Name: EXPLAINED: Driving Simulator
Uploaded: 2024-08-18T17:00:00.000Z
Description: Join Vehicle Performance Engineer Benoît Cannonge who explains how our Driver Academy plays a vital role in our simulator programme

Join Vehicle Performance Engineer Benoît Cannonge who explains how the Williams Racing Driver Academy plays a vital role in our Driving Simulator programme.

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Explained

Oleksandr has been karting since the age of five. His first major title came at the Ukrainian Karting Championship, becoming the series' youngest champion in its history at only 7 years old. The following year, Oleksandr entered his first international championship including the WSK Final Cup 60 Mini class and the CEE Rotax Max Challenge, which he won.

In 2021, he competed in the CIK-FIA Academy Trophy, securing a podium and a third overall result in the highly competitive championship.

The following year, he joined the Ricky Flynn Motorsport team, best known for supporting numerous Formula 1 drivers in their karting careers. He went on to win the 2022 WSK OKJ Super Master Series, achieving podiums at all four races and wins at three.

Later in the year, Oleksandr began the CIK-FIA OKJ European Championship season before he was involved in a serious karting accident in the second round, ending his season prematurely. His stationary kart was hit head-on in Zuera, Spain, causing him to sustain a compound fracture in his leg which required ten surgeries and multiple months of rehabilitation. Oleksandr made a full recovery by Autumn 2022.

In the first full season after his injury, Oleksandr was crowned 2023 CIK-FIA Karting European Champion, becoming the first Ukrainian driver in the history of karting to win the championship. Throughout the season, he stood on the podium a total of four times, including two wins.

The 14-year-old driver joined the Williams Racing Driver Academy in September 2023.

For 2024, Oleksandr will continue in karting in European and global championships, including the FIA European Karting Championship and the WSK Super Master Series.

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Oleksandr Bondarev

Join Vehicle Performance Engineer Benoît Cannonge who explains how our Driver Academy plays a vital role in our simulator programme

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EXPLAINED: Driving Simulator