15-year-old Lewis Wherrell will join former championship-winning team JHR Developments for a full Wera Tools F4 British Championship certified by FIA campaign in 2026, as he takes his first step on the single-seater ladder.
Recognised in 2023 with the FIA International Karting Ranking (IKR) Driver Of The Year Award, Lewis has been blazing a trail in karting since he first competed in 2019. He was the 2021 World champion in X30 Mini and 2023 WSK Champions Cup winner, amongst many other accolades.
He made his single-seater debut a few months ago, claiming two victories and a podium finish in the F4 Saudi Arabian Championship, finishing fifth in the championship despite having only competed in four of the ten races.
Lewis has already conducted a number of tests with the Derbyshire-based JHR Developments team and will be running a full test programme ahead of his debut in the British series in April. The championship will once again support the hugely popular British Touring Car Championship for eight of the ten race weekends. The series will also give racers useful experience at Formula One venues, with a round each on the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit and the Dutch Grand Prix venue of Zandvoort.
Lewis Wherrell said:
“I’m proud to announce that I’ll be racing for JHR developments for the 2026 British F4 season. I’d like to thank everyone involved at JHR for this opportunity. I can’t wait to get started and I’m hoping for a good year ahead for both me and the whole team.”
Steven Hunter, JHR Developments Team Principal said:
“We’ve had some really good test days so far with Lewis and he’s done quite a bit of running since the end of the season. He’s done a really good job so far. He’s been taking a lot of information onboard and applied what he’s learnt very methodically. With every test he’s gained in confidence and speed, so we’re looking forward to seeing Lewis out racing with JHR and I feel that he’ll be battling up the front in 2026.”
