William Stevens (born 28 June 1991) is a British racing driver, who formerly competed in

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

Toyota Racing Series The Formula Regional Oceania Championship is New Zealand's premier formula racing category. The series includes races for every major trophy in New Zealand circuit racing including the New Zealand Motor Cup and the Denny Hulme Memorial Trophy. ...

and the

British Formula Renault Championship British Formula Renault Championship referred to one of two Formula Renault championships that were held in the United Kingdom. The main series was Renault Sport UK's Formula Renault 2.0 UK championship which was held from 1989 to 2011 and was ge ...

s. In Formula One, he made his debut at the 2014 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with

Caterham F1 The Caterham F1 Team was a Malaysian, later British owned Formula One team based in the United Kingdom which raced under a Malaysian licence. The Caterham brand competed in the Formula One World Championship from to , following the acquisiti ...

, replacing

Marcus Ericsson Marcus Thorbjörn Ericsson (; born 2 September 1990) is a Swedish professional racing driver. He competes in the NTT IndyCar Series, driving the No. 8 Honda for Chip Ganassi Racing and is the 2022 Indianapolis 500 winner. Ericsson previously ...

for the double points race. During the 2015 season he competed with the Manor Marussia F1 Team. In 2016, he competed in the

Blancpain GT Series GT World Challenge Europe (known as the Blancpain GT Series between 2014 and 2019) is a sports car racing series organised by SRO Motorsports Group. It features grand tourer racing cars modified from production road cars complying with the FIA's G ...

and the

FIA World Endurance Championship The FIA World Endurance Championship is an auto racing world championship organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The series supersedes the ACO's former Intercont ...

(LMP2) while in 2017, Stevens continues to race for Belgian Audi Club Team WRT racing an

Audi R8 LMS The Audi R8 is a mid-engine, 2-seater sports car, which uses Audi's trademark quattro permanent all-wheel drive system. It was introduced by the German car manufacturer Audi AG in 2006. The car is exclusively designed, developed, and manufact ...

in the

’ Sprint and Endurance Cups, Blancpain

GT Asia Series The GT Asia Series was a sports car racing series based in Asia. The championship combines FIA GT3 specification cars as the elite class of the series with Ferrari Challenge, Porsche Cup and older GT3 machinery competing in the GTM class. The s ...

and the

Audi R8 LMS Cup The Audi R8 LMS Cup was a one-make sports car racing series by Audi based in Asia. Audi R8 LMS Cup cars were based on the Audi R8 LMS (GT3). History Audi R8 LMS Cup started in 2012 in all around the Asia. Constructor of this one make racing ...

. In the

2017 24 Hours of Le Mans The 85th 24 Hours of Le Mans (french: link=no, 85e 24 Heures du Mans) was a 24-hour automobile endurance event held for Le Mans Prototype (LMP) and Le Mans Grand Touring Endurance (LMGTE) cars from 17 to 18 June 2017 at the Circuit de la Sart ...

, Stevens raced a

Ferrari 488 The Ferrari 488 (Type F142M) is a mid-engine sports car produced by the Italian automobile manufacturer Ferrari. The car replaced the 458, being the first mid-engine Ferrari to use a turbocharged V8 since the F40. It was succeeded by the Ferra ...

Italia GTE in the GTE AM category for JMW Motorsport, co-driving alongside fellow Briton Rob Smith and Belgian Dries Vanthoor. They won the class, finishing two laps clear of their closest rivals.

Career

Karting

Stevens started his racing career in 2003 at age of 12 in

karts Kart racing or karting is a road racing variant of motorsport with open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on f ...

. After one year of racing in the National Cadet championship he joined Rotax Mini Max. He raced in a lot of different championships in Britain and outside, and after finishing 7th in the Rotax class in Super One he joined Formula Renault 2.0.

Formula Renault 2.0

He ended 7th in the 2009

Formula Renault 2.0 UK British Formula Renault Championship referred to one of two Formula Renault championships that were held in the United Kingdom. The main series was Renault Sport UK's Formula Renault 2.0 UK championship which was held from 1989 to 2011 and was g ...

and 4th in 2010. In 2011 he switched to the

Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup Formula Renault Eurocup was a Formula Renault motor racing championship. Eurocup raced only on European circuits. It served as a support series to the Formula 3.5 V8, Formula Renault 3.5 Series as part of the World Series by Renault from 2005 to ...

, where he finished 4th.

Formula Renault 3.5

Stevens jumped to the

Formula Renault 3.5 Series The World Series Formula V8 3.5, formerly the World Series by Nissan from 1998 to 2004, the Formula Renault 3.5 Series from 2005 to 2015 and the Formula V8 3.5 in 2016 and 2017, was a motor racing series promoted by RPM Racing (1998–2004) and R ...

in 2012, finishing 12th in his first year. In 2013 he scored five podiums in 17 races and ended fourth in the season standings. The driver got two wins and four podiums in 2014 to finish sixth in points.

Formula One

Marussia and Caterham (2014)

In October 2014

Marussia F1 The Marussia F1 Team (subsequently Manor Marussia F1 Team) was a Formula One racing team and constructor which was based in Banbury, Oxfordshire and then later Dinnington, South Yorkshire in the United Kingdom and competed with a Russian licen ...

announced that Stevens had joined the team as a reserve driver for the remainder of the 2014 season. They had originally planned to run him in first practice session of the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix; however they were unable to return the relevant paperwork to the FIA Contract Recognition Board in time. The following month he made his

debut with

at the 2014 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, having previously tested for the team. He finished the race in 17th place, one lap down. He paid £500,000 for the privilege.

Marussia (2015)

In February 2015, Manor Marussia announced Stevens as one of their drivers whilst bringing substantial funding to the team, along with

Roberto Merhi Roberto Merhi Muntan (born 22 March 1991), is a Spanish racing driver who drove in Formula One for the Manor Marussia F1 Team during the 2015 season. Merhi has also raced in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series for Pons Racing, and won the Formula 3 ...

Marussia Marussia Motors (russian: Маруся ) was a Russian sports car company founded in 2007. It was the first Russian company to produce a supercar. It designed, and manufactured prototypes of both the B1 and the B2 sport cars. Marussia was led by for ...

attended the

Australian Grand Prix The Australian Grand Prix is an annual motor racing event which is under contract to host Formula One until 2035. One of the oldest surviving motorsport competitions held in Australia, the Grand Prix has moved frequently with 23 different venu ...

but did not compete due to a technical issue. In the

Malaysian Grand Prix The Malaysian Grand Prix (officially the Malaysia Grand Prix from 1963–1965 and 2011–2017 and Malayan Grand Prix in 1962) was an annual auto race held in Malaysia. It was part of the Formula One World Championship from 1999 to 2017 and it ...

Stevens drove the Marussia car for the first time in Practice 1. However, he did not compete in qualifying or the race because of a problem with the fuel system. In the

Chinese Grand Prix The Chinese Grand Prix () is a round of the Formula One World Championship and was contracted to return in 2023 but will now not do so until 2024 at the earliest. It is currently held at the Shanghai International Circuit, Jiading, Shanghai, d ...

Stevens finished his first race for Marussia in 15th place ahead of his teammate Merhi after being lapped twice by race winner

Lewis Hamilton Sir Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton (born 7 January 1985) is a British racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Mercedes. In Formula One, Hamilton has won a joint-record seven World Drivers' Championship titles (tied with Mich ...

. Stevens finished ahead of Merhi in

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

and

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. He finished behind Merhi in the

Monaco Grand Prix The Monaco Grand Prix (french: Grand Prix de Monaco) is a Formula One motor racing event held annually on the Circuit de Monaco, in late May or early June. Run since 1929, it is widely considered to be one of the most important and prestigiou ...

in 16th. In the

Canadian Grand Prix The Canadian Grand Prix (french: Grand Prix du Canada) is an annual motor racing event held since 1961. It has been part of the Formula One World Championship since 1967. It was first staged at Mosport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, as a sports ...

he qualified behind Merhi but moved up to 17th due to penalties to

Jenson Button Jenson Alexander Lyons Button (born 19 January 1980) is a British racing driver. He won the 2009 Formula One World Championship when he drove for the Brawn GP team. After his F1 career, he became champion of the 2018 season of the Super GT ...

Sebastian Vettel Sebastian Vettel (; born 3 July 1987) is a German racing driver who competed in Formula One from 2007 to 2022 for BMW Sauber, Scuderia Toro Rosso, Toro Rosso, Red Bull Racing, Red Bull, Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari, and Aston Martin in Formula One ...

and

Max Verstappen Max Emilian Verstappen (; born 30 September 1997) is a Belgian-Dutch Auto racing, racing driver and the 2021 Formula One World Championship, 2021 and 2022 Formula One World Championship, 2022 Formula One World Champion. He Formula One drivers ...

. In the race on lap 52,

Romain Grosjean Romain David Jeremie Grosjean (; born 17 April 1986) is a Swiss-French professional racing driver, competing under the French flag in the NTT IndyCar Series, driving the No. 28 Honda for Andretti Autosport. Grosjean had previously spent nine ...

of Lotus was lapping Stevens but cut his left rear tyre while doing so which caused both drivers to make an emergency pit stop. The mechanics of both Lotus and Marussia had little time to react to their drivers pitting so that meant both Grosjean and Stevens took long pit stops. Stevens complained to his team on the radio about the incident. Grosjean received a 5-second penalty for the collision but Stevens had dropped from being 4 seconds behind Merhi to a minute behind him. However, Merhi was forced to retire on lap 56 after a drive-shaft issue. Stevens eventually finished in 17th place, 4 laps down on race winner Lewis Hamilton. After the race, Grosjean apologised to Stevens for the incident. During the later races of the season, Merhi was replaced by

Alexander Rossi Alexander Michael Rossi (born September 25, 1991) is an American professional racing driver and podcast host. He currently competes full-time in the IndyCar Series, driving the No. 7 Chevrolet for Arrow McLaren SP. Rossi is best known for winning ...

who outpaced Stevens in 3 of 4 races.

WEC and Blancpain (2016)

In February 2016, Manor Motorsport, a team made by former Manor Racing employees John Booth and

Graeme Lowdon Graeme Paul Lowdon (born 23 April 1965) is a British businessman and entrepreneur. He served as chief executive officer of the Virgin and Marussia Formula One teams. Originally from Corbridge, Lowdon grew up in Stocksfield. He gained both a bach ...

, decided to compete in the

, with Stevens and former Manor F3 driver

Tor Graves Tor Graves (born Torsak Sriachavanon, March 26, 1972) is a Thai racing driver. He is currently competing in the FIA World Endurance Championship. Career summary † - Team standings. 24 Hours of Le Mans results Complete WeatherTech Sport ...

. The following month it was announced that Stevens would dovetail his WEC campaign with racing in the

2016 Blancpain GT Series The 2016 Blancpain GT Series was the third season of the Blancpain GT Series. The season started on 10 April in Misano and ended on 2 October in Barcelona. The season featured ten rounds, five Endurance Cup rounds and five Sprint Cup rounds. Ca ...

for the

W Racing Team W Racing Team (WRT) is a Belgian auto racing team founded in 2009 by engineer and former head of Volkswagen Motorsport René Verbist, racing driver Vincent Vosse, and entrepreneur Yves Weerts. Since 2010 the team campaigns Audi R8 LMSs in sever ...

, driving an Audi R8 LMS with

René Rast René Rast (born 26 October 1986 in Minden) is a German professional racing driver and the 2017, 2019 and 2020 DTM champion. He previously drove for Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler in Formula E from 2019 to 2021 before Audi left the sport at the end o ...

Le Mans 24 Hours (2017)

In May 2017 it was confirmed that Stevens would co-drive the JMW Ferrari 488 GTE-Am alongside two Le Mans 'rookies', nineteen-year-old Dries Vanthoor of Holland and British driver Rob Smith. The team's Ferrari 488 was fresh out of the box, making its race debut, and was quickly on the pace; third-quickest in first free-practice. The team focused on fulfilling driver qualification requirements in First Qualifying (8th in GTE-Am, 3:56.890), but pushed on in Second Qualifying, with Dries Vanthoor the first to better the old class lap record (3:54.543). Will Stevens then sliced half a second off this by posting a 3:53.981 to lay claim to provisional class pole. In third and final qualifying the team completed race-preparation of the all-new car, and a succession of yellow flags prevented personal improvements for the JMW drivers. The car lined up 6th in GTE-Am for the race. Stevens drove the first stint, moving through to fourth in class. His co-drivers continued the advance, the team capturing third at 5:40 pm, and then second three hours into the race. Shortly after 10 pm, the #84 JMW Ferrari took the GTE-Am lead, and from there steadily built up an advantage that extended to over two laps at the finish. The car completed 333 laps and crossed the line 27th overall. Stevens set the fastest lap for the JMW Ferrari of 3:54.461.

ELMS and Blancpain (2017)

Stevens also in 2017 finished 2nd in the

Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup The GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup, officially known as Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS for sponsorship reasons, formerly the FIA GT Series, is a sports car racing series organized by the Stéphane Ratel Organisation (SRO) ...

which included his first GT3 win at

Zolder The Circuit Zolder, also known as Circuit Terlamen, is an undulating motorsport race track in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium. History Built in 1963, Zolder hosted the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix on 10 separate occasions in the 1970s and 1980s, a ...

with team-mate

Markus Winkelhock Markus Winkelhock (born 13 June 1980) is a German professional racing driver. He is the son of Manfred Winkelhock and nephew of Joachim Winkelhock, both of whom were Formula One drivers in the 1980s. During his brief Formula One career he led the ...

. Unfortunately he had a rather disappointing season in the

Blancpain Gt Series Endurance Cup The GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, formerly for sponsorship reasons the Blancpain Endurance Series from 2011 to 2015 and Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup from 2016 to 2019, is a sports car racing series developed by SRO Motorsports Gr ...

where his car retired in every race he competed in and he wasn't involved in the

24 hours of Spa The 24 Hours of Spa is an endurance racing event for cars held annually since 1924 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium. It is currently sponsored by TotalEnergies. History The Spa 24 Hours was conceived by Jules de Their a ...

the blue riband event of the Blancpain GT Series.After their victory at the 24 hours of Le Mans JMW Motorsport invited Stevens to race in the last 2 races of the European Le Man Series in an attempt to come 1st in the GTE Series Team standings. This attempt was successful as Stevens helped the team come 2nd at

Spa-Francorchamps The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps (), frequently referred to as ''Spa'', is a motor-racing circuit located in Stavelot, Belgium. It is the current venue of the Formula One Belgian Grand Prix, hosting its first Grand Prix in 1925, and has he ...

and

Algarve The Algarve (, , ; from ) is the southernmost NUTS II region of continental Portugal. It has an area of with 467,495 permanent inhabitants and incorporates 16 municipalities ( ''concelhos'' or ''municípios'' in Portuguese). The region has it ...

which elevated the team to 1st in the GTE standings.

ELMS (2018–present)

In March 2018 Stevens joined the Panis-Barthez LMP2 Team for the 2018 European Le Mans Series and to compete in the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

McLaren F1 (2018–present)

Stevens has worked with

McLaren McLaren Racing Limited is a British motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. McLaren is best known as a Formula One constructor, the second oldest active team, and the second most successful Formul ...

since 2018 as a test and development driver, primarily carrying out simulator work. McLaren announced on 11 July 2022 that Stevens would drive the

McLaren MCL35 The McLaren MCL35 is a Formula One car that was designed under the direction of James Key and constructed by McLaren to compete in the Formula One World Championship. The car was originally intended to compete in the season only, but as the ...

2021 car at a private test to be held between the 11th and 13th of July at

Portimao circuit The Algarve International Circuit ( pt, Autódromo Internacional do Algarve), commonly referred to as Portimão Circuit, is a race circuit located in Portimão, Algarve region, Portugal. The development includes a karting track, off-road tra ...

Racing record

Career summary

^† As Stevens was a guest driver, he was ineligible for points. ^* Season still in progress.

Complete Formula Renault UK results

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 results

(

) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^† As Stevens was a guest driver, he was ineligible for points.

Complete Formula Renault 3.5 Series results

(

) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Formula One results

(

) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) Driver did not finish the Grand Prix, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Complete Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup results

Complete European Le Mans Series results

^‡ Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed.

Complete IMSA SportsCar Championship results

(

) ^* Season still in progress.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stevens, Will 1991 births Living people People from Rochford English racing drivers Portuguese Formula Renault 2.0 drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers FIA World Endurance Championship drivers Blancpain Endurance Series drivers British Formula Renault 2.0 drivers Formula Renault Eurocup drivers Toyota Racing Series drivers Formula Renault 2.0 NEC drivers World Series Formula V8 3.5 drivers Caterham Formula One drivers Marussia Formula One drivers English Formula One drivers Carlin racing drivers Sportspeople from Essex European Le Mans Series drivers WeatherTech SportsCar Championship drivers Fortec Motorsport drivers Manor Motorsport drivers MP Motorsport drivers Strakka Racing drivers W Racing Team drivers G-Drive Racing drivers Jota Sport drivers Wayne Taylor Racing drivers Karting World Championship drivers Audi Sport drivers P1 Motorsport drivers Starworks Motorsport drivers