The majority of youngsters taking their first steps on the motorsport ladder set their sights on reaching Formula One. Briton McKenzy Cresswell fell into this category until very recently.
For 2025 he switched to GT racing; winning the GT4 Winter Series Championship as a rookie. Next weekend he embarks on a season in the GT4 European Series at Paul Ricard . . .
McKenzy became one of the UK’s brightest talents in junior single-seaters and was widely acknowledged by paddock insiders as being one of its fastest drivers.
The 19-year-old from Weybridge, who had begun karting seriously in 2019 when he and his family relocated from Austin, Texas, won more races, secured more fastest laps and overall podiums than any of his competitors on his way to third place in the 2021 British Formula 4 Championship in his “rookie” F4 year.
“F1 was always the dream,” recounts McKenzy. “I grew up watching it on TV with my dad and that was what I wanted to do from the start. I only really understood what it took to get there once I started F4 though, so by then I knew how hard it would be.”
He switched to GB3 in 2022 – the first of three years in the category which saw him twice finish fourth in the championship with Elite Motorsport; achieving multiple wins, pole-positions and fastest laps.
The F1 dream remained for McKenzy who made his FIA Formula 3 Championship debut in ’23, contesting races at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone.
Cresswell continues: “I believe I gave everything in single-seaters. There are some decisions that I wish that we made differently in hindsight, and there are definitely races I wish I could have back again.
“But it became clear that progress beyond GB3 in single-seaters was mostly about money and we didn’t have the budget to play that game. I think my four years in single-seaters prepared me well for my career ahead and I am very grateful for the
time I had driving such great cars.
“We were hearing a lot about the merits of GT racing and the opportunities to have a good career driving really cool cars all over the world. Elite had a very successful GT programme and so it was an obvious move to make the switch within an
environment with which we were familiar.”
McKenzy made his GT4 debut in Elite’s McLaren Artura at Estoril in the opening rounds of the GT4 Winter Series in mid-January and impressively achieved a front row start, brilliantly mastering a wet track. He snatched the lead on the opening lap before romping home to an unchallenged 17secs victory along with the fastest race lap.
Combining with Elite’s reigning GT4 European Series Silver Driver’s champion Josh Rattican in the 60mins “Feature Race”, Cresswell took the chequered flag almost 26secs ahead of his nearest pursuer.
At the next round at Portimão, Cresswell brilliantly claimed his maiden GT4 pole- position in very wet conditions, McKenzy leading comfortably from start-to-finish to score his first victory in a totally dry GT4 race by almost 10secs.
“We only really finalized things for the first two rounds a few weeks before the Winter season began,” reflects McKenzy. “Estoril session 1 was the first time I’d driven any kind of GT car. There were lots to learn but everyone at Elite made the transition
smooth.
“They made it very easy and stress free. My team-mates, Josh and then Tom, helped a lot as well, providing good data and teaching me all they’d learned about the Artura and championship the previous year.
“We only planned on doing the opening two rounds but as they went well and we were leading the championship, we made the decision to continue.”
Having finished third in his “solo” race at Valencia, Cresswell achieved second-place with Tom Lebbon, who claimed the Silver Driver’s “crown” with Rattican last year helping Elite to the Teams’ title.
At Aragon in early March, Cresswell claimed his second “pole” of the season and led his 30mins opening race until 11mins from home, finishing just one-second behind the winner. In the hour-long feature, McKenzy led throughout his stint, setting the
fastest race lap before Lebbon brought the McLaren home to “victory lane”.
Cresswell captured the Driver’s championship title with a mature drive to fourth-place in his solo race at Barcelona. He challenged for the lead throughout his stint in the Feature race, took the chequered flag second on the road, but inherited the victory when the “winning” car was given a penalty.
“Looking back on the transition, the biggest challenge was staying out of the ABS unless absolutely necessary and adapting to how much the car moves around beneath you. Ultimately though all the concepts are the same as in a single-seater, everything is just happening a bit slower.
“As a driver you always think you are going to be fast every time you drive a car. I was feeling confident that we could fight for race wins straight away and that’s what happened.
“Winning the Driver’s Championship was a nice feeling. Ultimately, it’s a winter series so I was quickly moving onto preparing for the European series, but most of all I was pleased of the pace we showed.”
McKenzy begins a full season in the GT4 European Championship this weekend when he and Rattican attempt to successfully defend Elite Motorsport’s Teams’ title success with the McLaren.
“I’m really excited about competing in the Euro Series especially as some of the tracks, like Misano and Nürburgring, will be new to me, I have raced at Zandvoort and Spa in GB3 but never in a GT car.”
Outside of motor racing McKenzy, who passed Advanced Placement Physics, Calculus, History and Human Geography, currently attends Oxford Brookes studying Motorsports Engineering but is also focussed on making a big name for himself in GT racing.
