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Biography
James Anthony Wharton (born 8 July 2006) is an Australian racing driver who most recently competed in the Italian F4 Championship with Prema Racing. He was a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy between 2021 and 2023.
Career
Karting
Born in Bundoora in 2006, Wharton began karting at the age of eight in his homeland of Australia. Following two years in Mini and Cadet karting he won eight out of ten races in his 2017 season, winning the Australian Championship in the process. Following that him and his father moved to Europe to progress his career, where he spent four years contracted to Parolin, competing in various continental championships.
Formula 4
2022
Starting his single-seater at the beginning of 2022, Wharton would compete in the Formula 4 UAE Championship with Abu Dhabi Racing, a team operated by Prema Racing. The Australian dominated the first Dubai event, scoring three victories, and won the season-ending race at Yas Marina, taking home fifth in the standings.
He remained with Prema for the European racing season, driving in the Italian F4 and ADAC F4 championships. Just like during the winter, Wharton ended up fifth in both series, having obtained his only victory at the Nürburgring.
2023
Wharton once again partook in F4 UAE at the beginning of 2023, being part of the Mumbai Falcons. After a consistent campaign, which included four wins and a total of eleven podiums across 15 races, the Australian clinched the title as a result of a last-round collision with title rival and teammate Tuukka Taponen.
His European campaign with Prema in the Italian F4 Championship proved to be more challenging, as Wharton would end the year fourth in the standings despite a pair of wins at Spa-Francorchamps. He also ended up finishing second in the three-round Euro 4 Championship with two wins and three further podiums, missing out on the title to teammate Ugo Ugochukwu.
Formula Regional
For 2024, Wharton moved up to the Formula Regional European Championship, once again driving for Prema.
Formula One
At the end of 2020 Wharton was chosen by Motorsport Australia to be one of its representatives for the FDA 2020 Scouting World Finals. He ended up winning the shootout, therefore gaining a place in the Ferrari Driver Academy.
In December 2023, it was announced that Wharton would be leaving the FDA going into the 2024 season.
Karting record
Karting career summary
| Season | Series | Team | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | SKUSA SuperNationals — TaG Cadet | 43rd | |
| 2016 | Australian Kart Championship — Cadet 12 | 4th | |
| SKUSA SuperNationals — Mini Swift | Kartsport North America | 26th | |
| Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals — Mini MAX | International Karting Distribution | 15th | |
| 2017 | Australian Kart Championship — Cadet 12 | 1st | |
| ROK Cup International Final — Mini ROK | Parolin Racing Team | 7th | |
| SKUSA SuperNationals — Mini Swift | KartSport North America | 14th | |
| Rotax Max Challenge Grand Finals — Mini MAX | Int Karting Distributors | 3rd | |
| 2018 | South Garda Winter Cup — OKJ | Parolin Racing Kart | 32nd |
| Victorian Kart Championship — KA3 Junior | 2nd | ||
| Rotax Max Challenge Euro Trophy — Junior | 2nd | ||
| CIK-FIA European Championship — OKJ | Parolin Racing Kart | NC | |
| CIK-FIA World Championship — OKJ | 13th | ||
| WSK Final Cup — OKJ | 7th | ||
| SKUSA SuperNationals — KA100 Junior | KartSport North America | 1st | |
| SKUSA SuperNationals — X30 Junior | 18th | ||
| 2019 | WSK Champions Cup — OKJ | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 5th |
| South Garda Winter Cup — OKJ | 2nd | ||
| WSK Super Master Series — OKJ | 9th | ||
| WSK Euro Series — OKJ | 9th | ||
| IAME Euro Series — X30 Junior | Piers Sexton Racing | 49th | |
| Italian Championship — OKJ | 4th | ||
| Coupe de France — OKJ | 11th | ||
| German Karting Championship — Junior | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | 12th | |
| CIK-FIA European Championship — OKJ | 9th | ||
| CIK-FIA World Championship — OKJ | Parolin Racing Kart | 31st | |
| Trofeo delle Industrie — OKJ | 4th | ||
| IAME International Final — X30 Junior | 13th | ||
| WSK Open Cup — OKJ | 13th | ||
| WSK Final Cup — OKJ | 7th | ||
| SKUSA SuperNationals — KA100 Junior | 3rd | ||
| SKUSA SuperNationals — X30 Junior | 1st | ||
| 2020 | WSK Champions Cup — OK | Parolin Racing Kart | 31st |
| South Garda Winter Cup — OK | 11th | ||
| WSK Super Master Series — OK | 18th | ||
| CIK-FIA European Championship — OK | 20th | ||
| WSK Euro Series — OK | 7th | ||
| Champions of the Future — OK | 32nd | ||
| CIK-FIA World Championship — OK | 17th | ||
| 2021 | WSK Champions Cup — OK | Parolin Motorsport | 33rd |
| WSK Super Master Series — KZ2 | 34th | ||
| WSK Super Master Series — OK | 36th | ||
| WSK Euro Series — OK | 25th | ||
| Champions of the Future — OK | 29th | ||
| CIK-FIA European Championship — OK | 23rd | ||
| CIK-FIA European Championship — KZ2 | 15th | ||
| CIK-FIA Karting International Super Cup — KZ2 | 5th | ||
| Sources: | |||
Complete CIK-FIA Karting European Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Class | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Parolin Racing Kart | OKJ | SAR QH | SAR R | PFI QH 41 | PFI R DNQ | AMP QH | AMP R | LEM QH | LEM R | NC | 0 |
| 2019 | Ricky Flynn Motorsport | OKJ | ANG QH 2 | ANG R DNS | GEN QH 47 | GEN R DNQ | KRI QH 14 | KRI R 9 | LEM QH 4 | LEM R 5 | 9th | 34 |
| 2020 | Parolin Racing Kart | OK | ZUE QH 39 | ZUE R DNQ | SAR QH 27 | SAR R 12 | WAC QH 33 | WAC R 26 | 20th | 4 | ||
| 2021 | Parolin Motorsport | OK | GEN QH 14 | GEN R 14 | AUB QH 38 | AUB R DNQ | SAR QH 21 | SAR R 12 | ZUE QH 34 | ZUE R 20 | 23rd | 7 |
| KZ2 | WAC QH 26 | WAC R 8 | GEN QH 42 | GEN R DNQ | 15th | 8 |
Racing record
Racing career summary
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Formula 4 UAE Championship | Abu Dhabi Racing by Prema | 16 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 168 | 5th |
| Italian F4 Championship | Prema Racing | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 166 | 5th | |
| ADAC Formula 4 Championship | 15 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 146 | 5th | ||
| 2023 | Formula 4 UAE Championship | Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited | 15 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 11 | 232 | 1st |
| Italian F4 Championship | Prema Racing | 21 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 8 | 205.5 | 4th | |
| Euro 4 Championship | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 169 | 2nd | ||
| 2024 | Formula Regional European Championship | Prema Racing | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18* | 7th* |
| Formula Regional Middle East Championship | Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited |
Season still in progress.
Complete F4 UAE Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Prema Racing | YMC11 3 | YMC12 5 | YMC13 24 | YMC14 9 | DUB11 1 | DUB12 1 | DUB13 1 | DUB14 6 | DUB21 | DUB22 | DUB23 | DUB24 | DUB31 8 | DUB32 11 | DUB33 10 | DUB34 4 | YMC21 Ret | YMC22 14 | YMC23 4 | YMC24 1 | 5th | 168 |
| 2023 | Mumbai Falcons | DUB11 3 | DUB12 17 | DUB13 4 | KMT11 1 | KMT12 2 | KMT13 13 | KMT21 2 | KMT22 2 | KMT23 1 | DUB21 2 | DUB22 2 | DUB23 3 | YMC1 1 | YMC2 1 | YMC3 Ret | 1st | 232 |
Complete ADAC Formula 4 Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Prema Racing | SPA1 Ret | SPA2 3 | SPA3 9 | HOC1 18 | HOC2 6 | HOC3 Ret | ZAN1 5 | ZAN2 4 | ZAN3 6 | NÜR11 4 | NÜR12 5 | NÜR13 1 | LAU1 | LAU2 | LAU3 | NÜR21 3 | NÜR22 5 | NÜR23 4 | 5th | 146 |
Complete Italian F4 Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Prema Racing | IMO1 4 | IMO2 3 | IMO3 9 | MIS1 5 | MIS2 3 | MIS3 29† | SPA1 3 | SPA2 5 | SPA3 Ret | VLL1 3 | VLL2 7 | VLL3 4 | RBR1 2 | RBR2 6 | RBR3 | RBR4 4 | MNZ1 30† | MNZ2 15 | MNZ3 C | MUG1 Ret | MUG2 7 | MUG3 5 | 5th | 166 |
| 2023 | Prema Racing | IMO1 23† | IMO2 | IMO3 5 | IMO4 12 | MIS1 3 | MIS2 2 | MIS3 28 | SPA1 1 | SPA2 1 | SPA3 3 | MNZ1 6 | MNZ2 5 | MNZ3 5 | LEC1 3 | LEC2 Ret | LEC3 2 | MUG1 8 | MUG2 9 | MUG3 3 | VLL1 5 | VLL2 6 | VLL3 4 | 4th | 205.5 |
Complete Formula Regional European Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Prema Racing | HOC1 | HOC2 | SPA1 | SPA2 | ZAN1 | ZAN2 | MUG1 | MUG2 | HUN1 | HUN2 | LEC1 | LEC2 | IMO1 | IMO2 | RBR1 | RBR2 | CAT1 | CAT2 | MNZ1 | MNZ2 | TBD | TBD |
Complete Formula Regional Middle East Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Mumbai Falcons Racing Limited | YMC11 4 | YMC12 24 | YMC13 7 | YMC21 | YMC22 | YMC23 | DUB11 | DUB12 | DUB13 | YMC31 | YMC32 | YMC33 | DUB21 | DUB22 | DUB23 | 7th* | 18* |
Season still in progress.
