Zane Maloney is the first driver from the Caribbean to race in a single-seater world championship – and he takes inspiration from Lewis Hamilton in a completely unique way
Zane Maloney’s choice of No.22 is all because of Lewis Hamilton. Seven-time F1 world champ Hamilton is Formula E rookie Maloney’s biggest idol and when he was asked to pick what number he wanted on his car, he had a novel response.
“He’s number 44 and I said that if I can be half as good as him, then I’m 22. Then it just stuck,” Maloney says.
It is no wonder that Maloney looks up to Hamilton. The Boy from Barbados is making history as the first Caribbean driver in a single-seater world championship series.
Hamilton broke barriers as the first black person ever to race at world championship level in F1, while he also has Caribbean roots, through his father’s Grenadian background.
“When he went into F1 in 2007, I was only four years old. I was already just watching F1 for him,” Maloney says. “Through my entire career, he is the one I have looked up to.
“He came to Barbados twice in 2016 and 2017 and I raced against him in a go-kart, which was a dream come true for my entire life.
“I will always look up to Lewis, he is the person that I will see as the best ever in Formula One for many reasons. He is the best and always will be.”
Maloney, 21, was one of the most promising stars in the F2 and F3 feeder series but is yet to score a point in his Lola Abt Yamaha car since switching to all-electric racing.
“A lot of people think it’s a step down from F1, a step down from F2, but it really isn’t,” he says. “If you look at the manufacturers and drivers down the grid, it’s the best in the world.”
And as the 21-year-old goes into Saturday morning’s Tokyo E-Prix, he hopes to spread some West Indian joy across the paddock.
Olympic icon Usain Bolt has already attended races and even driven a Formula E car, while pop star Rihanna has been in his Instagram direct messages and he has invited her to a race.
“I don’t want to boast about it, but it’s a cool thing,” Maloney says. “We’ll see what happens. I’m sure that she’s very busy, so we’ll see what can happen.
“[Usain] could barely even fit in the car, so it was cool to see. I haven’t really done much with him, but we have plans in place to do something later on, also with Rihanna.
“There’s a lot of stars, a lot of big names from the Caribbean. Now, at this stage, I’d like to bring them over to some races and let them see my world.”
Watch the Formula E Tokyo E-Prix live on ITV4 and Discovery+ from 6am. Race start 7am.
