2024 marks two decades since Sam Bird stepped up to single-seater racing, and during that time, he’s worked with and raced against some of the biggest names in motorsport. And along the way, they’ve left an indelible mark on his career – and sometimes a physical one on his car.

But it isn’t only drivers and Team Principals who have shaped Sam, with friends, family and many, many others all playing a key role in his success over the years. We asked the NEOM McLaren Formula E Team driver to narrow the list down to three and name those who have had the biggest influence on his career. Here’s who he chose and why…

My parents 

Number one absolutely has to be my mum and dad. They enjoyed watching racing on TV, but had no idea of how I could get involved. I was desperate to race and try go-karting, but they had no idea of how to find the right path. 

Yet, they managed to find me the path. If it wasn’t for their commitment, their financial support, and the time that they gave up – giving up their livelihoods and their lifestyle in order to support me – I wouldn’t be where I am today. I owe my parents a lot of thanks and a lot of gratitude.

Richard Dutton and Trevor Carlin  

There are two team bosses from my junior formula days who stand out: Richard Dutton, of Fortec, and Trevor Carlin, of Carlin. I was fortunate to drive for them both and both of them were very, very key in the early days of my single-seater career.  

I had many wins for both of their teams in various categories, and they both played a really important role in helping me to climb up the ladder towards my goal of Formula 1. There were plenty of good memories with them both, and a lot of wins and podiums. They moulded me into a driver who was then sought after in later years. I will always be thankful to them for giving me the opportunity to race in their cars. 

Ross Brawn and Michael Schumacher 

Michael was and still is my hero, and we became good friends. He is somebody who I spoke to regularly every week—we would go off and do things together. I never told him that he was my biggest hero, but he was, and he probably knew that. He must have known that I idolised him, but I never let him know, mostly because we were just too busy pulling pranks on each other, making silly jokes, and just being good mates.  

Ross Brawn was the one who gave me my big break in Formula 1 with Mercedes, where I was a Reserve and Development driver for several years.

There’s a story I remember with them both from when I went to Abu Dhabi as a Reserve Driver at the end of 2010 with Mercedes. I was racing in GP2 and doing the F1 Young Driver Test afterwards. That weekend, I joined my first F1 pre-event meeting with the team…  

I went to the toilet ahead of the meeting, but accidentally opened the door on Michael. This was the first time that I had seen him in person, so I was quite shocked. I said I was sorry and shut the door as quickly as I possibly could. I then scurried into the meeting.  

Michael had obviously found this very amusing and told Ross the story. So, Ross begins the meeting by saying: “Hi everyone, welcome to Abu Dhabi. Before we get started, I want to introduce you to Sam. He’s here as our Test and Reserve Driver, and he’ll be doing the rookie test for us… You’ll find him hanging around the urinals.” I wanted to curl up into a ball, but Michael was laughing so much. From then onwards, I knew that he could have a laugh, so this moment actually broke the ice.  

Being around those two, learning from two giants of Formula 1 and how they worked was invaluable – their attention to detail, their memories, the way they articulated their thoughts and how hard they worked. For sure, having those two together at Mercedes helped to build the infrastructure they needed and was a catalyst for their later success.  

I worked with three drivers during my time in Formula 1, and between them, there are 15 World Championships: Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg. Being an understudy to those three was pretty cool. 

Honourable mentions  

I also want to mention Alex Tai and Sylvain Filippi from Virgin Racing. I left Formula 1, and I didn’t have anything lined up. I didn’t have a drive, but I was fortunate enough to pick up a racing role with Virgin. Out of nowhere, that started my Formula E journey.  

I would also like to mention Zak Brown and Ian James. I’ve been good friends with Zak for a while now. To get a call from the team to say that there was an opportunity, it took me about half a second to say yes. I am in a place where I genuinely love going to work, and I feel energized by everyone. We’re all pushing towards the same goal, and everyone is passionate about ensuring NEOM McLaren fights at the front of the grid. I am fully on board with this project and want to make that a reality.