when you do start so well, others  expect that same level of success every weekend.”

“At the end of the day that was my first season of formula racing with not a lot of preparation on track. There was a lot of off-track preparation, but I was pretty much behind the eight-ball due to a lack of seat time.”

That lack of seat time was a genuine hindrance for a driver who relied on car feel over a predetermined race plan.

It was an approach that traced back to his early days of karting.

Wharton’s racing debut in his family run kart team was limited to practice sessions for six months until the then eight year old felt prepared for racing. From there he quickly climbed through to the national ranks, winning the Cadet 12 National title in 2017 with eight wins in a ten race season.

On winning the FDA Scouting Finals in 2020, FDA Head Marco Matassa praised Wharton’s analytical ability, in addition to his outright speed.

“Being able to explain his feelings from the car into words is no easy feat and James was adept at it,” he commented.  (Formula Scout 9 December 2020).

 That philosophy, which underpinned his early racing career, still rings true today.

“I don’t drive off, say, one-plus-one or paper wise. I drive off feeling and how I feel in the moment,” James explained.

“I think very much adaptable. I try to keep things simple and that makes racing easier for me. I’m open minded and don’t take too many things into the race in terms of a detailed plan.

I tend to take it as it comes, which I feel  is the easiest way to handle situations with no preconceived ideas. You just have to react to what is happening around you.”

A second season of Formula 4 racing in 2023 brought James his first Formula title, clearly establishing the Australian as one of the rising stars in international formula racing.

Racing once more for Prema Racing, James Wharton found himself competing against his five teammates, some of whom were also fellow FDA drivers, in addition to the other twenty-four plus cars on the grid.

Whilst one might ponder the complexities and politics within the Prema framework, Wharton chose to keep it simple.

“I don’t really feel outside pressure, which I think is one of my biggest strengths, as it doesn’t really affect me much,” Wharton explained of the pressure potential.

“I feel like I did my job in that season on that point. I beat all the FDA drivers that I had to beat. Tuukka Tauponen was second to me in UAE and he finished fifth in the Italian championship.”

Indeed James Wharton’s results in 2023 showed all the polish of a seasoned Formula 4 campaigner, which included his first title in the UAE Formula 4 Championship.

He followed that with the runner-up position in the inaugural Euro F4 Championship and fourth in the Italian F4 championship, in what seemed on paper to be a very busy schedule.

“In F4 that year there was so much,” James admitted.

“It was almost every week and you do a lot of driving. At the end of the day however, it was a quite realistic program which didn’t wear me out. The UAE ran by itself and there were only four rounds of the Euro F4, so it was actually quite simple to do and easy to maintain throughout the year.”

“The goal that year was to win the championship, which I did in the UAE and took second in the Euro F4. Fourth in the Italian F4 result was not what I wanted and would have been a lot better but for some issues. For instance I was leading a race and had engine issues, so I lost 25 points”.

“Overall that year the aim was to win and I think that I did a really good job in the UAE to take the championship and finish second in Euro F4. It was a very solid season and I feel that I met my expectations.”

2024 brought a step up to the Formula Regional Championships with a prelude in the Middle Eastern series followed by an assault on the European crown.

Wharton took runner-up honours in the European Championship, finishing the season with a trio of wins across the final three rounds in what he considered to be his most complete season to date.

“On paper and even feeling wise, 2024 was the most complete year that I’ve done so far,” Wharton reasoned.

“At the end of the day that shows why I’m in F3 now. Let’s say I’ve now polished off all the edges and really felt confident I what I am doing and have trust in what I am feeling.

 “At the end of the day I feel like it has proved why I deserve a seat in F3 for 2025.”

And that next step of the journey begins in Melbourne, just thirty minutes from the Wharton family home.

“I know everyone says it, but I’ve dreamed of this moment for so long!” James exclaimed.

“I’ve been on the grid as a kid. I was there last year watching F3 with a hope of running F3 in 2025. So, I’ve already been there for a race weekend and got to see how it was. I actually got really jealous that I wasn’t racing, but to be there now is going to be super cool.”

Amidst the familiarity of his home town, home circuit and his family and friends, on-track will be a different proposition. Wharton elected to part ways with the Ferrari Driving Academy at the end of 2023 and followed that with a change of teams to the French ART outfit.

Despite the number of 2025 F1 rookies who have gained their place through driver programs, James remained convinced that race results and championship will still bring more rewards.

“I feel that every driver who has been announced this year deserves to be there 100 percent,” he stated.

“On paper you can say lots of things about results and what people have done, but ultimately everyone who has gone into F1 this year has deserved it.”

“That said, I still think that results will speak for themselves.”

With opening practice for Formula 3 just days away, James Wharton remains committed to a simplistic approach to the opening race of the season.

“I have zero expectations for Melbourne because it’s impossible,” Wharton explained.

“We have new generations cars and medium compound tyres that have never been run before.”

Whilst there may be no expectation, there remains a simple plan.

“I am going in with an open mind and am approaching FP as one of my most important sessions so far,” he explained.

“For now its thinking that FP is the world championship and go out to do the best possible job.”

“The Sprint Race strategy is to pass as many people as possible, because hopefully I will overtaking from P12 on the grid!”

(Images c James Wharton – Drive Sports Marketing) via Dutch Photo Agency
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