From Racing Driver to Team Director: Darryl O'Young on Sponsorship, Media and Motorsport Growth

In this edition of Business of Motorsport, Darryl O'Young, Director of Craft-Bamboo Racing and CBR Media, reflects on his journey from professional racing driver to motorsport executive. Drawing on more than three decades in the sport, he discusses the realities of helping lead a professional race team, the evolution of motorsport media, building sustainable commercial models, and what Asia needs to unlock its full motorsport potential.

Hairpin Media: Can you introduce yourself and share your journey into motorsports?

Darryl O'Young: My name is Darryl O'Young. I am the director of Craft-Bamboo Racing as well as CBR Media. I started racing many years ago in 1988 in karting, when I was eight years old, and primarily was a race driver for over thirty years. During that journey, it was quite amazing to be able to compete all over the world. 

I understood that I needed funding to go racing [when I was very young]. My dad taught me to start looking at sponsorship and doing that kind of work. It's always been a big part of my driving, to not only drive but understand the business of the sport. 

In karting, my dad did a lot of the work in terms of training me, working on the go-karts. We were never able to hire teams or hire mechanics, my dad would do all the work.

Knowing the steps ahead to get into racing cars, it was a different time for sure, but the challenge was equally the same. Some people might think, back then it must have been easier. It's not. It was actually even more difficult, because there wasn't social media, so you didn't have this platform where you could easily access sponsors. 

You would really have to do print media interviews, and that required a lot in order to get any reach and distribution. It was harder to build your name, brand, and get sponsor return.

I studied marketing since I was twelve, [and] took summer courses on sponsorship. When I was in college, I studied marketing [and made] marketing documents and brochures. I would fill my suitcase with them, and when I got an opportunity to go race, I'd pass them everywhere. 

That's literally what led me to Hong Kong, because I was living in Canada and racing in the US when I was younger. I got an opportunity to come out to Hong Kong to do my first Formula Ford race back in 2001. At that time, I brought a whole suitcase full of brochures and I passed them everywhere. 

I went back to the US after my race [and] continued racing, [in what] was Formula Renault-type of cars. I got a call a few years later that someone [at] Porsche Hong Kong got my brochure. They invited me back over to do some testing to see if I could get a seat in the Porsche Carrera Cup. That's really where it all kicked off, because I was able to get my first job as a driver in motorsport. 

HM: You mentioned your involvement with both Craft-Bamboo Racing and CBR Media. What do your day-to-day responsibilities look like across the businesses?

DY: At this stage, Craft Bamboo Holdings Limited is our main group. Under [that,] there's Craft-Bamboo Racing and CBR Media. When we started Craft-Bamboo Racing in 2014, we essentially launched CBR Media right alongside it. The concept was framed around my driving career [with] how much I needed marketing in my driving.

I already had a little marketing team, one or two people helping me while I was a driver, and that was quite critical. Because if you are driving, you don't have time to deal with all the sponsorship work of ensuring your sponsors are getting the return and being able to coordinate everything. I already had built it like a business that way, so when we started the race team, it was obviously essential to start a media arm beside that.

I don't think many racing teams do that, to be honest. I'm not exactly sure why, because I think that's the most critical part in terms of a racing team. A good example is what Zak Brown's done in McLaren and F1. When he turned McLaren around, he essentially built a marketing agency in the F1 team. He's got hundreds of people in marketing staff there, and Zak Brown himself came from a marketing agency background. That part is quite critical for a race team to have, and that's essentially how CBR Media launched.

We've done tons of projects focused on motorsport to activate our sponsors along the way. For the first lot of years, it was mainly just focusing on race team sponsors and activations, but that eventually grew over time. Now, we're doing marketing and partnership work for manufacturers, brands, [and] drivers. We [also] do some driver management. 

HM: What does a typical day or week in your role look like?

DY: A little chaotic and busy, I'd say. The key thing for our team is to really have good people in place. We have really good people in operations, team management, so I oversee making sure that they're on track. I try not to get too detailed hands-on, but I also rely a lot on my team to ensure that things get delivered well [and] to execute the races.

We [work with] sponsors, manufacturers, partners, [and] drivers that bring their own budget to come race with us. It's a wide mix of different types of customers and drivers, so we have to oversee all of that.

On the racing performance side, the most critical thing is to ensure our cars are fast [and] reliable. Currently, we compete in all sorts of races. We compete in [the] IGTC championship in the Bathurst 12 Hour, Suzuka 1000, and Macau Grand Prix, [which] is one of the big ones for us. Then, [there is also] the GT World Challenge Asia [and] the Super Taikyu series, which is like an endurance race [out in Japan]. All these races are heavy on logistics [and] planning, so over the years, we've built some really good team members, and continually strengthened that.

[As for] CBR Media, we have all sorts of projects going. We do marketing strategy, project execution, PR and management for teams and drivers, [and] partnership management. For example, we did a global partnership for AMG Motorsport in Germany. We put that together with MSI, which was a Taiwan[ese] gaming laptop company and forged a 3-year partnership. We put partnerships like that together and we manage it [end-to-end]. 

What's exciting about motorsport is that there's always a different thing that comes up. That's the great thing about motorsport, it's a platform that is so wide that you're able to do so many different things. You have different touch points all the time, like entertaining sponsors on the ground, creative strategy for motorsport campaigns, or working on social media campaigns, or working on advertising, or using influencers. There's so many different aspects of motorsport, so on the media side it's quite fun, because every brand has its own goal. We have a great team over here: a managing/marketing director, the creative team, partnerships team, [and] we have talent coordination.

During COVID, motorsport stopped in Asia obviously [and] we shifted to try different things, because we couldn't just rely on motorsport sponsorship. At that point, CBR Media took a turn, [and] we actually relied on CBR Media to get through COVID [when] the racing team [was] shut down for three years. During this time, we took on PR and marketing management for Motul Oil in 14 countries, and also took on some driver management. One of our big success stories as an agency was managing Bianca Bustamante.

That kind of came naturally, because we had a bit of time [and] said, let's take on Bianca and see what we can do. We were able to help her forge a path in motorsport, because she also had zero budget to go racing. She only had a dream and a passion, and we had our know-how. When I talked with Bianca and her parents asked me to help out, I said, why not. We [had the] time [and it was] perfect timing in a sense. She was sixteen at the time, so we said, let's go for it. I still manage her directly, so our team does all the motorsport planning, all the sporting side, and obviously partnerships, brand strategy, and content direction.

Day-to-day, we communicate a lot with our talents. Currently, we're also working with Hana Burton, who's another talent racing and creating content in Japan. We usually try to work with drivers that have more developed platforms and help them take it to the next level. For Bianca herself, she's gone from a thousand followers to now nearly four million across different platforms. Working on the messaging [and] branding, we look at a very detailed approach to how we build up her partnerships and support. Now she's racing Eurocup-3, and the sponsorships required are even bigger than ever. There's a lot of work to continually build that.

We also work with Hong Kong athletes and some Hong Kong racing drivers, working on their messaging and stories. It's a lot of fun along the way, and we rely on a really good team of people to work together. For me, I just try to point everybody in the right direction, [and] sometimes, I need to stay out of the way and let them do their work. I've always enjoyed the commercial side of the sport, so it's a bit of a dream come true for me to be able to run a racing team and also a motorsport marketing agency, because I really enjoy both.

HM: What opportunities do you see in the marketing side of motorsport, in the Asian market specifically?

DY: I think it's twofold. I [still] think it's tricky in Asia. There's not really a natural platform for motorsport fans yet. Formula One, of course, globally there's lots of fans, but in grassroots or semi-professional motorsports, Asia [is behind] most places. 

[When] I started racing in Asia about 22 years ago, I had a lot of hopes for how quickly motorsport could grow here at the interest level, but still we have not really reached a place where there's a professional championship in Asia this many years later. GT Asia or GT[-type] championships are currently the top level, but there's [no] IndyCar, Australian V8, or any top-level professional motorsport in Asia. Without a professional championship, it's hard to build a fan base and racing careers. It's also hard[er] to build sponsorship, because that's all related.

Currently, there's some big races we rely on, but the sponsorship levels are smaller because there's just not that commercial base [or] fan base. For most of our projects, we have to look quite globally in terms of partners, and how we build the brand is very important. 

For example, with Bianca, we focus so much on building her international[ly], because we know that in the Philippines, where she's from, it's really hard to get sponsorship for motorsport. So we had to build her brand global [and] get it [to] where she had international coverage, and that's the only way.

In motorsport [in] Asia, we still rely on our big events to build our commercial strength, but it's still tricky. We rely a lot on Bathurst 12 Hour, the Suzuka 1000, and also Macau Grand Prix. Those are three of our bigger events. In GT World Challenge Asia, it's more customer racing focused, so we don't have a huge fan base. Japan is always great because there's diehard fans for all levels of motorsport. If you go to Fuji 24 Hours, or our Super Taikyu races, there are a lot of fans out there, but still not in the scale of professional sports. We're always working on creative ways to develop value for our sponsors. Not just on viewership, [but] bringing clients to races or doing commercial work that brings value by giving people experiences.

In Asia, it's still big on giving people access to seeing pit stops up close, getting that feel for the vibe of motorsport. Those are the kind of things where you can really bring value to a sponsor, but it wouldn't be viewership. We don't have that in Asia yet, unfortunately. 

You have to look at what you[‘ve] got, look at the market and see what exists. We're not able to solve that unless there is a championship out there that really pulls together. I think every team plays their part, but it requires the market as a whole to grow up and have a real professional series where it has proper viewership, proper television or social media coverage, [and] where there's hundreds of thousands to millions of viewers. 

We also look at other opportunities internationally. We've had a base in the UK before, run[ning] international championships in WEC [and] Le Mans, but it's not easy to also sustain as an Asian-based team. There's a lot of things that we've tried and experimented, but it's a continued part of our story. We continually work, but we have to be sustainable. We're not really a team where we can bankroll all of that. We have to look at everything in a commercial sense to see if it's possible or not, because we're here for the long term. Craft-Bamboo Racing has been here now for twelve years as a company, as a race team, and we're looking to be here for another twenty years and more. It's about what our story is to make it sustainable and how we look at long-term commercial and sporting growth, not a short-term spend of money and then all of a sudden we're out of money and we can no longer race.

Over these twelve years [and o]ver my career, we've seen teams come out of nowhere and then disappear, and that's because it's an expensive sport. You need to look at sustainable ways, build trust with customers, and there's only a reality of what's possible, what's not. That's quite important, to understand what's in front of you, where the market is, what kind of viewership you have, [if there is] commercial sense. If it doesn't make sense for you, it's not gonna make sense for your sponsor. There has to be something that can help them drive business in order for our team to be able to help them.

HM: What would you like to see happen within Asian motorsport in the next five to ten years?

DY: I would really love to see a more sustainable way for motorsport to exist. Because of where we're positioned in the world, everything is quite expensive out here. Race car parts, tyres, [and] everything requires shipping. Even a lot of the experience and the level of quality [of] professional racing, still comes from Europe. Even the [talent] over there, doesn't exist here.

Right now, for young drivers in junior formula, it's quite expensive in Asia. A lot of times parents [think], “If the best drivers are in Europe and it's the same kind of money, I'll send my kid to the UK or Germany or Italy to drive and train.” 

I know in India, there's a series that's trying to develop drivers, but there's still [a] balance of where the top drivers are. Because if the top drivers are in Europe, then that's where we should be to compete and learn and develop.

We still have this tricky part of how to actually make it work. But it starts off with trying to develop professional motorsport somewhere. How do we get that where there's a mass audience watching? Who's gonna invest in that, who's gonna grow it, who's gonna take a chance to make that happen? These are [the questions] to answer so you can start having an ecosystem. Without the ecosystem, it can't really thrive, in terms of promoters, media, sponsors, and especially the fans.

A good example is Australian Supercars, and it's grown to a point where it has a good fan base within [the country]. Of course, people internationally know it, but it relies on Australian fans. In the US, it's NASCAR [and] IndyCar. Currently, Asia is completely missing that. I'd love to see that develop [somehow], because that would really ramp up everything for long-term growth in motorsport in the region.

HM: What's been the most memorable or defining moment in your career so far?

DY: I think most of my accomplishments are from the driving side. Being able to stand on the podium at Le Mans was one of my biggest moments. I didn't win, I came second in my class, but still, to get there was significant personally, and a milestone for Hong Kong motorsport. 

Overall, being able to actually have a racing career, to develop that into thirty years of racing was probably the toughest part. I actually just retired officially last year, that was quite a big moment for me.

On the other side, I'm really enjoying this new challenge. I've done so many years of driving, [so] it is really a challenge to run a racing team and to build this side up. You have all these obstacles in front of you. A lot of it is financial, but at the end of the day, to coordinate and organise and to be able to win races, it's so tricky. With a race team, it's thirty individual people, and everybody's got their own thoughts and opinions, and how to steer that all into one team direction that gels is the real challenge. Also to ensure people actually enjoy their contribution.

I love all of this, and I hope to take our team to the highest levels of motorsport. That's my next target. But as a driver, I really enjoyed [my] career, and to be able to compete internationally and have success in that is probably my biggest moment.

HM: What's it been like being an Asian professional in this space, especially in markets like Europe and America?

DY: I think there's always equal challenges. Most drivers face the same challenges, which is getting on the track. Then, after you get on the track, to be able to win. Those are basic challenges, and a lot of people think it must be easier if you're from Asia [and] there must be so much sponsorship money out there. On the other side, there's just less interest, not many people know about [racing]. 

I think everybody's got different challenges. In Europe, for example, there's a lot more interest in it, so there's more sponsors, but there's so many more drivers, and it's so much harder to stand out. In Asia, you can stand out, but there's less sponsors and less interest.

As an Asian driver, even if you drive with good lap times, even if you're consistently perform[ing], it's hard to position yourself in the minds of teams, that you're equally as good as drivers from Europe. There's this stereotype where [if] you're from Europe, you're much quicker than the Asian drivers. It's just that the sport does have a lot more talent going on in Europe, so there's a natural stigma. 

You always have to work double [as] hard, especially when you're racing internationally, to first off show the teams and manufacturers that you're dedicated. To show them you're quick, and you can do the job [just as well]. I found that quite a challenge throughout my career, but you have to work hard to demonstrate that. It's not really done by words, it's done by your performance and execution. It's probably due to showing up and delivering consistently year in and year out.

HM: What's one thing people often misunderstand about running a racing team and a media company?

DY: That's a hard thing to answer, but I think people misunderstand the challenge of motorsport as a whole. There are so many things that lead to a victory, a championship win, and it takes years and years to develop that. If people think a team can just have money and go out there and achieve it, that's probably a very wrong idea. As a team, hav[ing] the right synergy and feeling and team environment, all these things really factor into winning. It's not just transactional. That's where a lot of drivers and sponsors and teams misunderstand [about] what it takes to win a championship. 

When people look for a team to drive in, I hope that they look at a lot of different factors, not just how much it costs [or] which one's cheaper. Looking at things like the team energy and synergy and how motivated the teammates are, it's all really important for success.

HM: For people looking to build a career in motorsport, what skills, mindsets, or experiences do you believe are most valuable?

DY: Definitely in motorsport, you need determination. It takes a lot of time and hard work to get to where you want to be. That isn't just as a driver, but I think it's the same thing in any aspect of motorsport. It's hard to get the experience for many different reasons, but I think trying to get that experience early on is really important.

It starts off with getting local experience, looking for any team. If you're in media, for example, just volunteer for a team and get the experience [to] get on the ground and the track. For mechanics or people in business – I know it's not easy to work for free – but go to local tracks and start doing social media for somebody. When you start getting a base of understanding, that's where your value starts becoming. You have more experience and you have more opportunities.

Motorsport requires people to find a way, and there is no right way or wrong way to get experience, because that is gonna pay dividends down the road. There's a lot of people trying to enter the industry later in life, and then they really don't get it, because they never experienced it. Sitting at home on a laptop watching it, you're never going to be able to grasp what motorsport truly is, and someone's not gonna pay you for that experience of doing it. I think it's really important to go out there and get the experience and try to really learn when you're there, and that would really help in terms of long-term growth in the sport.

Throughout the conversation, Darryl consistently returns to one central idea: sustainable growth in motorsport requires thinking beyond race results. Whether discussing sponsorship, media, fan engagement, or grassroots development, he emphasises that lasting success comes from building strong commercial foundations alongside competitive performance.

His perspective, shaped by experience as both a professional racing driver and a director overseeing the commercial and operational side of motorsport, offers a deeper understanding of what it takes to build a sustainable racing organisation. For aspiring professionals, business leaders, and fans alike, his insights highlight that motorsport is driven as much by strategy, partnerships, and long-term vision as it is by performance on track.