ABOUT CALAN

At the age of 6, Calan discovered the sport of motor racing, and immediately developed a keen passion and fascination with Formula 1. Through his own research, it didn’t take long for him to find out that the majority of successful racing drivers commenced their careers in karts. And so began a year of his parents looking into the sport, Calan doing his jobs around the house to save for his first helmet, and by the age of 7 he had bought all his gear, had his own kart, and was a proud member of Tiger Kart Club!

Karting

Over the next 7 years, Calan developed his craft, initially dominating within the club level, before becoming one of the quickest and top performers in the state. Right from the start, kart shop owner Harvey Morrison took a keen interest in Calan, and provided hours of support to both he and his Dad to teach them the art of driving the kart, race craft and the important fundamentals of kart set up to achieve optimum performance.

In the Cadet and Rookie classes, Calan achieved many successes, including winning the Club Championship at Tiger Kart Club 3 years in succession, winning state level events and in 2013 was the Champion of one of the biggest events in the country, the “Carnival of Karts” at Cockburn International Raceway. That same year, he was also fortunate to be able to compete in large events on the east coast of Australia, the Victorian Open at Puckapunyal and the City of Melbourne Titles at Todd Road.

With this solid grounding in place, 2014 was a year of rapid progression for Calan’s racing career. In consultation with Harvey Morrison, he and his family decided that there would be limited benefit in just stepping up to the regular Junior National class, and they decided to make the leap straight to the High Performance Junior Rotax class, where he would be regularly competing against 15 to 20 of some of the strongest performers in the country, the majority a year or two older. This was a fantastic experience for Calan, the racing was tough and he performed well often being one of the quickest on track. Junior Rotax during 2014 was a huge experience, developing racecraft skills to another level, and demanding precision driving.

The Transition to Cars

During late 2014, Calan took part in two test sessions in a Formula Ford, his first opportunity to drive a fully-fledged race car. The tests were very successful and Calan was offered an amazing opportunity with Western Australia’s premier Formula Ford team, “Fastlane Racing”, for 2015.

As the first young participant in Fastlane Racing’s new Driver Development Program, Calan developed his skills in the car under the guidance of Brett Lupton and Peter Major. Brett has vast experience in Formula Ford, along with Formula 1 and Formula 3, and was responsible for training Daniel Ricciardo in his first steps moving from karts to cars. Peter Major is the current Western Australian Formula Ford Champion.

A Dream Start to Calan’s Car Racing Career!

In a strong field of the regular State Championship contenders, Calan stunned the competition in the August Round by heading out to his first ever qualifying session and bringing the car home in P2 to qualify on the front row of the grid. Incredibly, he managed to take it one better in the racing, and in an amazing day beat an experienced field of 18 drivers to win his first event racing cars!

The 2016 WA Formula Ford Championship was an even more impressive and exciting season for Calan. He was on pole position every round other than the first in which he had clutch issues, amongst a strong field of around 20 throughout the year. Some early misfortune with a red flag penalty and a broken gear stick forcing him to retire from the lead of one round saw him playing catch up across the season in the championship. An exciting finish with a narrow 2nd place was the result after 5 wins in a row to complete the season including 3 out of 3 wins in the final round. In addition to this he has set the fastest lap in almost half of his thirty races, won his last five consecutive races.

The Step to Australian Formula 3 – Champion in Debut Season!

In December of 2016, Calan was invited by leading Australian Formula 3 team, Gilmour Racing, to get his first taste of a real “wings and slicks” race car and test their Mercedes powered Dallara F307 car. This was a real step up from Formula Ford with an increase in top speed, however more significantly an introduction to downforce allowing dramatically increased cornering speed capability.

Within only a few laps, Calan had come to grips with the change and was posting competitive times at Queensland Raceway completing more than 70 laps on a day in which the temperatures hit at times in excess of 40 degrees!

After such a comprehensive preparation, expectations were high of Calan for his debut in the Australian F3 Premier Series. His first day in the series must arguably be one of the best in the history of the Championship. Under intense pressure, Calan delivered by qualifying on pole position, winning his debut race in the series and claiming the new outright lap record at the Morgan Park Circuit.

In arguably the most dominant season seen in Australian F3 to that time, Calan claimed every Pole Position and 17 race wins on the way to securing the Championship title with a round to spare.

Euroformula Open Formula 3 Test with Fortec Motorsports – Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Spain

In December 2017, Calan travelled to Spain to take part in a two day test with Fortec Motorsports. Fortec is one of the leading motorsport teams in the world, competing across 6 categories including the Euroformula Open, an F3 Championship competing across Formula 1 tracks in Europe.

Calan’s test was an incredible success, matching the pace of the team’s experience Romanian driver Petru Florescu in qualifying runs, and stringing together outstanding consistency in a long race run, with 10 laps in a row all within 4 tenths of a second of his quickest time for the run.

As a result, Calan is now confirmed to compete with Fortec in the Euroformula OPen Winter Series commencing with another test in Barcelona mid Feb, a 2 day race meeting at Circuit Paul Ricard, France, and them concluding at the end of March back in Spain at another Formula 1 circuit, Jerez.

2018 Euroformula Open Winter Series

In February 2018, Calan commenced competition with Fortec Motorsports in the Euroformula Open Winter Series, the pre-season testing and racing leading in to the Euroformula Open Championship itself.

In the first event, an official 2 day test at Barcelona, Calan announced his arrival in European F3 by running multiple sessions in the top 5, and a narrow second in one session.

Next was Calan’s debut international race meeting at Paul Ricard in France. Amongst 15 of the best young drivers in the world, from across 12 different nations, he exceeded all expectations by finishing in 7^thplace. This was a feat made all the more remarkable given that he was the only driver to be on their first appearance at the circuit.

In the final Winter Series event, a 2 day test at Jerez in Spain, Calan demonstrated his ability to adapt and learn quickly on one of the most challenging circuits in Europe. So much so that following this event, Fortec Motorsports announced the signing of Calan for the Euroformula Open Championship.

2018 Euroformula Open Championship

In his first year of the Championship in 2018, Calan competed against many of the best young drivers in the world on many of the most famous Formula 1 circuits such as Estoril, Barcelona, Paul Ricard, Spa – Francorchamps, the Hungaroring and Silverstone.

Visiting the majority of the circuits for the very first time, Calan continues to develop his natural pace and potential by qualifying inside the top 10 (of 17 drivers) in 6 of the 8 opportunities to date.

In Round 3, in an enormous challenge, Calan raced at the legendary Spa – Francochamps circuit with 19 corners over nearly 8km including the incomparable corner of Eau Rouge. The only driver in the field to be racing there for the first time, Calan charged through the field to finish 7^than earn his first Championship Points including a daring pass through Eau Rouge itself.

At the Hungaroring for Round 4 he continued his progression and run of form to finish 6^th, again on his first time to the circuit which is regarded even in Formula 1 circles as the most difficult in Europe.

For Round 5 at Silverstone in the UK, after only an hours track time in practice, Calan broke in to the top 5 on both occasions for qualifying, and scored Championship points in both races over the weekend.

At Monza for Round 6 of the Championship, Calan demonstrated his arrival as a contender at this level being one of the quickest drivers throughout the event. He qualified P3 and P5 and once again collected points in each race.

2019 Toyota Racing Series – New Zealand

In January 2019 Calan travelled to New Zealand to complete in in the Toyota Racing Series, a globally recognised 15 race series which has helped produce a number of Formula 1 drivers including Lando Norris, Lance Stroll and Brendan Hartley. It also includes the New Zealand Grand Prix, one of only 2 FIA – approved Grands Prix outside of Formula 1.

In 2019 FIA recognised the series with Formula 1 Super License points which attracted a field widely recognised as the strongest in its 15-year history including Marcus Armstrong (Ferrari Junior Academy Driver) and Lucas Auer (Red Bull Driver and already having tested in F1) to name just two.

Amongst this strong field of 17 drivers from Europe, USA, South Africa, Japan, Australia and New Zealand Calan performed exceptionally well finishing 8^th in the Championship with highlights of qualifying 3^rd at Manfeild and finishing 5^th in the race.

Calan was the highest finishing Australian driver and all bar one of those ahead in the standings had competed in New Zealand and in the series previously on multiple occasions.

2019 Euroformula Open Championship

Calan competed in the 2019 Euroformula Open Championship among 25 of the strongest young drivers from across the world.

The introduction of the new FIA Formula 3 Championship reshaped the landscape of European Formula 3, and Euroformula Open is now regarded the most competitive field outside of the FIA Formula 3 Championship itself.

Calan regularly featured in the points and has produced some outstanding drives, including storming through the field from 14^th on the grid (following a qualifying accident) to 7^th place in his first street race, the Pau Grand Prix. The circuit is notoriously difficult to overtake on, and in damp conditions Calan made that look easy including taking two positions in one move into the first braking point of the race.

At the Red Bull Ring in Austria Calan and his team produced an outstanding result. In a single car team competing against two teams of 5 cars, Calan finished 4^th in race 1 and 5^th in Race 2. This was Fortec’s strongest points haul since early 2017, and Calan’s first appearance at the circuit.

2020 FIA Formula 3 Championship

After an exceptionally successful 3 day test with Swiss race winning team Jenzer Motorsport in Valencia, Calan was signed to compete in the 2020 FIA Formula 3 Championship. 45 drivers from across the globe were vying for an estimated 10 – 12 available seats.

The FIA Formula 3 Championship is arguably the most fierce and competitive Championship in the world. With 30 of the best drivers from across the globe, and a format which allows no margin for error, only the toughest will adapt.

Three different compounds of the Pirelli tyre, designed to degrade as for Formula 1 add to the challenge.

In his first year of the Championship Calan has thrived in the environment. He has already earned himself a reputation as being very quick in the wet, placing P2 during both wet practice sessions and Qualifying P5 for Round 3 at the Hungaroring.

He has enhanced his reputation for overtaking with a stunning 14 place gain in the wet at Hungary, and then gaining an even more amazing 11 positions at the difficult to pass Barcelona.

In Monza he stunned again, qualifying P4 and being in a position to win half way through the race before he was taken out of the race through the error of a driver behind.

As one of the stand out rookie drivers for the season, indications are positive for a strong push for the Championship in 2021. he stunned again, qualifying P4 and being in a position to win half way through the race before he was taken out of the race through the error of a driver behind.

2021 FIA Formula 3 Championship

Re-signing for Jenzer Motorsport In the 2021 FIA Formula 3 Championship, Calan was the leading points scorer for his Swiss based team and achieved his maiden podium finish at Paul Ricard during the French Grand Prix. In this race he started from pole, and was involved in a fierce battle at the front for the entire race which due to the extreme slip stream circumstances has been refered to as one of the best F3 races ever.

At the completion of the season, Calan made a commanding impression in his debut appearance in a Formula 2 car with Italian team Trident Motorsport during the Official FIA Formula 2 Post Season testing.

The tests were held over 3 days at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi following the final Formula 1 Grand Prix of 2021 and the Formula 1 Post Season tests.

Post Season testing is the chance for drivers to press their case for a full time seats the following season, and in Formula 2 the competition is fierce to gain one of the top 22 seats in the world outside of Formula 1.

Calan was one of only 5 of the 22 drivers in the test experiencing Formula 2 for the first time, with eight of the drivers approaching their third (or more) season.

Conditions were fine for all three days of the test and from Day 1 Calan was impressive. In the afternoon session he posted a time of 1:36.705 to be an amazing P6, and P10 overall for the day.

On Day 3 Calan completed a huge 105 laps, including replicating of a full feature race length run. During the new tyre qualifying simulations, he once again excelled, delivering a 1:36.613 to finish P11 for the day, and impressively only 0.5 seconds from P1.

Following a highly successful performance during the December 2021 Official Formula Post Season testing in Abu Dhabi, Calan Williams has secured a full-time seat with Trident Motorsport for the 2022 FIA Formula 2 Championship.

2022 FIA Formula 2 Championship

Following a highly successful performance during the December 2021 Official Formula Post Season testing in Abu Dhabi, Calan Williams secured a full-time seat with Trident Motorsport for the 2022 FIA Formula 2 Championship.

The season started particularly strongly, with Calan in contention for a podium finish in his first Feature Race at Bahrain. With the team calling him into the pits for a change to soft tyres during a safety car with only a handful of laps to go, they unfortunately failed to secure the left front wheel, ending his race.

The Jeddah round was a standout performance for Calan, securing P7 in qualifying at his first visit to the challenging circuit following no completed laps during practice due to red flags. He would go on to finish the race in P4.

The second half of the season was plagued by poor team car preparation and a string of incidents of other drivers ending Calan's race whilst consistently running inside the points.

At the end of the seaon, Calan made the announcement that he would make the shift to World GT3 racing with the strongest team in the world, WRT.

2023 GT World Challenge Europe

In 2023, Calan made the move into sportscars and endurance motorsport, and following a successful test day at Magny-Cours, signed with top-team WRT for the season. The season started strongly, qualifying seventh overall and top of the Gold class at the first race of the season.

June of 2023 saw Calan’s first experience of a 24-hour race, at the prestigious 24 Hours of Spa. Sharing the car with Niklas Krütten and Jean-Baptiste Simmenauer, the trio took an impressive 2nd in the Gold class and 14th overall, among a huge and competitive field of 72 cars.

The season continued to build strongly, with the Sprint Cup bringing an intense championship fight that went down to the very last race at Zandvoort. Taking three class victories in the first six races of the Sprint Cup, Calan and Niklas had built a healthy championship lead. However, a disastrous round at Valencia, being involved in unavoidable first-lap incidents in both races, took that lead away, and left the pair with a decent margin to make up with just one round left.

Finishing second in class for the penultimate race, the deficit was brought down to just one point heading into the final race. For qualifying the next morning, Calan had his best session of the season, putting the car on the front row overall, just 0.04s from BMW factory driver Maxime Martin on pole, and crucially, 15 places ahead of their championship rival. After the most challenging race of the season, with sudden downpours resulting in a race of slick tyres on a wet track, the pair took third overall, the class win, and most importantly, the Gold Cup championship title. This was also the only time in the 2023 season that a non-pro car had finished on the overall podium.