Elias Seppänen (born 31 October 2003) is a Finnish racing driver currently competing in the ADAC GT Masters with Team Landgraf, for whom he won the 2023 ADAC GT Masters and the 2024 ADAC GT Masters
Early career
Karting
Born in Tammela, Seppänen started his karting career in 2014. His best result was winning the Finnish Junior Championship in the Raket class in 2016.
Lower formulae
In 2019 Seppänen made his single-seater racing debut in the F4 South East Asia Championship. The Finnish driver won eleven races and with 617 points he finished second in the standings to Irish driver Lucca Allen.[1] He also made two guest appearances in the SMP F4 Championship and competed in the Formula Academy Finland, where he finished third in the championship.[2]
The next year the Finn moved over to race in the ADAC F4 Championship with US Racing.[3] He achieved a race victory at the Lausitzring, and with nine further podiums Seppänen finished third in the standings, only behind Red Bull juniors Jak Crawford and Jonny Edgar.[4][5]
Formula Renault Eurocup
Seppänen made his debut in the Formula Renault Eurocup as a guest driver for R-ace GP in the final round of the series' history at Paul Ricard.[6] He finished the races in 14th and eighth.
Formula Regional European Championship
In 2021 Seppänen progressed to the Formula Regional European Championship, partnering Nico Göhler and fellow Finn Patrik Pasma at KIC Motorsport.[7] He scored his first point in the second race of the first round of the season in Imola.[8] After seven events, the Finn left the series, which landed him 24th overall by season's end.
Sportscar career
The 2022 season saw Seppänen switch to GT machinery, as he would compete for Mann-Filter Team Landgraf in the ADAC GT Masters, driving a Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo alongside Frank Bird.[9] With a best race finish of fourth, the duo finished 21st in the drivers' standings. Seppänen remained with Landgraf in 2023, this time partnering Salman Owega.[10] In a series that had been significantly weakened following the introduction of a rule which mandated each lineup to contain at least one silver-ranked driver, Seppänen and Owega took four victories, including a weekend sweep at the Sachsenring, to win the title in the final round.[11][12][13][14]
In 2024, the Finnish driver returned to defend his GT Masters crown, this time being joined by Tom Kalender at Landgraf.[15]
Racing record
Karting career summary
| Season | Series | Team | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Finnish Junior Championship — Raket | 33rd | |
| 2015 | Finnish Junior Championship — Raket | 11th | |
| 2016 | Sydsvenskans Kart Champion Cup — Mini | 1st | |
| Raket Cup Sweden — Mini | 22nd | ||
| Finnish Junior Championship — Raket | 1st | ||
| 2017 | Finnish Championship — OKJ | 10th | |
| Rotax Max Challenge Finland — Junior Max | 24th | ||
| WSK Final Cup — OK | 26th | ||
| Trofeo delle Industrie — OK | Forza Racing | 12th | |
| CIK-FIA World Championship — OKJ | 25th | ||
| CIK-FIA European Championship — OKJ | 27th | ||
| WSK Super Master Series — OKJ | 35th | ||
| 2018 | Finnish Championship — OK | 16th | |
| CIK-FIA European Championship — OK | Forza Racing | 29th | |
| WSK Super Master Series — OK | 36th |
Racing career summary
| Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Formula 4 South East Asia Championship | Meritus.GP | 40 | 11 | 7 | 10 | 28 | 617 | 2nd |
| SMP F4 Championship | SMP Racing | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC† | |
| Formula Academy Finland | N/A | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 123 | 3rd | |
| 2020 | ADAC Formula 4 Championship | US Racing | 21 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 257 | 3rd |
| Formula Renault Eurocup | R-ace GP | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | NC† | |
| 2021 | Formula Regional European Championship | KIC Motorsport | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 24th |
| 2022 | ADAC GT Masters | Mann-Filter Team Landgraf | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 52 | 21st |
| 2023 | ADAC GT Masters | Landgraf Motorsport | 12 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 181 | 1st |
| 2024 | ADAC GT Masters | Landgraf Motorsport | 12 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 9 | 253 | 1st |
| GT World Challenge America - Pro-Am | Regulator Racing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 36 | 15th | |
| 2024-25 | Asian Le Mans Series - GT | Climax Racing |
† As Seppänen was a guest driver, he was ineligible for championship points.
* Season still in progress.
Complete F4 SEA Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | SEP1 1 4 |
SEP1 2 3 |
SEP1 3 5 |
SEP1 4 3 |
SEP2 1 3 |
SEP2 2 1 |
SEP2 3 4 |
SEP2 4 2 |
BUR1 1 4 |
BUR1 2 3 |
BUR1 3 2 |
BUR1 4 2 |
BUR2 1 4 |
BUR2 2 3 |
BUR2 3 3 |
BUR2 4 3 |
MAD1 1 1 |
MAD1 2 5 |
MAD1 3 1 |
MAD1 4 1 |
MAD2 1 2 |
MAD2 2 1 |
MAD2 3 4 |
MAD2 4 3 |
SEP3 1 3 |
SEP3 2 5 |
SEP3 3 4 |
SEP3 4 4 |
SEP4 1 1 |
SEP4 2 1 |
SEP4 3 DSQ |
SEP4 4 1 |
SEP5 1 2 |
SEP5 2 2 |
SEP5 3 3 |
SEP5 4 1 |
SEP6 1 1 |
SEP6 2 3 |
SEP6 3 Ret |
SEP6 4 1 |
2nd | 639 |
Complete ADAC Formula 4 Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | Pos | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | US Racing | LAU1 1 3 |
LAU1 2 8 |
LAU1 3 1 |
NÜR1 1 3 |
NÜR1 2 2 |
NÜR1 3 4 |
HOC 1 4 |
HOC 2 6 |
HOC 3 3 |
NÜR2 1 Ret |
NÜR2 2 2 |
NÜR2 3 5 |
RBR 1 4 |
RBR 2 4 |
RBR 3 2 |
LAU2 1 3 |
LAU2 2 Ret |
LAU2 3 6 |
OSC 1 3 |
OSC 2 5 |
OSC 3 3 |
3rd | 257 |
Complete Formula Regional European Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | KIC Motorsport | IMO 1 15 |
IMO 2 10 |
CAT 1 18 |
CAT 2 Ret |
MCO 1 12 |
MCO 2 15 |
LEC 1 15 |
LEC 2 14 |
ZAN 1 16 |
ZAN 2 13 |
SPA 1 16 |
SPA 2 19 |
RBR 1 23 |
RBR 2 17 |
VAL 1 |
VAL 2 |
MUG 1 |
MUG 2 |
MNZ 1 |
MNZ 2 |
24th | 1 |
Complete ADAC GT Masters results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Team | Car | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | DC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Mann-Filter Team Landgraf | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | OSC 1 DNS |
OSC 2 19 |
RBR 1 20 |
RBR 2 18 |
ZAN 1 17 |
ZAN 2 9 |
NÜR 1 6 |
NÜR 2 4 |
LAU 1 16 |
LAU 2 Ret |
SAC 1 7 |
SAC 2 10 |
HOC 1 10 |
HOC 2 Ret |
21st | 52 |
| 2023 | Landgraf Motorsport | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | HOC1 1 Ret3 |
HOC1 2 32 |
NOR 1 11 |
NOR 2 4 |
NÜR 1 12 |
NÜR 2 8 |
SAC 1 11 |
SAC 2 1 |
RBR 1 DSQ |
RBR 2 6 |
HOC2 1 9 |
HOC2 2 3 |
1st | 181 | ||
| 2024 | Landgraf Motorsport | Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo | OSC 1 23 |
OSC 2 12 |
ZAN 1 11 |
ZAN 2 83 |
NÜR 1 |
NÜR 2 |
SPA 1 |
SPA 2 |
RBR 1 |
RBR 2 |
HOC 1 |
HOC 2 |
1st* | 85* | ||
* Season still in progress.
References
- ^ "Lucca Allen declared F4 South East Asia champion". January 3, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
- ^ "F4 round-up: Laitala wins Finnish title, van Berlo performs in Spain". September 16, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
- ^ Wood, Ida (2020-05-03). "Elias Seppanen joins US Racing in ADAC F4". Formula Scout. Retrieved 2021-05-06.
- ^ "Elias Seppanen wins in ADAC F4 after sudden rain hits Lausitz". August 2, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
- ^ Wood, Ida (2020-12-23). "The standout Formula 4 drivers around the world in 2020". Formula Scout. Retrieved 2021-05-06.
- ^ "Seppanen to contest Formula Renault Eurocup finale with R-ace GP". November 11, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
- ^ Wood, Ida (2021-03-04). "Elias Seppanen steps up to FREC with KIC Motorsport". Formula Scout. Retrieved 2021-05-06.
- ^ "Saucy scores first car racing win in second Imola FREC race". formulascout.com. 18 April 2021. Retrieved 2021-04-24.
- ^ Plümer, Jonas (21 April 2022). "ADAC GT Masters: Nachwuchsfahrer steuern zweiten Landgraf Mercedes" [ADAC GT Masters: Young drivers drive second Landgraf Mercedes]. gt-place.com (in German). Retrieved 21 April 2022.
- ^ Plümer, Jonas (5 June 2023). "Landgraf Motorsport bereit für 2023er ADAC GT Masters-Saison" [Landgraf Motorsport ready for 2023 ADAC GT Masters season]. GT-Place (in German). Retrieved 5 June 2023.
- ^ Lloyd, Daniel (24 January 2023). "ADAC Retains GT-Only Series Format; LMP3 Idea Dropped". sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
- ^ "Stars shine at the Sachsenring: Owega/ Seppänen make it back-to-back wins | ADAC GT Masters". www.adac-motorsport.de. Retrieved 2024-06-20.
- ^ "Salman Owega & Elias Seppänen – Meister im Porträt / ADAC GT Masters - SPEEDWEEK.COM". www.speedweek.com (in German). 2023-10-25. Retrieved 2024-06-20.
- ^ "Owega and Seppänen are 2023 champions | ADAC GT Masters". www.adac-motorsport.de. Retrieved 2024-06-20.
- ^ "Rennfahrer Tom Kalender aus Hamm steigt ins ADAC GT Masters auf". www.ak-kurier.de. 2024-04-19. Retrieved 2024-04-19.
External links
- Elias Seppänen career summary at DriverDB.com