Carl Bennett (racing driver)
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Thai
Americanvia dual nationality
| Carl Bennett | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Bennett at the 2024 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps | |
| Nationality | Thai American via dual nationality |
| Born | 2 September 2004 United States[1] |
| GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup career | |
| Debut season | 2026 |
| Current team | AF Corse |
| Racing licence |  FIA Silver |
| Car number | 71 |
| Starts | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Poles | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| Best finish | TBD in 2026 |
| Previous series | |
| |
Carl Wattana Bennett (born 2 September 2004) is a Thai-American racing driver who competes in the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup for AF Corse. He previously competed in the International GT Open for AF Corse, the FIA World Endurance Championship for Isotta Fraschini and the European Le Mans Series for Cool Racing. Having raced in various Formula 4 series as well as Eurocup-3, Bennett switched to endurance racing in 2023, achieving a podium in the Asian Le Mans Series in the LMP2 class before progressing to Hypercar, the top class of WEC.[2][3]
Bennett is a member of A14 Management, overseen by two-time Formula One World Champion Fernando Alonso.
Born in the United States but raised in Bangkok, Bennett began his career in motorsport by participating in various karting championships such as the Rotax Max Thailand, the IAME Asia Cup and the IAME International Final.[4]
In 2022, Bennett began his racing season by participating in the American YACademy Winter Series championship in which he drove a Ligier JS F4, a championship which he completed by finishing in 13th place with five points.[5] Then, he again drove a Ligier JS F4 in the Formula 4 United States Championship with the Gonella Racing[6] team, a championship which he completed by finishing in 14th place with 24 points with the best performance in the fourth race in eighth place.[7]
In 2023, Bennett joined Fernando Alonso's management company, A14 Management, in order to develop in motorsport.[8][9] For the second consecutive year, he participated in the Formula 4 United States Championship with the Gonella Racing team,[10] a championship which he completed by finishing in 13th place with 37 points with his best performance in the race, a first place during the round taking place at NOLA Motorsports Park.[11][12] He also participated in the F4 Brazilian Championship with the Oakberry Bassani F4[13] team and in the F4 Spanish Championship and the Eurocup-3 championship with the GRS Team.[14] At the end of the season, he joined the French Duqueine Team to participate in the Asian Le Mans Series in the LMP2 category.[15]
In 2024, Bennett extended his commitment with the Duqueine Team to participate in the European Le Mans Series in the LMP2 category at the wheel of an Oreca 07[16][17] as well as in the FIA World Endurance Championship in the Hypercar category at the wheel of an Isotta Fraschini Tipo 6 LMH-C.[18] After missing the first two rounds for Duqueine Team in the ELMS, Bennett moved to Cool Racing, replacing Alex García who left the team.[19]
