Matthew McComish: A Year to Remember

Working on Max’s car all year was rewarding in many ways.

BRACKLEY, England – Being able to work on Max Esterson’s car as his chief mechanic has been an amazing experience over the past year, especially during the world famous Formula Ford Festival and prestigious Walter Hayes Trophy events at the end of the season. Right from the first time I met both Max and his family, I knew that it was going to be a good year and that some good results were coming our way.

My instincts were right as Max earned multiple wins and podiums in the National FF1600 Championship throughout the year and even set the lap record on the Brands Hatch Indy circuit, all of which was definitely a confidence booster for both Max and the team at Low Dempsey Racing.

Low Dempsey Racing once again ran the Team USA cars.

Toward the end of the year, Max was selected as a Team USA Scholarship driver for the Formula Ford Festival and Walter Hayes Trophy events. He would be representing the best of young up and coming American drivers at the two events which attracted dozens of entrants each year. Confidence was high within the race team, but there was definitely a possibility anything could happen with some of the best young drivers in the world all showing up to compete.

It was amazing from the mechanic’s point of view seeing Max show his talent during qualifying and the races at both of the major events, but my nerves were definitely high. I knew that winning either of the races in the Team USA Scholarship livery would be a very special moment in time. Knowing one day Max could become a future IndyCar or Formula One driver and being a part of his racing career and achievements would be absolutely amazing.

Making one final suspension adjustment on Max’s car.

At the Formula Ford Festival, Max had been driving really well during the test days running up to the event weekend. In the last test session on that Friday, Max spun out on the damp track and ended up hitting a wall backwards at quite some speed which resulted in the rear right corner and some bodywork being severely damaged. In order to get Max and his car back out racing the next day, I knew it would be my job as his chief mechanic to repair everything in time. I worked as hard as I could through the night fitting the new parts to the car, fixing the bodywork, and setting the car up to its full racing potential. Thankfully, I got the job done, and Max’s equipment was ready in time for him to go back out racing on Saturday. Max went on to win his Heat Race that day and finished seventh in the Semi-Final.

Being on the pit wall for the Festival after not having the best Semi-Final race was nerve-racking to say the least. It was like everything that had happened during the year was now down to this one historic race. In the Grand Final, every single lap that went by I could see Max making up positions and time to the leader including the most impressive overtake of all year into Paddock Hill to gain one position closer to the lead! The whole team was ecstatic after Max finished the Grand Final in second place, but we all knew it was far from over with the Walter Hayes Trophy being the week after. We all knew we needed to put our heads down, and in my case, make sure both Team USA Scholarship cars were back up to the highest standards for the best running they could have.

Elation for Max and Matt after the Walter Hayes Trophy win.

On the Walter Hayes Trophy race weekend, Max showed amazing pace and topped every test session for three days in a row. He also finished first overall in his Qualifying, Heat Race, and Semi-Final in a dominating performance. After putting in all of my hard work outside of the race car making sure Max’s car was in perfect shape for the race weekend with no mechanical issues holding him back, Max’s hard work and determination inside of the race car made him go on to win the Grand Final race, crowning him the 2021 Walter Hayes Trophy Champion. No words can describe how I felt as a mechanic seeing my driver win the biggest race of the year in the race car I had worked so hard on.

As a mechanic, being able to work on the Team USA Scholarship cars this year was an unreal opportunity knowing the history behind the scholarship and that previous winners had gone on to make their dreams of becoming professional racing drivers come true. The success we experienced throughout the year definitely marked a new highlight and stepping stone in my career as a mechanic. Although Max was the one sitting in the race car, we always won as a team, and I’m so proud to have been such a big part of Low Dempsey Racing for this monumental race season.
-Matt McComish