When he looks back on his career, Max Esterson may someday say that COVID-19 was what set him on the path to becoming a professional race car driver.
Esterson, a 19-year-old New Yorker, had finished his first partial season in Formula Ford in the United States in 2020. “Moving up to USF2000 was quite a big step financially,” he says. “When COVID came along and school was online, we thought that, since I could go to school from anywhere, I’d have a go at some racing in England at the end of the year.”
Solid performances in the Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch and the Walter Hayes Trophy at Silverstone whetted his appetite for more. So he returned to the United Kingdom this year and ran the entire Avon Tyres National Formula Ford Championship.
This past month, sponsored by the Team USA Scholarship, Esterson came from 13th on the grid to place second in the Festival. At Silverstone one week later, he won both of his heat races and dominated the trophy dash – a remarkable achievement for a driver who’s been racing cars for only two years.
Click here to read the full story on iRacer Max Esterson’s ascent through the real world ranks via Motor Sport Magazine!
