Jordan King impressed his fellow students by taking his Formula Two car into college to show them.
The 17-year-old recently became the youngest driver to take part in the championship when he made his debut at Spa-Francorchamps. He caught the eye with an eighth-place finish at the Belgian circuit, and then claimed an even more impressive fifth at the Nuburgring one week later.
Jordan has just completed his AS-level exams in Physics, Maths, Business Studies and PE at Princethorpe College in Warwickshire. He has been combining his studies this year with his regular racing commitments in the Formula Renault UK championship, as well as his more recent three-event programme in F2.
He has one F2 outing remaining – at Brands Hatch later in July – but he found time in his busy schedule to take his 500bhp F2 car to college to show it off to his classmates. A camera crew from ITV's Central News team were on hand to capture the day.
“Since I became the youngest Formula Two driver, I've attracted a lot of media interest,” said Jordan. “It was fun to film, and I think a lot of my classmates were a bit surprised to see a camera crew at college! They were impressed with the Formula Two car and how powerful it looks.
“My friends don't really know about my racing. I don't talk about it much; it's just what I do. When I'm at college, I'm like everyone else and get on with my work. The racing bug bit when I was 11; I went to a go-karting birthday party, and it all happened from there – I realised I was hooked. The more speed and power you get in a car, the more you want to do it. I don't feel any danger at all.”
Jordan's appearance at college with his car impressed both fellow students and teachers alike.
“It is quite a challenge to combine the study of AS-levels with such a demanding schedule, and Jordan and his teachers make every effort to ensure that he knows exactly what he needs to cover in order to keep up,” said Princethorpe College Head of Sixth Form, Margaret Robinson. “Certain elements of the teaching, such as practicals, are carried out with Jordan to fit in with his busy schedule.
“On the whole, his teachers rely on effective communication, knowing just when he will be absent. We know that he will look for support and advice from his teachers when he needs it. Jordan also does a lot of extra study while he is away training or competing. He tells me that it is his social life that suffers a bit, because his racing and his school studies come first!”
Headmaster Ed Hester added: “We have a number of extremely talented pupils at Princethorpe, and Jordan is certainly one of them. And not only in motor racing – he is a tremendous athlete, too, recently winning the 1,500m and 400m races at the College Sports Day against stiff opposition.
“We are tremendously proud of his achievements so far. To progress to Formula Two at such a young age is remarkable, and all this has been accomplished whilst balancing studying for his AS examinations. We wish him the very best of luck.”
