Dan Wells (racing driver)

Dan Wells (born 29 May 1991) is a British racing driver from Salisbury.

Dan Wells
NationalityBritish
Born (1991-05-29) 29 May 1991
Southampton (England)
Formula Pilota China career
Debut season2012
Current teamKCMG
Car number16
Starts12
Wins3
Poles2
Fastest laps1
Previous series
2011
2010–11
2010		FR2.0 UK
FR2.0 UK Winter/Finals Series
Formula Ford 1600

Career

Karting

At the age of 18, having completed his studies at college, he gave up a university place to start his racing career in 2009. He competed in 11 Senior Rotax kart races in the South of the United Kingdom - setting a fastest lap in a field of 24 in his first ever race at Clay Pigeon.[1]

Formula Ford

In 2010 Wells graduated to Formula Ford 1600. Together with engineer John Percy - who ran him out of a single trailer - Wells took five class poles and five class wins in seven race weekends.

This brought him to the attention of the Racing Steps Foundation for their 2010 Formula Renault UK Winter Cup shoot-out.[2] After a six-week evaluation program which culminated in a day on track in Formula Renault machinery at Rockingham, he was 0.7s clear of the other finalists, astounding the on looking assessors, John Surtees and the late Martin Hines. Wells graduated to Formula Renault UK in late 2010, taking part in the 2010 Formula Renault UK Winter Cup.

Wells finished 5th in his first ever race weekend, lapping a tenth of a second off experienced team mate Alex Lynn. In the second weekend, Wells suffered incidents and mechanical failures, coming away with a best result of 11th.

Formula Renault

Wells joined the 2011 Formula Renault UK championship with Atech Reid GP from Round 3. He finished 10th in the overall in the standings, 22 shy of 7th place, with a best result of 4th at Rockingham and Brands Hatch.

In the Formula Renault UK Final Series, he scored three podiums in six races, with a best result of 2nd at Snetterton. He emerged as Vice Champion of the series, never finishing outside the top 6 beating Red Bull and McLaren backed drivers.[3] Over the winter, Wells worked to secure the necessary budget for a 2012 Formula Renault UK seat. However, in March 2012 it was announced that Formula Renault UK series would not take place in 2012.[4] Wells was already in the process of looking for alternative options to pursue his career, and thus looked towards Asia.

Formula Pilota China

On 28 March 2012, Wells announced he would compete in the Formula Pilota China Series in 2012, for the Hong Kong-based KCMG team.[5] He moved to Hong Kong in April 2012 and raced in Asia for the whole season, taking a double win in his second weekend in the series. Wells ran in a one car debut team for the majority of the year. He took a total of three wins, lined up on pole position three times, and took nine podiums from the 18 race series with series debutantes KCMG. He moved to Hong Kong with little personal funding, and paid for his first race using money raised through his GoFundMe page, which was successful in bringing nearly 14,000 euros to start his racing season.

Racing record

Career summary
Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
2010 Club Formula Ford 1600 JRP Motorsport 11 5 5 2 9 N/A N/A
2010 Formula Renault UK Winter Series Fortec Motorsport 6 0 0 0 0 56 11th
2011 Formula Renault UK Atech Reid GP 20 0 0 0 0 251 10th
Formula Renault UK Finals Series Atech Reid GP 6 0 0 0 3 136 2nd
2012 Formula Pilota China KCMG 18 3 3 3 9 179 2nd

Personal life

Wells was educated at La Retraite Swan in Salisbury, where he got seven A*’s and four A’s at his GCSE. He was also Top 10 in the UK for Politics and Economics at Peter Symonds College in Winchester.

He enjoys fitness, including hiking, spinning, running, weight work and pilates. He also likes learning about driving, philosophy and nutrition.

References
  1. "Dan Wells Profile". Dan Wells official website. 5 December 2011. Archived from the original on 30 September 2012. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
  2. "Drivers set for RSF FRUK seat battle". Racing Steps Foundation. 27 October 2010. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
  3. Paice, Simon (14 November 2011). "Atech Reid GP Celebrate Finals Series Success With Wells". The Checkered Flag. Black Eagle Media Network. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
  4. Paice, Simon (19 March 2012). "Formula Renault UK Axed for 2012". The Checkered Flag. Black Eagle Media Network. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
  5. Paice, Simon (28 March 2012). "Wells announces Asian adventure for 2012". The Checkered Flag. Black Eagle Media Network. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
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