Deagen Fairclough on Esports, Becoming British F4 Champion, and His Love for Silverstone

Young British racing driver Deagen Fairclough’s motorsport career began when he was five years old, after an initial introduction to the sport when he was four through watching Formula 1 on the television. 

From watching Lewis Hamilton race live to going back and watching older races including Ayrton Senna, Deagen has climbed the motorsport ladder, going from strength to strength, and competing in esports racing competitions, closed wheel and eventually open wheel racing categories.

Silverstone caught up with Deagen to learn more about his career so far, from his motorsport roots to his milestone achievements and the heights he hopes to reach in the future.

Deagen remembers watching Formula 1 with his dad every weekend. This soon turned into visiting go kart tracks every weekend, after his dad went indoor go karting with his friends who all agreed that Deagen would love karting, too. 

At five years old, Deagen and his parents visited their local karting venue, and on that day, Deagen fell in love with motorsport. Not only that, but he was quick behind the wheel of a kart for a five-year-old. 

“I always dreamt of being a Formula 1 driver like Lewis Hamilton and Ayrton Senna,” he says. “I could drive better than I could speak.

“My teachers at school had to incorporate racing terms into my learning so I enjoyed it a bit more because motorsport has been my life ever since I stepped foot in a go kart.”

Deagen started his car racing career when he was 13 as he joined Orex Racing for the 2020 Junior Saloon Car Championship. After finishing sixth in the standings, he continued his closed-wheel racing career in 2021, when he moved to the Fiesta Junior Championship for part of the season, driving with Jamsport with Ciceley Motorsport. After eight wins in 14 races, Deagen finished his closed-wheel career in P5.

In May 2022, Deagen won the ROKiT Racing Star F4 Esports Competition UK, which saw him earn a fully-funded seat in the 2023 F4 British Championship with JHR Developments. 

“I wouldn’t be here without that competition,” Deagen says of the ROKiT Racing Star competition. “It was very much a right place right time moment and winning that has set me to this point, really.

“The only aim of the competition was to win. Honestly, I didn’t believe the prize was real, but I went in there and my eyes were set only on winning. It changed my life.” 

Although it may seem a little daunting to move from competing in esports to racing in real life, Deagen found the transition rather seamless, all because he was doing the one thing he loves. 

In his first British F4 season, Deagen secured three wins and eight podiums in total, securing P3 in the standings with 296 points. 

“I had a bit of pressure, but I also had a lot of confidence,” he says. “I just had to come in and enjoy it. I didn’t know what was going to happen for the next season, so I just tried my best and enjoyed every second of it.” 

After a successful maiden year in the championship, Deagen returned for a second year, this time with Hitech TGR; out of 30 races, he secured 15 pole positions, 14 wins and 22 podiums, accumulating a huge 579.5 points to become British F4 Champion in 2024. With five races to spare, Deagen secured the championship at Silverstone. 

“Winning the title at Silverstone was awesome,” Deagen says. “To get it so early was a big weight lifted off our shoulders and it meant we could relax going into the last races of the season.

“To win at such an iconic circuit where Formula 1 races and the greats have won at, it was really special to me.” 

Deagen’s 2024 British F4 season was a record-breaking year; he is the current holder of the most races won in a single British F4 season.
Also in 2024, Deagen spent time in the Formula 4 UAE Championship and the Euro 4 Championship, both with Hitech TGR. 

He was also shortlisted in the top four of the BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award for 2024 alongside Freddie Slater, Arvid Lindblad and Louis Sharp. He spent several months impressing the judges, and was announced to have won it in December of that year. 

“To be shortlisted and to get the experience in the first place was really incredible,” Deagen says. “Hopping in a GT3 car, an F2 car and an LMP3 car for two days, flat out, to see who could get the fastest lap time was incredible. 

“The feeling when I got called up, that I’d won the award, was incredible. The amount of emotion that rushed through my body, the tears of joy when I hugged my mum, and going to the stage was just amazing; all of the downs were worth it to get to that point.”

Silverstone has played a huge part in Deagen’s career so far. Not only has he won the British F4 Championship at the Home of British Motorsport, but the BRDC Young Driver of the Year driving tests were held at the circuit. 

Deagen’s first time driving the circuit was in 2020 in Citroen Saxos, which, alongside winning the Championship and being at Silverstone for the BRDC Award, are the three big memories he holds close.

“I’ve had a lot of special moments at Silverstone,” he says. “It’s an awesome track, and hopefully one day, I can have an F1 win there. That would be a nice way to top it all off.

“Everything I’ve done so far – both at Silverstone and at other circuits – has been so enjoyable and there’s been so much effort that’s been put into every year from my family, my sponsors, like ROKiT, and Hitech. I’m very fortunate and very lucky to have the people that have got me to the point I’m in now.”

For 2025, Deagen competed in the GB3 Championship with Hitech TGR. Racing at circuits across the UK, including Silverstone, as well as visiting Zandvoort, Spa, Hungaroring and Monza, Deagen took one win, two second place finishes and four third place finishes to complete the season in third with 373 points. 

Deagen is on his way to reaching his ultimate goal, which is to race in Formula 1. 

“If I was really greedy, I’d beat Lewis Hamilton’s seven world championships,” he says. “But, just getting into Formula 1 would be an absolute dream come true.”