Welcome! I’m Hugh Esterson and you’re reading the very first installment of a self-written newsletter detailing my racing career, and more specifically the kickoff of my 2022 season.

First – some background…I’m 22 years old and currently a senior at Duke University, studying Statistics and Data Science. I was born and raised in New York City, and motorsports has singlehandedly been my greatest passion for as long as I can remember. While I myself only started to race last year, this was far from my first exposure to the sport. I grew up waking up early every Sunday morning to watch the Formula 1 race prior to heading off to church. More recently, I’ve been lucky enough to have interned for a NASCAR and IndyCar team, as well as to have worked for an artificial intelligence company focusing on applying data science to the sport of NASCAR.

 

2022 will be my second year competing as a driver. Following in the footsteps of my younger brother, Max, who is currently competing in the GB3 (British F3) Championship in England this year, I first tested a Formula Ford/F1600 car with Team Pelfrey in December 2020. This led to entering two national-level SCCA race events in January 2021 at Homestead-Miami Speedway and Sebring International Raceway, where I won twice and finished second in the other two races. Having been victorious in my first- and second-ever races against fields that included current Road to Indy drivers as well as SCCA Runoffs champions, I was excited to enter the Formula Race Promotions (FRP) F1600 Championship Series with Team Pelfrey for 2021. The season turned out to be one in which I learned more than I won, and while we ran up front and ultimately finished fifth in the final championship standings, the consistency, pace, and reliability were never quite there all at once to bring home a win. All in all, I ended up with 8 podiums and 2 fastest race laps in the 24-race season, and learned a ton along the way.

This recap brings us to today. This year, I will again be racing in FRP’s F1600 Series for Team Pelfrey in the #80 Mygale SJ13/Honda. The 2022 edition of the series will be contested over 21 races that span seven weekends at six tracks across the country. 
 

The 2022 FRP field looks ready to pose stout competition across the paddock, with a mix of returning veterans and young up-and-comers. There will be no lack of competition between drivers, teams, and chassis manufacturers heading into this year and I’m hoping to up our game and vie for the championship. 

My season kicks off this weekend (April 1-3) in Kershaw, SC at Carolina Motorsports Park (CMP). Located about an hour and a half south of Charlotte, CMP boasts a 2.27 mile-long, 14-turn road course. As a World War II fighter pilot training base, there’s little elevation on the course, but there's a clever mixture of technical corners and long straightaways. In terms of F1600 racing, there is relatively little drafting dependence at CMP but limited passing opportunities as well. Last year, the opening round in Kershaw was full of growing pains for me. After finishing the first race of the weekend in 3rd to capture a podium in my first pro race, I had a disappointing final day of the weekend, with two poor finishes on the second day despite running in third place on the last lap of both races. However, I feel I am far better prepared this time around I cannot wait for this weekend, especially since it’s a short drive from Duke and a few friends may be able to come out and watch in person.

Below you will find my schedule for the weekend, as well as a link to the live timing to follow along. Live timing is provided by Race Monitor, which is also available for download on the App Store here. Alternatively, you can visit Race Monitor on the web – just click on the “FRP @ CMP” event for this weekend. I’ll also post updates on Instagram (@hhe42) throughout the weekend, so be sure to follow to keep up to date.

While this email is already quite lengthy (I promise future iterations won’t be as long), I would be remiss not to mention those who are supporting me for this season. Firstly, thank you to my parents for helping me enter this year of racing and supporting me each step of the way. A big thank you also to Team Pelfrey as we look to capture the championship in our sophomore year campaign. This will be the third consecutive year with an Esterson brother behind the wheel of the yellow and black #80 car for Team Pelfrey, and I can’t wait to make it the winningest season yet. Lastly, and not least, thank you to the many companies, friends, and family who are supporting my and my brother’s racing endeavors this year, including Christian Angle Real Estate, Amity Search Partners, B. Dyson Capital Advisors, Guardian Alarm, Vanwall Holdings, and MPI.

 

I hope you enjoyed this preview of my 2022 racing season, and I hope you follow my progress throughout the year. I’ll be back to recap and preview each of the seven race weekends. I can’t wait for the weekend and to start 2022 on a great note.

 

Let’s go racing!

As always, thanks for your support. Cheers!