Jessica Edgar

Jessica Edgar is a British racing driver whose career trajectory has taken her from dominating karting championships at age twelve to testing Formula E machinery with DS Penske, all while carrying forward a family motorsport legacy that spans over six decades.

EARLY YEARS

Born 15 March 2005 in Ennerdale, Cumbria, Jessica Edgar didn’t choose motorsport—it chose her. She arrived into a family where racing wasn’t just a hobby; it was practically a genetic trait. Her great-grandparents raced. Her grandparents, Terry and Winnie, were both karting champions. Terry represented Britain in the 1974 and 1975 world championships and won the 1977 Little Green Man Championship, beating drivers like Nigel Mansell and Alain Prost along the way. Her uncle raced. Her father raced. Her cousin Jonny Edgar became an FIA Formula 3 racer and former F4 champion. By the time Jessica came along, she was the tenth family member to race karts competitively, a tradition that started in 1960.

Growing up in Cumbria meant growing up around Rowrah circuit, also known as CKRC, which her family helped build. The track holds special significance—not just because of the family connection, but because it became the place where Jessica would eventually claim her first championship title. She spent her formative years at race tracks watching her father compete, soaking in the noise, the speed, and the unspoken understanding that this was what the Edgars did. “This sport runs through my veins,” she said in a 2020 interview, and it wasn’t hyperbole.

At age four, Jessica got behind the wheel of a bambino kart for the first time. The feeling stuck. “I liked the feeling of winning, and so I wanted to do it more,” she explained years later at Silverstone. “That was the start of everything.” By age four or five, she was already karting competitively, making her debut in the CKRC championship in the IAME Cadet class. And because subtlety isn’t really the Edgar family style, she won the championship in her debut season—at her home track, no less. “I was very proud to have won the championship in the IAME Cadet class, especially at my home track,” she said. “It was great to finish off my career in Cadets by winning.”

OTHER INTERESTS

No information available.

EARLY SUCCESS

Jessica Edgar didn’t waste time proving herself beyond the family circuit. In 2017, she claimed the Rowrah Club Championship title, cementing her reputation as a karting talent worth watching. By 2018, she was racking up wins in the Super One series, taking victories at PFI and Shenington in the Mini X30 class. The wins gave her something crucial: confidence. “After achieving good results in 2018, it gave me a massive confidence boost for 2019,” she said. “My expectations became higher and I always wanted to be at the front. You have to believe in yourself and your ability if you want to be successful.”

2019 proved she meant it. Edgar won rounds at Larkhall and Rowrah in the Little Green Man (LGM) championship, finishing second overall in her category—and becoming the first female to win more than one round of the LGM in the process. She also came agonizingly close to victory at the Kartmasters GP at PFI, finishing second in the Mini X30 class by just 0.01 seconds. It was the kind of margin that stings and motivates in equal measure.

By 2022, Edgar was ready to leave karts behind and step into single-seaters. She joined Fortec Motorsport for the GB4 Championship, completing hundreds of kilometers of testing beforehand. The transition wasn’t seamless—switching from karting to cars rarely is—but she learned fast, finishing seventh overall with multiple top-five finishes and a podium at Oulton Park in Round 2. She struggled at times to adjust, but the season gave her the foundation she needed.

In 2023, Edgar joined Rodin Carlin for the inaugural F1 Academy season, a championship designed to elevate female talent on the Road to F1. She competed across seven rounds at circuits including Barcelona, Zandvoort, Monza, Paul Ricard, Red Bull Ring, Valencia, and Circuit of the Americas. The season built steadily: a third-place finish in Race 1 at Austria’s Red Bull Ring, another third at Monza in Italy, and then a breakthrough. At the final race of the season in Austin, alongside the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix, Edgar won—her first F1 Academy victory. She added another third-place finish in Race 2 that same weekend, finishing the season eighth overall with one win and three podiums.

NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

• 2017: Rowrah Club Champion[2].
• 2018: Super One Round 1 winner at PFI, Mini X30 class[2][4].
• 2018: Super One winner at Shenington, Mini X30 class[2][4].
• 2019: Little Green Man winner at Larkhall, Mini X30 class[2][4].
• 2019: Motorsport UK British Round winner at Rowrah, Mini X30 class[2][4].
• 2019: Second overall in Little Green Man championship; first female to win more than one round[1][2].
• 2019: Second place at Kartmasters GP at PFI, Mini X30 class, losing by 0.01 seconds[2].
• 2022: Seventh overall in GB4 Championship with Fortec Motorsport; podium at Oulton Park Round 2[1][2][3].
• 2023: F1 Academy win at Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas[1][3][5][6].
• 2023: Three F1 Academy podiums (Race 1 Austria, Race 1 Monza, Race 2 Austin); eighth overall in championship[1][3][5].
• 2023: Represented the United Kingdom at the FIA Motorsport Games[1][2].
• 2024/25: Formula E pre-season test driver for DS Penske at Jarama Test; 11th outright in pace during women-only session[1].

INSPIRATIONS

Jessica Edgar’s inspirations aren’t abstract—they’re sitting at family dinners. Her grandfather Terry, who won the 1977 Little Green Man Championship and raced against future Formula 1 world champions, set a standard. Her grandmother Winnie proved women could compete at the highest levels decades before the current push for gender equity in motorsport. Her cousin Jonny Edgar, now racing in FIA Formula 3, showed her the modern pathway from karting to single-seaters. Her parents, uncle, and the generations before them all contributed to an environment where racing wasn’t just encouraged—it was expected. When your family has been racing since 1960 and helped build the very circuit where you claimed your first championship, the inspiration is less about idolizing distant heroes and more about honoring a legacy while carving out your own place within it.

REPUTATION

No detailed information available on industry standing or peer regard, though her achievement as the first female to win more than one round of the Little Green Man championship in 2019 indicates she’s been breaking barriers since her karting days.

FUTURE GOALS/PLANS

No information available on contracts, goals, or plans beyond 2024.

References:

Jessica Edgar – Formulae Wiki
Jessica Edgar – GB4 Championship Official Site
Jessica Edgar Official Bio
Jessica Edgar Interview – Fast and Fearless
F1 Academy: Jess Edgar – Silverstone Circuit
Jess Edgar Interview – The 1v1 Project
Jessica Edgar – F1 Academy Official Site