Making his debut next season in the F4 British Championship certified by FIA – powered by Ford EcoBoost, 16 year-old Zagazeta will make his car racing debut with the multiple championship winning team.
Peruvian born Zagazeta started his racing career in karting at the tender age of eight racing in his home country where he became Peruvian National Champion in the Mini 60 (IAME) in 2013, 2014 and 2016. Zagazeta began racing in Argentina in 2014 before moving to the USA racing in the SKUSA Championship.
Zagazeta continued learning his craft in the US where he was runner up in Junior X30, reaching the podium in Indianapolis. Back in Europe, Zagazeta competed in the Junior X30 and OKJ with Fusion Motorsport, also contesting the IAME Euro Series where he claimed pole position in Genk and the IAME X30 International Finals where he was a runner-up following two heat wins.
A season in OK Senior for the WSK Series and CIK European and World Championships followed in 2018, and the X30 Senior British Championship and selected OK Senior Races in 2019 has allowed Zagazeta to fully prepare his race craft for a season of British F4 racing. The young Peruvian has now switched to a F4 test programme to familiarise himself with the British F4 car and challenging circuits.
Zagazeta said, “I’m so pleased to be joining Carlin for the upcoming season – it will be my first season outside of karting and I can’t think of a better way to start my career. I’ve been testing with the team which has been really fun and I’ve been learning a lot so I’m sure that we can hit the ground running and have a great season together. The F4 British championship is a proven testing ground for drivers and has produced so many great talents and aim to add my name to the list”
Speaking about the team’s newest signing, Trevor Carlin said, “Matias is the perfect example of a young driver stepping out of karts into his first season of car racing, with everything to learn. It’s most rewarding for us to work with drivers at this point in their career when they are making this very big step up. Matias is already responding very well in testing and is learning so much with every day on track. With his ability and attitude I’m sure he’ll be a strong competitor when the 2020 season kicks off. I’m excited to see his potential as the programme unfolds.”