Versatility is velocity — Tom Canning and the art of driving everything

Versatility is often an asset in motorsport. In practice, it’s a trait most drivers claim, but only a few truly test across disciplines and machinery. Tom Canning is one of the exceptions, building his career on an instinct to say yes to whatever he’s handed.

When asked about plans for the 2026 season, a wide-eyed Canning revealed without a pause—extensive testing work with Aston Martin, a GT campaign and a few ‘new ventures’. He summed it up best himself: “If anyone puts a car in front of me, I will drive it”.

It might look like a 23-year-old seizing every opportunity to strengthen his résumé, but the reality runs deeper. He was, after all, only 17 years old when he won the British GT4 Championship, a result that unlocked doors he still walks through today.

“That was probably the most important year of my career. Without winning that, the chance I would’ve even had the opportunity to race again would have been slim. It happened at exactly the right time,” Canning recalled in a conversation with Sportstar.

In 2019, just a year into his GT career, Canning won the title and the Aston Martin Racing (AMR) Academy when he was signed as a junior driver. The achievements helped him secure funding and representation in drives thereafter.

“There were certain years where I thought being a professional driver was off the table, just because of the accessibility. I didn’t have the money behind me. To get that result early on gave me something behind me through those years when it’s hard to get drives,” Canning said.

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While the breakthrough didn’t really make the journey easier, it made it possible. And for a kid who once doubted whether a racing career could truly happen, that possibility meant everything.

The balancing act

Even as a karting youngster, Canning wasn’t fixated on a specific car but on endurance racing itself. “There’s a cool video from when I was like 10 or 11, talking about how my goal was always GT cars at Le Mans. That goal has stayed the same throughout,” he recalled.

Yet like most young drivers, he knew passion had to coexist with a backup plan. It was in his second year of pursuing A-levels in maths and physics—to become a race engineer if racing didn’t pan out—when Aston Martin signed him.

It was a difficult balance to continue schooling and racing, but he wanted to finish his education if there was a need to revisit it.

“I put racing first, always. Through school, when people were having parties, that wasn’t necessarily a thing for me, because I was just racing. It’s what I did all through school. But because everyone I was with who raced was doing the same thing, it felt very normal at the time. But looking back, it didn’t ever feel like a sacrifice,” he said.

Building within the system

The AMR Academy was both the starting and turning point of his career. “That year, there were 23 or 24 of us who got into the academy, which already, for me, was a big win.

“The amount of support Aston Martin gives you when you’re in the academy in every aspect of racing is great. At the end of the year, they said I won the academy (panel). It was a junior factory contract, which sort of meant you’re part of the family. That was the big step for me,” said Canning.

Since then, his path has been filled with testing programmes and development work. From the new GT3 or GT4 cars to Hypercars and the Valkyrie, his role now extends beyond racing. He even does customer testing for some high-performance cars.

“Just having that support, to know that someone is backing you, has been massive,” he said.

A win that meant something different

The growing trust within the manufacturer setup mirrored the results on track. The triumph in his teenage years was proof of survival, and his recent GT Cup win in 2025 proved he could thrive in a brutally competitive sport.

“When you win something at 16 or 17, you’re just so pumped because you’re thinking about your career and so much about yourself,” he said. “Now you think more about the people around you—your teammates, your team owners, everyone who’s helped you get there.”

Success now has more to do with the bigger picture and the collective journey towards it – a lesson, according to Canning, that only time can teach in the sport.

“I had a young teammate that I was coaching, and he made huge progress through the year and did an awesome job. Even the owners who gave me opportunities in my early years… For them to win the championship, I know that team’s been trying to win that for five or six years now.

“To know I helped be a part of it, and it obviously helps your own results,” he reflected.

A new chapter in India

The wins and wisdom that came along the way have only strengthened Canning’s willingness to embrace the unfamiliar territories, a mindset that brought him to India.

His entry onto the grid came through a driver he had raced alongside in Europe, beginning with short-term substitute roles in 2022 before evolving into something more permanent.

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“It took three years of being involved and speaking with them to land a full-season drive in 2025. I love racing in India. Even just being here and getting to see it is so different. I really enjoy it,” said Canning, who most recently took part in the Indian Racing Festival’s (IRF) Goa street race.

The series’ single-seater machinery demands a markedly different approach from the GT cars that have defined most of his career, but adaptability now is one of his strongest traits.

“It’s given me a pretty good base. You really learn that skill to be able to jump into a car and adapt to it quickly. Racing a single-seater here in India just adds to that,” remarked Canning.

The inclination to try his hand at anything has been a conscious career choice. “It’s something I’ve made a real effort to do throughout—to drive as many things as possible,” he said.

“Some people think that it will mess with younger racers’ heads. My theory has always been it’s better to do it when you’re young, and the pressure’s off.

“When you get the opportunity to jump into a new car in the critical years of your career, when people are expecting a lot, you want to be able to do that competitively and be comfortable doing it,” Canning added.

Canning’s journey so far has indicated that his expanding skill set has only intensified his ambition. And his motto, “If anyone puts a car in front of me, I will drive it”, only fuels the urge to keep pushing further.

Published on Feb 19, 2026