Formula E

Photo gallery: The 10 youngest drivers in Formula E history

Tobias Wirtz

Tobias Wirtz

McLaren has signed Taylor Barnard, the youngest regular driver in Formula E history. The Briton, who ended his Formula 2 season early following the announcement with immediate effect, will be exactly 20 years and 189 days old at the season opener in Sao Paulo on 7 December.

Some well-known names also made their Formula E debut at a very young age. Here is an overview of the ten youngest Formula E drivers in history. The age on the day of their first race start is shown in each case.

10. Dan Ticktum (22 years, 234 days)

The ERT driver can just about count himself on this list. At the 2022 Diriyah E-Prix, the Brit started for the first time for the racing team then known as Nio 333, for which he has contested every single race since. At the end of his debut race, Ticktum finished in 18th place.

9. Mitch Evans (22 years, 105 days)

Reigning world championship runner-up Mitch Evans was also only 22 years old at his first race. However, this was much longer ago: the New Zealander made his debut for Jaguar at the 2016 Hong Kong E-Prix and has contested every single E-Prix for the team since then. However, the race was not crowned with success: Evans retired in his debut race - as the only driver from this top 10 list.

8. Caio Collet (22 years, 87 days)

The next driver on the list made his Formula E debut just a few weeks ago: Caio Collet stepped in at Nissan for Oliver Rowland, who was absent because of illness, at the 2024 Portland E-Prix, becoming the eighth youngest driver in history. The Brazilian finished his first race debut in the electric series in 18th position.

7. Sergio Sette Camara (22 years, 74 days)

Another Brazilian appears on the list: The then substitute driver Sergio Sette Camara was appointed as a regular driver at Geox Dragon during the ‘Six Pack of Berlin’ in the pandemic season 2020 after Brendon Hartley left the team during the long break of almost six months. He will not have fond memories of his debut: Sette Camara finished last and was even subsequently disqualified after consuming more than the maximum 45 kWh of energy permitted at the time.

6. Daniel Abt (21 years, 284 days)

The only driver on this list who made his debut at the very first Formula E race on 13 September 2014 is Daniel Abt. The German then competed in six Formula E seasons for ABT/Audi and Nio 333 before moving to Sat.1/ProSieben and later to Servus TV/DF1 as a TV expert and co-commentator. Even though five younger drivers raced in the electric racing series in the following years, Abt still holds several age records today: in Long Beach 2015, he became the youngest pole-setter in Formula E history to date, and in Punta del Este 2014, he became the youngest driver to set the fastest race lap. In Miami 2015, he became the youngest driver to stand on the podium to date.

5. Maximilian Günther (21 years, 166 days)

Maximilian Günther is the second German driver to join the list of the youngest Formula E starters. The Oberstdorf native, who now lives in Monaco, first competed in the electric series at the 2018 Diriyah E-Prix, the first race of the Gen2 era, back then for Geox Dragon. Günther also holds an age record in Formula E to this day: at the 2020 Santiago E-Prix, he became the youngest race winner in history.

4. Pierre Gasly (21 years, 158 days)

Formula E fans who have only been following the electric racing series for the last few years will probably be surprised by this name. But the current Alpine F1 driver contested the 2017 New York City E-Prix with Renault e.dams as a replacement for Sebastien Buemi, who was unable to attend because he was driving for Toyota in the World Endurance Championship at the Nürburgring. Gasly sold himself well: the Frenchman's seventh place is the best debut result for a driver on this list. He was even more successful in his second race the following day, finishing fourth.

3. Matthew Brabham (20 years, 270 days)

Matthew Brabham, grandson of the 1959, 1960 and 1966 Formula 1 world champion Jack Brabham, drove for Andretti in season 1, which tested various drivers in the electric series in the team's second cockpit. Brabham finished 13th in the Putrajaya E-Prix and retired in Punta del Este before focussing on US racing again. Since then, he has been champion three times in the Stadium Super Trucks, an off-road racing series in pick-up trucks.

2. Paul Aron (20 years, 97 days)

The fact that Paul Aron made his debut in Berlin a few months ago as the second-youngest driver in Formula E history has remained somewhat under the radar. He replaced Robin Frijns at Envision Racing, who was also competing for BMW in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) at Spa-Francorchamps. Aron finished the race in 13th position.

1. Taylor Barnard (19 years, 332 days)

The youngest regular driver in Formula E history is also the youngest starter: Taylor Barnard stood in for Sam Bird, who had injured his hand, for the first time at the 2024 Monaco E-Prix, making his mark in the history books. Although he took over the cockpit without much preparation time, he beat his team-mate Jake Hughes in his very first race. Two weeks later in Berlin, he even became the youngest driver to score a point in the electric series.

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