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Teenage racing driver Chloe Grant is aiming for the top in motorsports

© Supplied by HandoutsChloe Grant
Chloe Grant

When 11-year-old Chloe Grant got behind the wheel of a 60mph kart for the first time, she knew driving was her calling.

“I went from driving a 40mph kart to a 60-65mph one, and it was so close to the ground. It was such an adrenalin rush and at such a young age,” Chloe explained.

“I remember my first day getting into the kart and thinking: ‘Oh my God, this feels awesome!’”

Now 18, Chloe has won karting championships, graduated to cars in 2021 and moved to single-seaters in 2022.

In 2023, she joined the F1 Academy – racing in 1.4-litre cars at speeds of up to 150mph – and last year returned to the single-seater GB4 Championship in the UK.

“There’s no other feeling like it, I can’t imagine a life without driving,” she said.

Chloe Grant’s racing career

Hailing from Perth, Chloe has been on racing tracks for almost as long as she can remember.

Her older sister Lucy karted before her, and in true sibling fashion and despite being too young, Chloe was determined to drive too.

She said: “I was seven when I started and just wanted to follow in my sister’s footsteps. My dad’s major love was always motorbikes – he toured across Europe on a bike and went to track days for fun.

“He loved F1 too, and motorsports were always on the TV at home.

“My sister Lucy saw the Senna documentary when she was around 13 and went to our dad and said: ‘I want to do this so badly.’ He had a few motorbike friends who could point him in the right direction, and the rest is history.”

The Grant family has gathered around Chloe to help with her career, and she puts much of her success down to their team effort.

She said: “I couldn’t do it alone, it would be literally impossible.

“My sister Lucy used to do all my social media and coached me on how to be more comfortable under a spotlight and while dealing with the press, but she gave birth to my beautiful nephew four months ago and so is pretty busy at the moment! I learned a lot from her and that made me feel comfortable taking over myself.

“My mum handles the business side of things, and my dad works so hard to support me. He’s done a lot more behind the scenes than I ever realised.”

Chloe Grant. © Supplied
Chloe Grant.

Competing in motorsports is notoriously expensive, as Chloe knows all too well. On her route through the sport, she has found that money often opens more doors than raw talent ever could.

“My family is comfortable, but we’re not motorsport rich,” she explained. “I’m so lucky to have sponsors like Laser Tools Racing, John Clark Motor Group and Specsavers supporting me.

“Once I tested for a team, which costs a lot of money to do, and I came away the quickest driver. I was then told that someone was going to buy the seat for five times what I could pay for it, and the person hadn’t even gone to the test. The news hurt so bad. At the time, I felt like I lost everything.

“It happens all the time in the sport and it’s so frustrating. People get seats sometimes just because they have a strong social media following, and I think that shouldn’t matter. If you’re good enough, you should get to drive.”

Monza crash

In 2023, Chloe’s car flipped and burst into flames during an F1 Academy race at Monza in Italy.

When they pulled her from the vehicle, her first thought was not for her wellbeing, but that of her car.

She said: “When any racing driver has a crash, you don’t care what state you’re in, you care about the car – because you know you’re going to get that bill.

“I remember the medics wouldn’t let me turn my head because they didn’t know what injuries I had.

“I wanted to see how bad the car was, and I remember getting stressed because they wouldn’t let me look!”

Chloe Grant. © Supplied
Chloe Grant.

Ever the speedster, Chloe has not let setbacks hold her down and she is already racing off to her next adventure. She now wants to tackle endurance racing, pairing with another driver to race over long periods.

Anyone who has ever watched the 24 Hours of Le Mans race knows the level of discipline and determination that endurance racing demands from its drivers.

“It’s why it’s great to work with a sponsor like Specsavers. They help make sure I can see and hear well enough to compete at that level of race!” Chloe laughed.

Women in motorsports

She is often asked what it is like to race in such a male-dominated sport, but it has never been a problem for her.

She said: “It’s nothing like the media portrays it to be, in my experience. Obviously, everyone has a different experience, but as a driver, no one cares what gender you are. They just care what you do on the track.

“When I was younger and still karting, I remember two boys were targeting me. It was because their dads were saying to them: ‘You can’t get beaten by a girl.’ I was 13 and I’ve always been confident, so I pulled them and their dads aside and said: ‘Listen, get over it,’ and they left me alone. That’s the only major problem I’ve had.

“Everyone gets hate on social media, but I’ve always found if you look into it, it’s usually either a really young boy, or a 60-year-old man who is jealous because he doesn’t get to do what I do.”

Racing driver Chloe Grant is planning a move into endurance events after a spell in single-seaters, including the GB4 Championship. © Supplied by Handouts
Racing driver Chloe Grant is planning a move into endurance events after a spell in single-seaters, including the GB4 Championship.

A lack of women in motorsports is partially down to awareness, she said – a lot of young girls do not realise it is an option for them. According to Chloe, that is changing too.

She said: “I am an ambassador for Girls On Track UK, which is there to let girls know there’s a place for them in motorsports. It’s a great initiative.

“Girls come along and learn about cars and realise there’s potential for them to get involved. Sometimes at the end of the day they say: ‘I never realised, I really want to do this.’ But we don’t force it on them – we just let them know there’s space for them in the sport.”

Chloe’s can-do, no-nonsense attitude is what makes her such a determined racer.

And her steely-eyed feistiness can take her to racing highs across the world.

She said: “I might not be rich like others, but I can still be quicker. I can’t give up – I can’t let them win.”