McKenzy Cresswell

McKenzy Cresswell (born 16 January 2006) is a British racing driver currently set to compete in the GB3 Championship with Elite Motorsport. He was a substitute driver in the 2023 FIA Formula 3 Championship with PHM Racing by Charouz. He is part of the BRDC Rising Star Programme.^[1]

McKenzy Cresswell
Cresswell at the Hungaroring in 2024
Nationality	British
Born	(2006-01-16) 16 January 2006 (age 18) Kingston upon Thames, United Kingdom
GB3 Championship career
Debut season	2022
Current team	Elite Motorsport
Car number	16
Former teams	Chris Dittman Racing
Starts	64 (66 entries)
Wins	3
Podiums	14
Poles	4
Fastest laps	3
Best finish	4th in 2023
Previous series
2021	F4 British Championship

Career

Karting

Cresswell began karting at seven years old at the Austin, Texas location of K1 Speed, where he competed in the Junior League events. He subsequently competed in SKUSA karting events in the United States.^[2]

Upon his return to the UK, Cresswell competed with DSM-Sport in several British^[3] karting events.^[4]

F4 British Championship

2021

In December 2020, Cresswell signed for JHR Developments to race in the 2021 British F4 Championship.^[5]  As a build up to the transition from karting, Cresswell spent time at iZone Performance^[6][7] at Silverstone. Where, in addition to practice on the simulator he worked on mindfulness training.^[8]

On his debut weekend at Thruxton, Cresswell scored a best result of 2nd having claimed 3rd on the starting grid for the final race of the weekend.^[9] Thruxton was followed by two 3rd-place finishes at the Snetterton round^[10] and a best result of 2nd in changeable conditions at the Brands Hatch Indy weekend.^[11] The first victory of the season occurred in the reverse grid race in the following round at Oulton Park. Similarly at the next round at Knockhill in Scotland, Cresswell secured victory in the reverse grid. With a return to qualifying form at the Croft round Cresswell had his most successful weekend of the season; scoring a double pole, double win, leading every lap and two fastest laps.^[12] At the final event of the 2021 season at Brands Hatch, Cresswell scored a double victory^[13] to finish 3rd in the championship.

GB3 Championship

2022

Cresswell on Eau Rouge during the 2022 GB3 Championship. at Spa Francorchamps

For 2022, Cresswell switched teams to Chris Dittmann Racing^[14] to compete in the GB3 Championship.   

The season started with 4th place at Oulton Park over the Easter Weekend.^[15] A series of disappointing qualifying sessions was brought to an end with 6th on the grid at Spa Francorchamps, where the highlight of the season followed in race 2.^[16] Despite an incident on lap 1,^[17] which left Cresswell in 9th position, he recovered to finish 4th.^[18] on the road which became 3rd^[19] after penalties were applied. The subsequent event at Silverstone saw Cresswell have another lap 1 incident in race 2 which resulted in the car rolling twice at Abbey curve.^[20] Cresswell was uninjured but was unable to continue for the weekend and did not start race 3.

2023

For the 2023 season, Cresswell remained in the GB3 Championship, largely due to the increase in the minimum weight of the car^[21][22] but switched teams to Elite Motorsport.^[23][24] The season started with a disastrous weekend, triggered by a mechanical failure in qualifying,^[25] at Oulton Park. With only 4 points from all three races Cresswell finished the weekend last in the Championship.^[26] Thereafter Cresswell rose to finally finish fourth, thanks to consistent performance and a late season podium run where he scored more points that anyone else.^[27]

2024

Cresswell opted to remain with Elite Motorsport for a third GB3 season in 2024.^[28] Budget issues prevented a move into FIA F3.^[29]

FIA Formula 3 Championship

Cresswell was drafted in to replace Piotr Wiśnicki at PHM Racing by Charouz during the 2023 FIA Formula 3 Championship, for the Austrian and Silverstone rounds.^[30] He achieved a best finish of 17th in his second race at Austria, which at that time lifted him ahead of teammates Wiśnicki and Roberto Faria in the standings.^[31] Cresswell returned to his main GB3 campaign and was replaced by Michael Shin for the final three rounds.^[32]

Personal life

Although born in the UK, Cresswell moved to Austin, Texas when he was 4-years old. Returning to the UK just before his 12th birthday, Cresswell lives in Weybridge, Surrey.^[7]

Karting record

Karting career summary

Season	Series	Team	Position
2019	British Kart Championship - Rotax Junior	DSM-Sport	32nd
	IAME Winter Cup - X30 Junior	MLR
2020	Rotax Max Euro Winter Cup - Junior
	Rotax Max Euro Trophy - Junior Max	DSM Msport	31st

Racing record

Racing career summary

Season	Series	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	F/Laps	Podiums	Points	Position
2021	F4 British Championship	JHR Developments	29	6	4	6	11	305	3rd
2022	GB3 Championship	Chris Dittmann Racing	23	0	0	0	1	221	11th
2023	GB3 Championship	Elite Motorsport	23	1	1	2	8	390	4th
	FIA Formula 3 Championship	PHM Racing by Charouz	4	0	0	0	0	0	33rd
2024	GB3 Championship	Elite Motorsport	23	2	3	1	8	376	4th

Complete F4 British 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	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	DC	Points
2021	JHR Developments	THR 1 9	THR 2 7	THR 3 2	SNE 1 3	SNE 2 14	SNE 3 3	BHI 1 108	BHI 2 6	BHI 3 2	OUL 1 13	OUL 2 14	OUL 3 14	KNO 1 8	KNO 2 13	KNO 3 9	THR 1 4	THR 2 Ret	THR 3 WD	CRO 1 1	CRO 2 Ret	CRO 3 1	SIL 1 5	SIL 2 86	SIL 3 9	DON 1 2	DON 2 123	DON 3 4	BHGP 1 1	BHGP 2 106	BHGP 3 1	3rd	305

Complete GB3 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	23	24	DC	Points
2022	Chris Dittman Racing	OUL 1 4	OUL 2 7	OUL 3 103	SIL 1 9	SIL 2 Ret	SIL 3 66	DON 1 7	DON 2 12	DON 3 16	SNE 1 9	SNE 2 16	SNE 3 54	SPA 1 18	SPA 2 3	SPA 3 20	SIL 1 11	SIL 2 Ret	SIL 3 DNS	BHGP 1 16	BHGP 2 12	BHGP 3 7	DON 1 Ret	DON 2 4	DON 3 81	11th	221
2023	Elite Motorsport	OUL 1 20	OUL 2 18	OUL 3 Ret	SIL1 1 5	SIL1 2 2	SIL1 3 58	SPA 1 7	SPA 2 3	SPA 3 1112	SNE 1 9	SNE 2 5	SNE 3 Ret	SIL2 1 2	SIL2 2 1	SIL2 3 C	BHGP 1 3	BHGP 2 3	BHGP 3 166	ZAN 1 2	ZAN 2 2	ZAN 3 1112	DON 1 Ret	DON 2 5	DON 3 610	4th	390
2024	Elite Motorsport	OUL 1 5	OUL 2 3	OUL 3 8	SIL1 1 2	SIL1 2 4	SIL1 3 C	SPA 1 7	SPA 2 Ret	SPA 3 61	HUN 1 6	HUN 2 3	HUN 3 9	ZAN 1 Ret	ZAN 2 3	ZAN 3 23	SIL2 1 7	SIL2 2 1	SIL2 3 111	DON 1 10	DON 2 10	DON 3 2	BRH 1 1	BRH 2 4	BRH 3 111	4th	376

Complete FIA Formula 3 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	16	17	18	DC	Points
2023	PHM Racing by Charouz	BHR SPR	BHR FEA	MEL SPR	MEL FEA	MON SPR	MON FEA	CAT SPR	CAT FEA	RBR SPR 23	RBR FEA 17	SIL SPR 23	SIL FEA 22	HUN SPR	HUN FEA	SPA SPR	SPA FEA	MNZ SPR	MNZ FEA	33rd	0

^* Season still in progress.

References

1. "It is our pleasure to welcome @Mckenzyracing to the BRDC Rising Star Programme". Twitter. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
2. "Indoor Kart Racing". K1 Speed. 8 December 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
3. Waring, Bethonie (30 December 2020). "JHR signs Cresswell as first British F4 driver for 2021". Formula Scout. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
4. "Mckenzy Cresswell | Racing career profile | Driver Database". www.driverdb.com. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
5. "BRSCC | JHR DEVELOPMENTS UNVEIL MCKENZY CRESSWELL AS FIRST SIGNING FOR 2021 SEASON". 30 December 2020. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
6. Jeffray, Matt (12 January 2021). "JHR Developments announce Mckenzy Cresswell for 2021". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
7. Paice, Simon (1 April 2021). "McKenzy Cresswell Prepares For British F4 Debut". NLM. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
8. "What Motorsports Can Teach Us About Mindfulness - Salt Recruitment Agency". We Love Salt - UK. 28 April 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
9. Jeffray, Matt (9 May 2021). "Joseph Loake takes maiden single seater victory in delayed third British F4 race at Thruxton". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
10. Ashby, Chris (15 June 2021). "Double British F4 Podium Glory For McKenzy Cresswell At Snetterton". NLM. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
11. Ashby, Chris (29 June 2021). "McKenzy Cresswell Builds Rookie Cup Lead With Brands Hatch Success". NLM. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
12. Ashby, Chris (21 September 2021). "McKenzy Cresswell Reignites British F4 Title Challenge With Croft Double". NLM. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
13. "McKenzy Cresswell signs off British F4 season in style with emphatic double win at Brands Hatch - automobilsport.com". www.automobilsport.com. Archived from the original on 5 October 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
14. "F4 title challenger McKenzy Cresswell graduates to GB3 with Chris Dittmann Racing". Chris Dittmann Racing. 22 December 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
15. "McKenzy Cresswell Enjoys Solid GB3 Championship Debut At Oulton Park - automobilsport.com". www.automobilsport.com. Archived from the original on 23 October 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
16. www.gb-3.net https://www.gb-3.net/news/2022/dec/12/catching-up-with-cresswell-cdr-driver-analyses-2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
17. Callander, Michael (23 July 2022). "Browning wins from GB3 pole again at Spa". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
18. Spa July 2022 Onboard - GB3 Race 2 - key moments, retrieved 27 January 2023
19. gb-3.net https://gb-3.net/news/2022/spa-race-two-penalties. Retrieved 27 January 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
20. Callander, Michael (31 July 2022). "Lebbon survives late puncture to win GB3 Race 2 at Silverstone". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
21. www.gb-3.net https://www.gb-3.net/news/2023/apr/3/whats-new-in-gb3-2023-. Retrieved 22 December 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
22. TCF, Team (1 March 2024). "Cresswell in GB3 championship title hunt with Elite Motorsport". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
23. "Why the GB3 Championship is in for its most open season to date". www.autosport.com. 7 April 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
24. "Cresswell targets GB3 Championship success with Elite Motorsport". news.msv.com. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
25. Series, Feeder (9 August 2023). "Cresswell 'aiming for top three' in the championship following first GB3 victory". Feeder Series. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
26. www.gb-3.net https://www.gb-3.net/news/2023/oct/19/cresswell-its-all-to-play-for-at-donington-decider. Retrieved 10 November 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
27. "How Voisin emerged victorious in GB3's closest title fight". www.autosport.com. 9 November 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
28. Whitfield, Steve (10 January 2024). "McKenzy Cresswell remains at Elite Motorsport for his third GB3 season". Formula Scout. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
29. TCF, Team (1 March 2024). "Cresswell in GB3 championship title hunt with Elite Motorsport". The Checkered Flag. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
30. "PHM Racing by Charouz confirms McKenzy Cresswell for Spielberg and Silverstone". FIA_Formula 3® - The Official F3® Website. 27 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
31. "FIA F3 in Spielberg". PHM Racing. 3 July 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
32. Wood, Ida (17 July 2023). "PHM Racing by Charouz signs Michael Shin for rest of F3 season". Formula Scout. Retrieved 18 July 2023.

External links

• McKenzy Cresswell career summary at DriverDB.com