February 1, 2021

Juan Manuel Correa will return to the race track after an 18-month recovery

FIA Formula 3
2021 Season

Juan Manuel Correa will return to the race track after an 18-month recovery following a tragic accident in 2019.

  • With the goal of returning to racing, the American-Ecuadorian driver has been completely dedicated the past 18 months to his recovery.
  • Given his strong and persistent focus on his recovery, the 21-year-old driver will return to racing a year sooner than expected.
  • Correa will be part of Art Grand Prix for the FIA Formula 3 Championship in 2021.


After a tragic accident in 2019 and a difficult recovery process that took approximately 18 months, American-Ecuadorian driver Juan Manuel Correa will finally make his comeback to racing this 2021. The 21-year-old driver will join French team Art Grand Prix for the FIA Formula 3 Championship.

“Announcing my return to the race tracks is one of the proudest moments in my professional career, as I’ve had to work very hard and sacrifice a lot for it to happen. I want to thank the motorsport community and the fans for their unconditional support. I have no words to thank ART Grand Prix for believing in me and for being part of my story. I would also like to take a chance to honor the memory of Anthoine, as I will keep him very close to my heart in every race and try to carry his legacy as best as I can,” stated Juan Manuel Correa himself.

With a passion for speed and adrenaline, Juan Manuel got his start in motorsports from an early age in karting competitions in Ecuador and in the United States. Thanks to his outstanding performance, the Latin American then moved into categories such as Formula 4 and GP3 Series, but it wasn’t until 2019 when he got his big break joining FIA Formula 2 with the Sauber Junior Team at just 19 years old.

With two podium finishes in his debut season, on August 31, 2019 – during the F2 round at the legendary Spa Francorchamps track, Correa would face the greatest challenge of his life. The American-Ecuadorian was involved in the same tragic accident that took fellow driver Anthoine Hubert’s life and received a hard hit of over 65G force that left him with two fractured vertebrae, around 20 fractures in both legs and feet and internal damage to the lungs, which had him spent two weeks in an induced coma connected to life support.

After undergoing 25 surgeries on both legs – and being presented with the possibility of amputating his right one, the prognoses were not encouraging: it would take him at least two and a half years to recover enough for him to start thinking about the possibility of racing again. However, his love for the sport and his perseverance led him to fully focus on his recovery, creating his own rehabilitation program, thus considerably cutting his recovery time expectations.

Despite receiving multiple signs of support and affection from the motorsport community, the option of returning to the tracks was not easy. It wasn’t until very recently when, based on his admirable tenacity and the positive results achieved throughout his career, that Art Grand Prix, a French team that competes in multiple categories, decided to bet on Correa and trust him to join its pool of drivers for the 2021 FIA Formula 3 Championship, allowing the American-Ecuadorian to continue pursuing his dream towards Formula 1.

With Correa's upcoming reincorporation to the race tracks, a new chapter in the American-Ecuadorian's career begins, where he’ll be able to show, with even more merit, his outstanding capacity and thirst for success. Regardless of the results he achieves, the return of Juan Manuel Correa is already a big achievement in his life.


Media Contact:

Any media inquiries, please reach out to: [email protected]