Brandon McCaughan

Last updated

Brandon McCaughan
Born
Brandon Charles McCaughan

(2003-12-16) 16 December 2003 (age 21)
Ahoghill, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
Nationality Flag of Ireland.svg Irish
Racing licence FIA Silver Driver.png FIA Silver

Brandon Charles McCaughan (born 16 December 2003) is an Irish racing driver currently competing for Team Virage in the Ligier European Series in the JS P4 class.

Contents

Career

McCaughan made his Formula Ford debut in 2021, winning the Janet Cesar Memorial Trophy for pre-1993 cars in the Walter Hayes Trophy and also racing in the Northern Irish FF1600 Championship. [1] McCaughan then moved to the National FF1600 championship, finishing eighth in his maiden season in the series, [2] and also finishing fifth overall in the Formula Ford Festival at the end of the year. [3] During 2022, McCaughan was also a finalist for a £20,000 prize fund to compete in GB4 the following year, but was beaten to it Colin Queen in the shootout. [4]

Remaining in Formula Ford competition for the following year, McCaughan led the standings after the opening round despite not taking any overall wins, [5] but lost the lead at Snetterton after Oldfield Motorsport teammate Lucas Romanek won race three. [6] McCaughan then won race one at Kirkistown and finished the other two races on the podium, [7] but after taking just a handful of podiums in the second half of the season, McCaughan fell to third in the overall standings. [8] At the end of the year, McCaughan edged out Nathan Yu to win £20,000 to compete in GB4 the following year. [9]

Five months later, McCaughan joined KMR Sport for his maiden season in GB4. [10] On his debut at Oulton Park, McCaughan took pole for both the first two races, finishing third in race one before taking his maiden series win in race two before retiring in race three. [11] McCaughan then finished no higher than sixth at Silverstone in what was supposed to be his final round, [12] before remaining in the series for the third round at Donington Park. [13] In said round, McCaughan finished second in race one before taking his second and final win of the season in race two. [14] However, it turned out to be the Irishman's last appearance in GB4 as he left the series after three rounds due to budget issues. [15]

After leaving GB4, McCaughan tested with Team Virage during the summer of 2024, [15] McCaughan made his debut in sports cars with them, racing in the JS P4 class at the season-ending round at Algarve of the Ligier European Series. [16] Driving alongside Mikkel Gaarde Pedersen, the duo finished fourth and fifth on their series debut. [17]

Having sat most of 2025 on the sidelines, McCaughan returned to racing in August by making his LMP3 debut for Bretton Racing at the Spa round of the Michelin Le Mans Cup. [18] [19] Driving alongside Dane Arendsen, the duo finished 14th after falling as low as 23rd during the race. [20]

Racing record

Racing career summary

SeasonSeriesTeamRacesWinsPolesF/LapsPodiumsPointsPosition
2021Northern Irish Formula Ford 1600814th
Walter Hayes Trophy 1000025th
Formula Ford Festival – Historic Pre-1993100001st
2022National Formula Ford 16001900002798th
Walter Hayes Trophy 1000016th
Formula Ford Festival Oldfield Motorsport100005th
2023National Formula Ford 1600Oldfield Motorsport1821363103rd
Walter Hayes Trophy 1000010th
Formula Ford Festival 100008th
2024 GB4 Championship KMR Sport8221417113th
Ligier European Series – JS P4 Team Virage200002213th
2025 Le Mans Cup – LMP3 Bretton Racing100000*24th*
Ligier European Series – JS P4 Team Virage**
Sources: [21] [22]

Complete GB4 Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearEntrant123456789101112131415161718192021D.C.Points
2024 KMR Sport OUL
1

3
OUL
2

1
OUL
3

Ret
SIL1
1

6
SIL1
2

8
SIL1
3

C
DON1
1

2
DON1
2

1
DON1
3

68
SNE
1

SNE
2

SNE
3

SIL2
1

SIL2
2

SIL2
3

DON2
1

DON2
2

DON2
3

BRH
1

BRH
2

BRH
3

13th171

Complete Ligier European Series results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearEntrantClassChassis1234567891011RankPoints
2024 Team VirageJS P4 Ligier JS P4 CAT
1

CAT
2

LEC
1

LEC
2

LMS
SPA
1

SPA
2

MUG
1

MUG
2

ALG
1

4
ALG
2

5
13th22

Complete Le Mans Cup results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearEntrantClassChassis1234567RankPoints
2025 Bretton RacingLMP3 Ligier JS P325 CAT
LEC
LMS
1

LMS
2

SPA
14
SIL ALG 24th*0*

* Season still in progress.

References

  1. "Dempsey and Gilkes late entries for National FF1600 season". formulascout.com. 18 March 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  2. "The 2022 Formula Ford Festival spotter's guide". formulascout.com. 21 October 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  3. "Esterson declared Formula Ford Festival winner after rain deluge". formulascout.com. 23 October 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  4. "FF1600 star Colin Queen wins £20,000 scholarship for GB4". formulascout.com. 21 October 2022. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  5. "Romanek wins National FF1600 opener at Oulton Park in photo finish". formulascout.com. 22 April 2023. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  6. "Lucas Romanek moves into National FF1600 lead at Snetterton". formulascout.com. 28 May 2023. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  7. "Romanek wins Ulster Trophy, grows National FF1600 lead at Kirkistown". formulascout.com. 29 July 2023. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  8. "Jordan Kelly wins BRSCC National FF1600 title in Silverstone showdown". formulascout.com. 5 October 2023. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  9. "Brandon McCaughan confirmed as GB4 Shoot Out winner". kartxpress.com. 15 November 2023. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  10. "Brandon McCaughan 'beyond excited' about teaming up with KMR Sport". irishnews.com. 18 March 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  11. "Sensational Debut GB4 Championship Victory". motorsport.ie. 3 April 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  12. "Balancing a full-time job and motorsport career: Brandon McCaughan's 'opportunity of a lifetime' GB4 debut". feederseries.net. 17 April 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  13. "Fortec's Linus Granfors tops GB4 pre-event testing at Donington Park". feederseries.net. 24 May 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  14. "I'm having time of my life, says Brandon McCaughan after sealing Donington podium double". belfasttelegraph.co.uk. 27 May 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  15. 1 2 "Brandon McCaughan impresses in test drive with Virage Group". irishnews.com. 18 July 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  16. "Brandon McCaughan all set for debut race in Ligier European Series this weekend". irishnews.com. 14 October 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  17. "Team Virage Take Third Consecutive Title". dailysportscar.com. 19 October 2024. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  18. "Les brèves du mardi 19 août". endurance-info.com (in French). 19 August 2025. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  19. "Brandon McCaughan eager to produce the goods on his LMP3 debut: 'It can really open doors for me'". belfasttelegraph.co.uk. 22 August 2025. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  20. "Brandon McCaughan on how his promising LMP3 debut opens doors for him push on in his racing career". belfasttelegraph.co.uk. 24 August 2025. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  21. "Brandon McCaughan Results". motorsportstats.com. Retrieved 11 September 2025.
  22. "Brandon McCaughan | Racing career profile | Driver Database". www.driverdb.com. Retrieved 11 September 2025.