James Hedley

James Hedley
Hedley at the Hungaroring in 2024
NationalityUnited Kingdom British
Born (2003-09-01) 1 September 2003 (age 21)
GB3 Championship career
Debut season2021
Current teamArden VRD
Car number4
Former teamsElite Motorsport, JHR Developments
Starts52 (56 entries)
Wins2
Podiums4
Poles0
Fastest laps0
Best finish6th in 2023
Previous series
2020–2021
2017–2019		 F4 British Championship
Ginetta Junior Championship
Championship titles
2019Ginetta Junior Championship

James Hedley (born 1 September 2003) is a British racing driver who currently competes in the GB3 Championship with VRD by Arden. He is part of the BRDC Rising Star Programme.

Career

Karting

Hedley started karting at the age of 11.[1] In 2016 he became the Honda Cadet London Easter Champion.[2][3]

Ginetta Junior Championship

Hedley made his car racing debut with Elite Motorsport in final two rounds of the 2017 Ginetta Junior Championship.[1] For the 2018 Ginetta Junior Championship he remained with the team finished the season in eighth after scoring two podiums.[4] In 2019 he returned for another season in the Ginetta Junior Championship. This time he went on to become champion ahead of Zak O'Sullivan with seven wins to his name.[5]

F4 British Championship

In 2020 Hedley joined JHR Developments in the F4 British Championship to make his single-seater racing debut.[5] He took four wins throughout the season and finished the championship fifth in the standings.[6][7]

In 2021 Hedley returned to the F4 British Championship with Fortec Motorsport.[7] In the first half of the season Hedley took four wins. Ahead of the sixth round at Thruxton Circuit he split with Fortec Motorsport and continued in the championship with Carlin instead.[8][9] He once again finished fifth in the overall championship standings.[10]

GB3 Championship

In October 2021 Hedley also joined his old Ginetta Junior-team Elite Motorsport to compete in the final round of the GB3 Championship at Donington Park.[10]

He then started the 2022 GB3 Championship with Elite Motorsport.[1][4] He took his only podiums finish of the season in the fourth round at Snetterton Circuit.[11] Ahead of the fifth round at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps he switched teams to join JHR Developments.[11] Hedley finished 17th in the championship standings.[12]

For the 2023 GB3 Championship Hedley joined Arden VRD.[12] Throughout the season he took two wins at Oulton Park and Snetterton Circuit.[13][14] He came sixth in the standings.

He remained with VRD by Arden for the opening two rounds of the 2024 GB3 Championship, acting as a replacement for Nikita Johnson, who was yet to reach the minimum age requirement to compete in the GB3 Championship.[15][16]

Formula Regional

Following the 2023 Formula Regional season, Hedley participated in multiple post-season tests with RPM. These tests never amounted to a race seat.[17]

Hedley was linked to the Monolite Racing team during the 2024 pre-season and was due to test and race with them until they withdrew from the championship shortly before the season's start.[18][19]

FIA Formula 3 Championship

In May 2024, Hedley made his FIA Formula 3 debut following a late call-up to race in the Monaco round, replacing Matías Zagazeta who was recovering from appendicitis.[20][21]

Super Formula

In December 2024, Hedley partook in a Super Formula test at the Suzuka Circuit.[22]

Racing record

Racing career summary

Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
2017 Ginetta Junior Championship Elite Motorsport 6 0 0 0 0 60 22nd
Ginetta Junior Winter Series 4 0 0 0 0 65 7th
2018 Ginetta Junior Championship Elite Motorsport 26 0 3 2 2 356 8th
Ginetta Junior Winter Championship 3 2 2 1 2 95 1st
2019 Ginetta Junior Championship Elite Motorsport 26 7 11 12 18 680 1st
2020 F4 British Championship JHR Developments 25 4 4 7 7 249 5th
2021 F4 British Championship Fortec Motorsport 14 4 2 1 6 226 5th
Carlin 15 0 0 0 2
GB3 Championship Elite Motorsport 3 0 0 0 0 23 26th
2022 GB3 Championship Elite Motorsport 12 0 0 0 1 156 17th
JHR Developments 9 0 0 0 0
2023 GB3 Championship Arden VRD 23 2 0 0 3 347 6th
2024 GB3 Championship VRD by Arden 5 0 0 0 0 151 15th
Rodin Motorsport 6 0 0 0 2
Chris Dittmann Racing 3 0 0 0 0
FIA Formula 3 Championship Jenzer Motorsport 2 0 0 0 0 0 34th
Eurocup-3 Saintéloc Racing 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC†

* Season still in progress.

Complete Ginetta Junior Championship results

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

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 DC Points
2017 Elite Motorsport BHI
1
 BHI
2
 DON
1
 DON
2
 DON
3
 THR1
1
 THR1
2
 OUL
1
 OUL
2
 CRO
1
 CRO
2
 CRO
3
 SNE
1
 SNE
2
 SNE
3
 KNO
1
 KNO
2
 ROC
1
 ROC
2
 ROC
3
 SIL
1
17 		SIL
2
16 		SIL
3
10 		BHGP
1
10 		BHGP
2
10 		BHGP
3
6 		22nd 60
2018 Elite Motorsport BHI
1
7 		BHI
2
10 		DON
1
8 		DON
2
10 		DON
3
5 		THR1
1
6 		THR1
2
2 		OUL
1
5 		OUL
2
12 		CRO
1
6 		CRO
2
11 		CRO
3
10 		SNE
1
13 		SNE
2
7 		SNE
3
6 		ROC
1
5 		ROC
2
Ret 		ROC
3
12 		KNO
1
7 		KNO
2
4 		SIL
1
2 		SIL
2
8 		SIL
3
18 		BHGP
1
5 		BHGP
2
10 		BHGP
3
18 		8th 356
2019 Elite Motorsport BHI
1
3 		BHI
2
2 		DON
1
1 		DON
2
2 		DON
3
1 		THR1
1
4 		THR1
2
1 		CRO
1
C 		CRO
2
2 		OUL
1
2 		OUL
2
2 		SNE
1
6 		SNE
2
2 		SNE
3
3 		SNE
4
2 		THR2
1
1 		THR2
2
3 		THR2
3
Ret 		KNO
1
1 		KNO
2
1 		KNO
3
3 		SIL
1
17 		SIL
2
4 		SIL
3
4 		BHGP
1
1 		BHGP
2
5 		BHGP
3
5 		1st 680

Complete F4 British Championship results

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

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 DC Points
2020 JHR Developments DON
1
5 		DON
2
Ret 		DON
3
1 		BHGP
1
DNS 		BHGP
2
9 		BHGP
3
8 		OUL
1
4 		OUL
2
4 		OUL
3
2 		KNO
1
Ret 		KNO
2
5 		KNO
3
5 		THR
1
1 		THR
2
1 		THR
3
1 		SIL
1
5 		SIL
2
2 		SIL
3
Ret 		CRO
1
8 		CRO
2
5 		SNE
1
9 		SNE
2
7 		SNE
3
3 		BHI
1
8 		BHI
2
5 		BHI
3
9 		5th 249
2021 Fortec Motorsport THR1
1
1 		THR1
2
1 		THR1
3
3 		SNE
1
2 		SNE
2
11 		SNE
3
4 		BHI
1
15 		BHI
2
1 		BHI
3
5 		OUL
1
1 		OUL
2
127 		OUL
3
6 		KNO
1
10 		KNO
2
DNS 		KNO
3
11 		5th 226
Carlin THR2
1
Ret 		THR2
2
33 		THR2
3
8 		CRO
1
12 		CRO
2
5 		CRO
3
12 		SIL
1
15 		SIL
2
6 		SIL
3
Ret 		DON
1
7 		DON
2
48 		DON
3
8 		BHGP
1
12 		BHGP
2
24 		BHGP
3
13

Complete GB3 Championship results

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

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 DC Points
2021 Elite Motorsport BRH
1 		BRH
2 		BRH
3 		SIL1
1 		SIL1
2 		SIL1
3 		DON1
1 		DON1
2 		DON1
3 		SPA
1 		SPA
2 		SPA
3 		SNE
1 		SNE
2 		SNE
3 		SIL2
1 		SIL2
2 		SIL2
3 		OUL
1 		OUL
2 		OUL
3 		DON2
1
10 		DON2
2
12 		DON2
3
13 		26th 23
2022 Elite Motorsport OUL
1
13 		OUL
2
10 		OUL
3
12 		SIL1
1
5 		SIL1
2
7 		SIL1
3
18 		DON1
1
6 		DON1
2
4 		DON1
3
14 		SNE
1
16 		SNE
2
14 		SNE
3
32 		17th 156
JHR Developments SPA
1
Ret 		SPA
2
13 		SPA
3
14 		SIL2
1
15 		SIL2
2
DSQ 		SIL2
3
Ret 		BRH
1
11 		BRH
2
16 		BRH
3
Ret 		DON2
1
WD 		DON2
2
WD 		DON2
3
WD
2023 Arden VRD OUL
1
4 		OUL
2
1 		OUL
3
1110 		SIL1
1
9 		SIL1
2
20 		SIL1
3
104 		SPA
1
8 		SPA
2
6 		SPA
3
46 		SNE
1
1 		SNE
2
3 		SNE
3
136 		SIL2
1
11 		SIL2
2
11 		SIL2
3
C 		BRH
1
4 		BRH
2
8 		BRH
3
138 		ZAN
1
Ret 		ZAN
2
4 		ZAN
3
Ret 		DON
1
4 		DON
2
6 		DON
3
117 		6th 347
2024 VRD by Arden OUL
1
17 		OUL
2
Ret 		OUL
3
156 		SIL1
1
8 		SIL1
2
7 		SIL1
3
C 		SPA
1
 SPA
2
 SPA
3
 15th 151
Rodin Motorsport HUN
1
4 		HUN
2
8 		HUN
3
62 		ZAN
1
3 		ZAN
2
2 		ZAN
3
11 		SIL2
1
 SIL2
2
 SIL2
3
 DON
1
 DON
2
 DON
3
Chris Dittman Racing BRH
1
18 		BRH
2
Ret 		BRH
3
121

* Season still in progress.

Complete FIA Formula 3 Championship results

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

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 DC Points
2024 Jenzer Motorsport BHR
SPR
 BHR
FEA
 MEL
SPR
 MEL
FEA
 IMO
SPR
 IMO
FEA
 MON
SPR
20 		MON
FEA
22 		CAT
SPR
 CAT
FEA
 RBR
SPR
 RBR
FEA
 SIL
SPR
 SIL
FEA
 HUN
SPR
 HUN
FEA
 SPA
SPR
 SPA
FEA
 MNZ
SPR
 MNZ
FEA
 34th 0

Complete Eurocup-3 results

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

Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 DC Points
2024 Saintéloc Racing SPA
1
 SPA
2
 RBR
1
 RBR
2
 POR
1
 POR
2
 POR
3
 LEC
1
 LEC
2
 ZAN
1
 ZAN
2
 ARA
1
 ARA
2
 JER
1
17 		JER
2
11 		CAT
1
 CAT
2
 NC† 0

† As Hedley was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score points

References

  1. ^ a b c "James Hedley". www.gb-3.net. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  2. ^ "James Hedley | Young Drivers | British Racing Drivers' Club". www.brdc.co.uk. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  3. ^ MarkWalkerFord. "Ginetta Junior Championship". James Hedley Racing. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  4. ^ a b Wood, Ida (3 March 2022). "Elite Motorsort signs James Hedley for GB3". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  5. ^ a b Waring, Bethonie (5 March 2020). "Ginetta Junior champion James Hedley moves into British F4 with JHR". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  6. ^ Waring, Bethonie (11 December 2020). "British F4 season review: Fortec's Browning wins in closest action yet". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  7. ^ a b Wood, Ida (27 April 2021). "James Hedley secures second season in British F4 with move to Fortec". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  8. ^ Allen, Peter (26 August 2021). "British F4 title contender Hedley makes mid-season Carlin switch". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  9. ^ Waring, Bethonie (27 September 2021). "Hedley: British F4 title "life or death" for career". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  10. ^ a b Whitfield, Steve (12 October 2021). "Elite Motorsport adds British F4's Hedley for GB3 finale". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  11. ^ a b Wood, Ida (21 July 2022). "Hedley leaves Elite Motorsport for JHR Developments in GB3". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  12. ^ a b Whitfield, Steve (4 May 2023). "James Hedley to contest full GB3 season with Arden VRD". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  13. ^ Whitfield, Steve (10 April 2023). "Hedley wins rain-affected GB3 race two at Oulton Park". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  14. ^ Whitfield, Steve (17 June 2023). "Hedley surges to victory at Snetterton as Voisin takes GB3 points lead". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  15. ^ Whitfield, Steve (26 March 2024). "Hedley returns to VRD by Arden for first two GB3 rounds". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  16. ^ "James Hedley Set to Race in First Two GB3 Rounds with VRD Racing by Arden | Arden Motorsport". www.arden-motorsport.com. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  17. ^ Costa, Massimo (10 December 2023). "Test at Le Castellet Lacorte leads with Trident". italiaracing.net. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  18. ^ Gascoigne, Roger (1 April 2024). "Arden confirms rumoured FREC exit as Monolite races to fill seats". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  19. ^ Scout, Formula (23 May 2024). "Hedley describes "crazy" circumstances around F3 debut in Monaco". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  20. ^ "Jenzer Motorsport confirms James Hedley for Monte Carlo". FIA_Formula 3® - The Official F3® Website. 22 May 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  21. ^ Wood, Ida (22 May 2024). "James Hedley replaces Matias Zagazeta at Jenzer for Monaco F3 round". Formula Scout. Retrieved 28 May 2024.
  22. ^ Allen, Peter (9 December 2024). "Antonelli and Bearman to take part in Super Formula test at Suzuka". Formula Scout. Retrieved 13 December 2024.

Official website

James Hedley career summary at DriverDB.com