F1 News: Nicholas Latifi Reveals Huge Career Move After Leaving Formula One

Nicholas Latifi, a former driver for Williams, has announced his temporary withdrawal from racing to focus on his newly chosen path: studying at London Business School.
F1 News: Nicholas Latifi Reveals Huge Career Move After Leaving Formula One
F1 News: Nicholas Latifi Reveals Huge Career Move After Leaving Formula One /

After concluding his season at Williams F1 team in 2022, Nicholas Latifi seemed to have fallen off the map. But in a surprising twist, the Canadian driver has recently emerged from his silence. In a public message on Twitter, Latifi announced that he is momentarily stepping away from the racing world to follow a new journey at London Business School.

The Canadian is not just leaving racing for any whim; he's been accepted to the prestigious university to follow in his father's footsteps in the world of business. Come August, he will be immersing himself in the world of academia, but despite his eagerness for this new chapter in his life, Latifi made it clear that he isn't permanently closing the door on motorsport.

"Hey everyone, I know I've been quiet on social media this year. I've seen plenty of messages from supporters worldwide asking what I've been up to and what my plans will be for the future. 

"As of recently, I have some news I'd like to share with all of you. I decided very early on in the year that I wouldn't have any racing plans for 2023. It definitely felt very strange not having the same routine I'd been in for over half my life.

"Knowing that I wouldn't be behind the wheel of a race car this year, I had obviously begun to think of what could be next for me, whether that involved racing or something completely different.I decided that for the immediate future, I wanted to take some time and pursue a different avenue and focus on another path.

"Growing up, I always had a keen interest in the world of business, and I always said it was something I would've studied at university had I not gone the racing route.

"With that in mind, and knowing I might be taking a break from racing, I decided that I want to pursue an MBA degree and focus on something that would transform the next phase of my life. An MBA was always something that I had contemplated doing post-racing life, even if that had been into my late 30s and early 40s.

He continues:

"Making the decision early on in the year that an MBA was what I wanted to pursue, I began devoting my time to researching business schools and seeing which ones would be a good fit, preparing an application for them, and studying for the GMAT (a test required by most business schools to go along with your application). 

"This was not an easy process and took many months! Anyone who has experienced the journey of applying to a business school knows how difficult it can be.

"After a five-month journey from starting the process, I am pleased to say that my candidacy was accepted for a place in the MBA program at London Business School (LBS), which I will be starting in August of this year.

"This decision may seem surprising to a lot of people. Transitioning to a different racing category might have seemed the most obvious move.

"However, I knew there would always be a life post-racing at some point, and I decided that now might be a good time to prepare myself for that.

"This is not necessarily a goodbye to the racing world forever. Racing has been my life since the age of 13 and is still something I am extremely passionate about. I haven't missed watching an F1 race yet this season!

"However, I felt like this year was the right time to explore and pursue other avenues in my life.

"I'm very much looking forward to this next adventure and want to thank everyone who has supported me throughout my career thus far. I hope I can continue to have your support as I take some time to pursue a different path.

"Nicky."


Published
Alex Harrington
ALEX HARRINGTON

Alex is the editor-in-chief of F1 editorial. He fell in love with F1 at the young age of 7 after hearing the scream of naturally aspirated V10s echo through his grandparents' lounge. That year he watched as Michael Schumacher took home his fifth championship win with Ferrari, and has been unable to look away since.