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Black History Month Magazine Interview

Editorial Team

31 Oct 2021

Proud to be: Black representation in Formula One

James Dornor-33, Electronics Support Engineer - Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team


“I’m proud to be an engineer who is recognised for what I have done for the community. I have progressed in an industry which can be challenging to enter, by maintaining the highest standards. I want to be someone the next generation can aspire to be and have a successful career. I am proud of my family heritage and values that I learned growing up, which have made me the person I am today”

 

What does your role? 

I am an Electronics Support Engineer in the Heritage Department at the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team with a combined 12-year experience in automotive and motorsport. I am responsible for maintaining all electronics and car systems on a wide range of historic Mercedes Formula One cars. We cycle through firing up each chassis over a 12-month period and my role includes monitoring sensors and communicating directly to the mechanics to get the car up and running for a track session.

I’ve supported the team’s young driver programme at various race circuits and attend demo events, as well as assisting the race team with the chassis, working on a range of tasks from electronics to the actual build of the race cars.


When trackside on event, I analyse live data from the chassis, control and hydraulic systems, reporting back to the race engineer, performance and control engineers, whom we all work as a team


What does Proud to Be mean to you and your impact on the community?

I hope that I have impacted the community by sharing my story of how I progressed in an industry which can be challenging to enter. I have taken time to visit primary schools and secondary schools where I have been able to talk to students as well as answering any questions they have. I hope that I can inspire them to achieve their dreams, regardless of background, ethnicity or gender. I have also spoken at universities, colleges and have met Members of Parliament at events which have enabled me to discuss engineering, my career path and share my thoughts on how we can engage the younger generation and spark the interest for more Black and minority ethnic young people considering a career in the motorsport industry.





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