
Meet the Brit drivers of Formula E from Schumacher apprentice and AFC Wimbledon player to die-hard Aston Villa fan
Meanwhile fellow Brit Dan Ticktum bagged his first ever podium with a third-place finish in the Japanese capital.
4
Oliver Rowland is 77 points clear in the drivers' standings
4
Dan Ticktum has found his home in Formula E after spending time in Williams' and Red Bull's academies
Formula E is a motor sport championship for electric cars, and is the only-sport certified net zero event.
The championship features 16 races across 10 world cities, and became the first global sport to be certified with a net zero carbon footprint back in 2020.
There are six British drivers in total in the series from one nearly making it with AFC Wimbledon, to a die-hard Aston Villa fan - SunSport gives you the low down.
OLIVER ROWLAND
Rowland is not wrong when says he likes to 'do his talking on the track' with the 32-year-old storming towards the title this season.
He is leading the championship on a whopping 161 points, 77 points above second-place Antonio Felix Da Costa.
Away from the track, the Nissan driver is quiet and reserved, favouring toasting his numerous wins with a 'few beers' with his close circle.
He is a devoted dad to his daughter Harper who is often seen in the Nissan garage or on his lap when conducting interviews.
In April 2017 Rowland was signed to the role of development driver to the Renault F1 Team.
Most read in Motorsport
A year later Rowland was confirmed as Williams Martini Racing's official Junior Driver.
DAN TICKTUM
The 25-year-old Cupra Kiro driver from London could not be any more different than Rowland.
Ticktum wears his heart on his sleeve and isn't afraid to speak his mind on the team radio or in post-race interviews.
He has earned a bit of a reputation as the bad boy of motor sport over the years and went viral for a swear-laden rant in Jeddah last season - but it seems in Formula E he has found his home.
Ticktum rubbed shoulders with Lando Norris during his karting days and spent time at both Williams' and Red Bull's academies.
His future is looking bright in Formula E after bagging his first-ever podium in Tokyo.
Ticktum was banned for a year from motor sport for ignoring a safety car to purposefully crash into a karting rival.
4
Sam Bird once turned down a shot with AFC Wimbledon to pursue a career in motor sport
SAM BIRD
Twickenham-born Bird, 38, is an experienced McLaren driver who was once seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher's apprentice.
Sam joined up with Mercedes for four years in 2010 as a test driver, going to most of the races and doing a lot of sim work.
As Mercedes returned to F1 in 2010 it coincided with Schumacher making a comeback of his own.
Schumacher was Bird's childhood hero and the pair once even went sky-diving together.
Bird isn't half bad at football and played for AFC Wimbledon as a youngster before turning them down for a career in motor sport.
He has two dogs, Buddy and Bear, one is a cavapoo and the other a golden doodle and is in a relationship with former Love Island star Jess Impiazzi.
JAKE HUGHES
Brummie driver Hughes is a classic example of the saying you can take the boy out of Birmingham but not Birmingham out of the boy.
The Maserati driver is a die-hard Aston Villa fan who chooses to bring porridge to the track for his brekky each morning.
He loves cats and own two called Benny and Ollie, nicknamed Boo Boo and Bear, with his fiance Abby at their home.
Hughes won the inaugural BRDC Formula 4 Championship and has won multiple races at Formula 3.
TAYLOR BARNARD
The baby-faced 20-year-old was born and raised in Norwich and is forging a name for himself with McLaren's Formula E team.
At 19 years and 331 days, Barnard became the youngest competitive driver in the series' 10-year history.
In his junior career, Barnard finished second to Mercedes' Andrea Kimi Antonelli in both the 2022 ADAC German Formula 4 Championship and 2023 Formula Regional Middle East Championship.
4
Jake Dennis is the most recent British FE champion
JAKE DENNIS
29-year-old Dennis competes for Andretti and is the most recent British FE champion, winning the 2022-23 title.
He was born in Nuneaton and debuted in karting at eight, winning the junior British Championship in 2010.
Read more on the Irish Sun
In 2016, Dennis debuted in GP3, winning two races, achieving fourth place in the final standings with
Dennis, who lives in Monaco, adores his pet chihuahua Billy with the pooch often seen accompanying him on a private jet to races.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Irish Examiner
22 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
‘It's been life-changing': Ben Earl takes Lions lessons back home
After the British & Irish Lions failed to complete the clean sweep they were seeking in Sydney, the head coach, Andy Farrell, conceded it might take one or two beers before his players felt a sense of pride in their achievements. For Ben Earl, you sense it did not take as long as that. Earl gave a glowing endorsement of his first Lions tour – he appeared as a replacement in the first and third Tests – passionately expressing the hope he features on the next one and explaining why he returns to Saracens and England a much-improved player. The key, according to the 27-year-old back-rower, is essentially to go with the flow. He cites as an example that on the way to the stadium last Saturday the door on the team bus became jammed and as a result the Lions had to decamp to another. In other, more highly strung environments, disruption like that can have a derailing effect, but Earl's eyes have been opened to a world where not everything has to be perfect or prescriptive. To that end, it was instructive to hear he has spoken to England colleagues about bringing a similar attitude when they reconvene in October. 'Just get out of your own way,' he says. 'You can overthink this sport so much but when you've got a game on Saturday, then you've got to play again on Tuesday or Wednesday, you're not going to be able to do every rep, review everything opposition. Get out of your own way and just play rugby. Read More Four match ban for Lions hooker Dan Sheehan 'It's almost like you get to the pinnacle of our sport – this is what it is – and you're back playing under-12s on a Sunday morning. There's no preparation, you just go out, you have a plan, you try to implement it, you express yourself in a way Andy and the rest of the coaching staff have allowed us to do and I've loved every minute of it. 'It's been a life-changing experience, the highlight of my life, certainly my rugby-playing life. I've made friends for life, memories for life. It showed me something completely different in terms of the rugby side of things. I've loved it. It has been completely transformative for me and I'm a far better player because of it. 'I've spoken to fellow Englishmen that there's some cool stuff we can bring back to camp and that's sort of the whole point, isn't it? We can come back and say, 'there are some bits we've done here that work when we have time away or during campaigns'. 'I'm almost excited to get going again. I need my time off, but I'm almost excited to get back into certain environments to be like, 'have you thought about this?'.' Earl is equally effusive about Farrell's coaching style. The Ireland head coach led the Lions to a first series win in 12 years on his first tour in the top job. 'He has made me fully believe in how good I am,' says Earl. 'Every time he talks to the group, I'm like, I'll do anything for that man, I'm ready to play. Even when I'm not playing. Every time he spoke to the group, I'm like, when the time comes, I'm ready to play for this bloke.' What of Farrell junior's England future? In the second Test, in Melbourne, Owen won his first international cap since the 2023 World Cup and having returned to join Earl at Saracens he is eligible to play for England again. 'I love playing with him, every time I take the pitch with Owen, I think 'we're going to win',' says Earl. 'That's his best quality. 'It's not up to me [if he plays for England again]. There are too many moving parts for me to comment on that. The more times I can take the field with that bloke, the better, let me put it that way.' Guardian


Irish Daily Mirror
2 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Chris Hoy's heartbreaking realisation about death after cancer diagnosis
Chris Hoy has expressed his gratitude for the chance to appreciate life following his cancer diagnosis. The Olympic cycling hero disclosed last year that he is battling incurable Stage 4 prostate cancer and was given a prognosis of two to four years. Since then, the 49 year old has handled his illness in an extraordinary manner, raising awareness to such an extent that nearly 5,000 additional men were referred for urological cancer in the six months after he spoke about his own diagnosis. However, there have been challenging times as well. Just weeks after Hoy's heartbreaking news, his wife Sara found out she had multiple sclerosis. Despite this, both are preparing for the six-time gold medalist's mass-participation charity ride, Tour de 4, in September. Hoy believes that even in the darkest situations, positives can emerge as he continues life with Sara and their four children. The opportunity to say goodbye has become a powerful reflection for the British icon. Former Scottish cyclist and journalist Richard Moore is a figure Hoy thinks about a lot. Moore died in his sleep in 2022, aged 48, leaving behind his wife Virginie and five-year-old son Maxime. Hoy delivered a eulogy for Moore, perhaps never imagining his own tragic news would arrive. But the cyclist has other contemporaries in mind now too in Scottish cycling coach Ivor Reid, track sprinter John Paul, who passed away suddenly aged 28, and former Scottish mountain bike champion Rab Wardell. "They didn't get the chance [to say goodbye to their loved ones]," said Hoy in an interview with the Telegraph. "And in some respects you think: 'That's the ideal way to do it, just keep living until the lights are switched off.' But for the people who are left "To be able to tell your loved ones what you feel about them, to appreciate what you've got, and yeah, for Richard, or for anybody who dies suddenly, to have 24 hours left on the planet, to be able to live that last day... you know, what would they have given for that? And therefore, for me, I think: 'Well, aren't I lucky?' Look at the privilege I've got, the time to really appreciate life." Sir Chris Hoy has spoken about his terminal cancer diagnosis (Image: 2013 Getty Images) Asked for the advice he would offer others as they go through difficult moments, Hoy suggested remaining in the moment is crucial. Fear of the future is one of the more difficult struggles to endure. He said: "I think when it gets tough, when it gets really tough, it's bringing yourself back to the exact moment you're in and recognising 'Can I keep going another 10 seconds? Can I deal with what I'm going through right now? I'm here, I'm breathing, my kids are next door sleeping, they're OK.' "It's the fear of the future that causes anxiety and stress for most people. So it's not allowing yourself to fast forward and try and predict what's going to happen because you never know." And Hoy is still exploring the possibility that stage four cancer will one day be treatable. The Scot's cancer is currently stable and he has visited Professor Dr Chris Evans, a specialist whose remit is focusing on creating cancer prevention and diagnostics solutions. Hoy admitted he is 'always looking at the new options coming out'. "When it [his treatment] stops being effective I will look to other treatments that are available, hopefully there are a few waiting in the wings," he said. Sir Chris Hoy was diagnosed eith terminal cancer last year (Image: Getty Images)

The 42
3 hours ago
- The 42
Dan Sheehan handed four-game ban for Leinster by disciplinary committee
DAN SHEEHAN IS set to sit out at least three matches for Leinster Rugby after a Foul Play Committee considered the citing issued during the British and Irish Lions third test match against Australia. This includes the pre-season game against Cardiff, along with the URC matches against Stormers and Sharks. If Sheehan completes a 'coaching intervention', he will be able to return for the interprovincial derby against Munster on 18, October in Croke Park. Advertisement A statement from World Rugby read; 'The independent Fair Play Review Committee has confirmed a four-match suspension (reduced to three on successful completion of the coaching intervention) to British and Irish Lions' Dan Sheehan after determining an action contrary to Law 9.20(a) (charging into a ruck) during the British and Irish Lions final test match against Australia on 2 August, 2025. The sanction has been accepted by the player. 'In determining the sanction, the Committee noted that in his submissions, the player had not accepted that foul play occurred and did not accept that the offence warranted the citing. The Committee reviewed the matter, including submissions and footage, and determined that Sheehan's actions were contrary to Law 9.20(a) (charging into a ruck or maul). 'In determining foul play, the Committee found that Sheehan's actions were reckless. The Committee found that he made head contact with the Australian player, that his action amounted to a high degree of danger and that no mitigation applied. 'On the basis of all the evidence before them, the Committee decided that the offending warranted the mandatory mid range entry point of six matches. The Committee decided not to award full 50% mitigation due to the non-acceptance of foul play resulting in a final sanction of four matches (reduced to three on successful completion of the coaching intervention).'