This teen can race but not drive on S'pore roads

Going at speeds of up to 260kmh is something that Singaporean race driver Christian Ho is accustomed to as he competes on the European motor sports circuit.

But the teenager, who is set to become the first Singaporean to race in Formula 3 next season, cannot legally drive on the roads yet as he is still only 17.

In an interview with The Straits Times on Sept 19, Christian said he will be looking to get his driving licence once he turns 18 in October.

Noting that he will have to “study a little bit” for the theory test, he added: “I think parking is like the worst for me, I’m really bad at parking.”

On the tracks, going faster will be in order in 2025. It was announced on Sept 16 that he will be stepping up to the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) Formula 3 Championship, two rungs below Formula One, and where the top speed is about 300kmh.

Details on which team Christian is joining will be announced at a later date.

“It’s a big achievement because in karting, you don’t really see the light at the end of the tunnel as compared to when you’re in F3,” said Christian, who has been based in Europe since 2018 after his parents saw his potential in karting.

“In karting, you don’t really have a clear path compared to right now when I’ll be racing with F1.”

The F3 season typically takes place on the sidelines of F1 circuits, such as Britain’s Silverstone.

Key to his latest milestone is his pursuit of excellence as Christian seeks to realise his childhood dream of becoming the Republic’s first F1 driver.

In the most recent round of the Eurocup-3 series at Spain’s MotorLand Aragon in July, he stayed back at the track till midnight after finishing second in a race to pore over the data and analyse the videos so that he could improve.

Admitting that he is a competitive person, Christian said: “I think a little bit too much at times.

“Recently, there’ve been times when I’ve finished second and I’m really not happy. I’m quite competitive in racing, but it’s a good trait to have.

“Once you’re at the top, it’s normal to feel comfortable and not really improve. But I know that if I want to step up to F3 or F2, I really have to keep improving and progressing as a driver.”

Since moving to Europe, he has chalked up several major achievements, including becoming the first Asian driver to win a race in the Deutsche Kart Meisterschaft (German Karting Championship) series in 2019.

He progressed to F4 in 2022, placing second in the F4 Spanish Championship a year later, before beginning his rookie season in Eurocup-3 with Campos Racing.

With two rounds left, he currently sits second among 34 in the drivers’ standings with 164 points, below Spaniard Javier Sagrera (192).

Each step up the racing ladder becomes more difficult as things get quicker and decisions will have to be made in even smaller fractions of a second.

He said: “When the speed increases, you have to react faster to everything, which is one of the challenges of moving up a category.

“In F3, we have more downforce, more top speed, everything is just much faster, you’re going 15 to 20 seconds faster than the F4s, which is quite crazy when you drive because your brain has to process everything much faster.

“That’s quite a big challenge to overcome because the races are longer as well, which requires more focus over a longer period of time so I have to do a lot more preparation for next year.”

He has already started to prepare for the challenges, having tested an old F3 car, which allowed him to identify what to work on with his team and in the gym.

The topic of national service has also cropped up, but his earliest enlistment will be after the completion of his A levels at St Andrews College in Cambridge in 2026.

Asked if he was optimistic about getting deferment, he said: “At the end of the day, I’m Singaporean. My grandfather and father both served NS... and I’m ready to do that as well.

“I still have to finish my studies then we’ll see how it goes in terms of my racing, and we’ll see what happens.”