The Williams Racing Driver Academy had just one driver behind the wheel this past weekend, with Lia Block competing in Rounds 6 and 7 of the 23/24 Nitrocross campaign.

A further two members of the team were also in action… kind of. Zak O’Sullivan and Luke Browning were out and about, picking up post-season awards. Read on below to find out more.

Our 2024 F1 Academy racer made a little bit of history over the weekend, competing in the premier class of Nitrocross for the very first time.

The 17-year-old first started in Nitrocross, an American rallycross series, at the age of 14, but Round 7 of the 23/24 campaign saw her become the youngest driver to compete in the Group E category, putting her behind the wheel of one of the most powerful electric race cars ever built.

Not only is she the youngest driver, but Lia also became the category’s first female contender, but before taking to the top class, she competed in the NEXT category in Round 6 on Saturday.


Held at Glen Helen Raceway in San Bernardino, California, Lia enjoyed a consistent Saturday before finishing the final in P2, just 2.8s away from the leader, setting her up nicely for her step up in class on Sunday.

Having quickly got up to speed with the world’s fastest rallycross car, Lia impressed to qualify for the final but a motor failure prevented her from taking the start.

Sign up

Sign up, unlock your very own Driver Card and get all the latest news and announcements.

Follow Lia's journey

Zak O’Sullivan and Luke Browning weren’t in action as such, but both were at respective end-of-season gala’s to collect prizes for their efforts in 2023.

continue with Hitech Pulse-Eight in F3 for 2024

, was in Baku to pick up his trophy for winning the F3 World Cup in Macau last month.

step up to F2 next season with ART Grand Prix

, was in Monaco to pick up his award for finishing as vice-champion in 2023.

Williams

Lia has grown up in the motorsport world and spent many of her childhood years in the paddock. She began racing karts at 11 years old and entered her first off-road racing series in the same year.

Lia then started drifting cars at 13 years old and assumed drag-racing duties in the famous 1,400HP Mustang ‘Hoonicorn’ the year after.
She continued to build her skills in off-road racing and karting, becoming a front-runner in the Lucas Oil Off-Road Series’ lower classes by 2021 and taking multiple karting wins.

She later took part in the final round of the 2021 American Rally Association Championship in the Oregon Trail Rally as a 15-year-old, for the Hoonigan Racing Division, marking her first national-level rally.

Lia undertook more regular rallying in 2022 as part of the ARA championship, a season which included her best finish at the Southern Ohio Forest Rally where she placed 9th overall and 3rd in the O2WD class.

This proved an even more successful event for her in the 2023 season, achieving a 6th place finish overall and a victory in the O2WD class.

With two rallies to go, Lia secured the 2023 ARA O2WD championship to become the youngest ARA champion in history.

2023 has been a busy year for Lia, competing in Extreme E as part of Carl Cox Motorsport for the second half of the season alongside Timo Scheider. She has also begun her first season in Nitrocross NEXT, the junior category of the championship previously known as Nitro Rallycross.

In November 2023, it was announced that Lia will compete in the 2024 F1 Academy season with ART Grand Prix, as well as coming onboard as a Williams Racing Academy Driver.

Later in the month, Lia competed in the Baja 1000 alongside her mother Lucy Block and the Block House Racing Team. Lia and the team raced to victory following a grueling 34 hours of rally racing in Mexico.

More from Lia Block

Lia Block

Zak began karting at the age of nine. Two years later, in 2016, Zak claimed the rookie championship in British Super One and won the British GP Kartmasters Championship, before moving into European karting in 2017. A season in the CIK European OKJ Championship and the WSK European Championship resulted in 10th and 9th places respectively. The British driver demonstrated his progress the following season, bettering his 2017 effort to place 6th overall in the WSK European Championship.

In 2019, Zak made a successful debut in the Ginetta Junior Championship, claiming three wins to become Rookie Champion and placing second overall. The following year, Zak’s maiden season in single seaters saw him finish as vice-champion in the 2020 F4 British Championship. His impressive campaign saw him claim nine wins and 19 podiums, missing out on the title by only four points.

In 2021, Zak entered the GB3 Championship, and an extraordinary debut season saw him crowned Champion, having secured six wins and 13 podium finishes. With 18 top ten finishes to his name, Zak’s notable consistency throughout the season saw him win by an impressive margin of 164 points over his nearest championship rival.

In 2021, Zak was selected as a finalist for the renowned Aston Martin Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award (AMABA), which he was later crowned the winner of for 2021.

In 2022, Zak completed his first rookie season in the FIA F3 Championship with Carlin, impressing with several strong performances, including pole position and a podium in front of home crowds at the British GP. In the same year, Zak was announced as a Williams Racing Academy Driver, joining Williams ahead of the new season.

In 2023, Zak joined PREMA Racing for the 2023 FIA Formula 3 Championship. He had a stellar year, achieving 4 wins, 1 pole, and 5 podiums. Closing the season as runner-up, Zak secured the most race wins of any driver in the championship.

Zak graduates to FIA Formula 2 for the 2024 season, joining the reigning team champions ART Grand Prix. He will continue within the Williams Racing Driver Academy, further developing his skills and preparing for the next step in his motorsport career.

More from Zak O'Sullivan

Zak O’Sullivan

Luke is one of the rising stars of British motorsport having already seen success on the track in his junior career. The British driver took his first steps into motorsport at an early age in karting, before graduating into cars in 2016 with an entry into the Junior Saloon Car Championship where he claimed one win and three podium finishes.

In 2017, Luke made the move to the Ginetta Junior Championship. In his first season he secured his first rookie win and also scored his maiden pole position at Silverstone. Returning to the series for a second season in 2018 saw Luke claim eight wins and a grand total of 18 podium finishes leading to an impressive third place finish in the Championship.

Following his impressive seasons in the Ginetta Junior Championship, Luke moved up to single-seaters in 2019 as he switched to British F4. He finished 6th in the driver standings for his first season with two wins and nine podiums. Luke was crowned British F4 Champion in his second season after delivering consistent competitive performances that resulted in seven wins, 16 podiums and only finishing outside of the top six twice all year.

Luke then turned his attention to the European racing scene in 2021 by competing in the ADAC F4 series.

Luke had a successful 2022 season claiming the GB3 Championship with Hitech GP with five race victories and eight further podiums. The British racer also won one of the most prestigious accolades in motorsport, collecting the 2022 Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award. In doing so, Luke joined an impressive list of previous victors including 2021 winner and fellow Williams Racing Academy driver, Zak O’Sullivan, along with our Brand Ambassador and 2009 Formula 1 World Champion, Jenson Button.

Luke was announced as a Williams Racing Academy Driver at the end of April 2023. As part of his role, he works closely with Williams Racing to help develop his talents through a personalised simulator program at the factory in Grove and opportunities to embed with the team trackside during Grands Prix.

In 2023, Luke competed for Hitech Pulse-Eight in the FIA Formula 3 Championship, finishing 15th overall including a second-place finish in the Barcelona Sprint Race. Following the close of the season, Luke raced in the famous Macau Grand Prix, claiming pole, fastest lap, and victory in Sunday’s main race.

Luke will remain at the Hitech Pulse-Eight team for the FIA Formula 3 2024 Championship and will continue to be supported by the Williams Racing Drivers Academy.

More from Luke Browning

Luke Browning

Discover what members of the Williams Racing Driver Academy were up to this past week

Academy Report: Lia makes history, plus Zak and Luke claim silverware

Discover what members of the Williams Racing Driver Academy were up to this past week

Nitrocross

Formula 3

Related Tags: