BEYOND THE GRID: F1 ACADEMY Champion Doriane Pin on pushing for her dream

From the first time she sat in a kart at the age of nine, Doriane Pin has wanted to race in Formula 1. Now an F1 ACADEMY champion and a Mercedes Development Driver, Pin is getting closer and closer to that dream.

On the latest episode of Beyond The Grid, Pin tells host Tom Clarkson about her racing story so far, from feeling like a “superhero” in her kart to seeking sponsors at the age of 11, taking on the Le Mans 24 hours, and being spotted by the Mercedes Junior Programme.

In F1 ACADEMY, Pin switched to racing open-wheel cars on Grand Prix circuits, supported by Mercedes team mates Lewis Hamilton, George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.

Meanwhile Susie Wolff's advice helped her to score points in every race and become the champion at the end of her second season in the category.

Now Pin is a Development Driver for Mercedes and her dream remains the same: a seat on the Grand Prix grid.

To listen to this week’s episode, simply hit go on the audio player above or click here to listen via your preferred podcasting platform.

You can also check out a huge selection of previous episodes – spanning every decade of F1 – in our dedicated Beyond The Grid library here.