Pictures: Ernie Jr. Racing

What kinds of shenanigans were you up to as a 15-year old? Considering most of us hadn’t had more than a few minutes of wheeltime by age 15, we think it’s safe to say that most of us were still at least a year away from becoming would-be race car drivers. But as any professional driver will tell you, the younger you get started in racing, the better off you’ll be in the long run.

Forza Motorsport has this question-and-answer series with Ernie Francis Jr., who at just 15 years old has become the youngest driver in the Pirelli World Challenge… and one of the youngest professional race car drivers in the world. And yes, he drives a Camaro in the GTS class. 

Like many young racing prodigies, Ernie Jr. comes from a family of speed freaks, his father having been racing since 1982 and owning his own parts company, Breathless Performance Products. Young Ernie Jr. began driving at age 4, and by the time he turned five he was already beginning to compete in Kid Kart series against other young people – and more importantly, he was winning.

At 13, Ernie Jr. moved into Spec Miata racing, handling a car on the track better than people twice his age. During the 2011 season Ernie finished every single one of the 18 races in the top ten, with six podium finishes and two checkered flags. For this 15-year old, the Pirelli World Challenge is a big step up, but he has already shown that he has the chops to compete. This weekend Ernie managed to have a best finish of 20 out of 26 from this weekend’s double header.

While not exactly an amazing finish, keep in mind we’re talking about a kid who can’t legally drive on the road in most states. Give him a few more races, and there will be a lot more people talking about what young Ernie Jr. can do.