Remember when Austria was a powerhouse in Formula 1? With legends bringing home four world championships and an impressive 41 Grand Prix victories, Austrian drivers were once a force to be reckoned with. But since 2010, we haven’t seen an Austrian driver on the F1 grid – and that’s exactly what the FORMELAUSTRIA Young Driver Program is determined to change. I recently spoke to Dr. Harold Ian Miltner, managing director of HM Sports who has been working successfully in F1 for more than two decades and runs the program to get more details about the initiative. One important thing to keep in mind is that, although the program is focused on Austria and the surrounding region, they are happy and eager to work with drivers from other countries as long as they are ready to work hard!
Think of this program as a launchpad for young racing talents who dream of reaching F1. Based at the Pannoniaring track (which is a FIA-grade track), young drivers with either a karting or a SimRacing background get their hands on state-of-the-art Tatuus Formula 4 cars and access to some seriously cool simulator technology.
But it’s not just about learning to drive fast. These aspiring champions get the full package – from physical training and mental preparation to media coaching. You also get valuable media coverage in motorsport website Formelaustria.at which is Austria‘s largest digital motorsport platform with 150k Followers on its social media channels and about 4 million readers monthly in Germany, Austria, Scandinavia and the Benelux countries.
The program is already attracted some exciting talents, including Charlie and Oscar Wurz, Luca Savu, and Kristyna Kalistová, who are all being mentored by racing legends like Alex Wurz, Riccardo Patrese and David Coulthard.
The journey typically spans two seasons. Year one is all about mastering the basics and getting comfortable in club championships. By year two, drivers are ready to tackle the FIA F4 Central European Championship with the goal to finish in the top 5. Once you have completed the program, you will have the capability to drive pretty much anything you climb into.
In any given year the program works with four drivers overall, 2 per season with at least one female driver taking part. Season one costs approximately €100k and season 2 €165K.
Here’s what makes this program special: it’s backed by some serious players in the motorsport world. HM Sports, Renauer Motorsport, and the More than Equal initiative (which is doing amazing work getting more women into motorsport) are all on board. And with 2.3 million Austrians tuning into F1 in 2023, there’s clearly an appetite for homegrown talent.
For those wondering about the business side, the program offers some interesting investment opportunities. Partners can jump in with investments between €50,000 and €100,000 over five years, with returns of up to 10% annually – plus some pretty sweet perks like VIP access to race weekends or race taxi drivers.
Looking ahead, FORMELAUSTRIA is more than just a training program – it’s Austria’s ticket back to the F1 grid. With the right mix of talent, training, and support, we might just see the next Austrian F1 star emerge from this initiative. After all, with such a rich racing heritage, it’s about time Austria reclaimed its place in the pinnacle of motorsport.
For proof that the program works, Dr. Miltner points to their driver Simon Schranz. “When Simon started with us, he was one of Austria’s top SimRacers, but had never been in a Formula car before and had only done a few laps in a kart. However, we have managed to raise his competitive level with testing and club racing in a few months to such extent that he debuted in the F4 CEZ Championship in the last two rounds, finishing in the Top 4 in three of six races and in the Top 6 in five of them.”
For young drivers dreaming of F1, this program isn’t just an opportunity – it’s a complete roadmap to success. And who knows? The next Austrian F1 champion might be reading this right now!
More information on the program can be found at the FormelAustria website.
Author: Mark Boudreau
Mark is the publisher of Motorsport Prospects. As a former lawyer, he applies his legal background and research skills to assist race drivers by showcasing the resources they need to make their motorsport careers happen.
