GT CHAMPION MEADOWS GETS DOUBLE R F4 ROLE
Top F4 squad enters partnership with Carrera Cup champ’s karting team
Two-time Porsche
Carrera Cup GB champion Michael Meadows has become Double R’s British Formula 4 team manager after his karting outfit Argenti Motorsport formed a partnership with the F4 squad.
Meadows has decided to step away from racing himself to take on the role, having claimed the 2018 Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup title in an AKKA-RUN Mercedes. Before switching to GTS, Meadows was a single-seater racer and drove in British F3 in 2007.
“I’ve known Double R for a long time because I drove for them in F3 in 2007 and always maintained that relationship,” explained Meadows. “Midway through last year we started speaking. I just felt I wanted to do the next thing – driving is fine but I knew opportunities were fewer and further between.
“At this level, working with young drivers, you can make a big difference. I’ve done various coaching roles over the years and when the drivers are older it’s harder for people to change. When they’re younger they’re keen to learn.”
Meadows aims to create closer links between karting and car racing and believes the partnership between Argenti and Double R can help prepare karters for the next step on the career ladder.
“It’s two separate worlds – the karters don’t know much about the cars, and the car teams don’t know much about the karters,” said Meadows. “I think it’s quite scary when you’re 15 or 16 and you arrive at a big team with a lot of people. We want to get them into cars [while still karting].”
Double R has also announced its first driver for the new F4 season, inaugural Scholarship winner Casper Stevenson. He finished sixth in the Ginetta Junior standings last year in his maiden car racing campaign and, after his Scholarship success, was keen to race with Double R.
“Off the back of winning the inaugural Scholarship last year, I am very confident and can’t wait for the red lights to go out at round one,” said Stevenson.
Meadows added that Double R has also signed a second driver and is in advanced talks with a third.
Also announced as joining the grid are Zak O’sullivan and Christian Mansell. Both drivers will drive for Carlin – O’sullivan was the standout Ginetta Junior rookie last year and finished second in the standings, while Mansell competed in Australian F4.