Nguyễn Hoài Nam Anh (commonly known as Ben), the son of Sports Beauty Queen 1995 Nguyễn Thu Hương, made an impressive breakthrough by winning the “Southeast Asia Young Talented Driver” award at Round 2 of the 2025 Formula 4 Southeast Asia Championship.
Despite being only 16 years old and having just three months of professional racing training, Nam Anh finished in the overall Top 3 with BlackArts Racing, outperforming many competitors with 2 to 10 years of racing experience.

Composure and Racecraft Beyond His Years

Starting from P6, car number 37, Nam Anh showed remarkable composure. After just two laps, he quickly climbed to P4, overtaking strong competitors from motorsport-developed countries such as India, Australia, China, and Singapore.
Although he was later pushed down to P5 by an experienced Indian driver (car No. 11), Nam Anh stayed focused and demonstrated superior racecraft by executing a clean overtake on an Australian driver to reclaim P4.

The Vietnamese youngster then delivered a remarkable performance by finishing in the Top 3, surpassing drivers with far more experience.

The climax of the race came during an intense five-minute battle with professional driver Cheng Minh (China, car No. 17). Despite relentless pressure, Nam Anh remained calm, managed his pace precisely, and defended his position with maturity well beyond his age. His determination and fighting spirit allowed him to hold P4 until the checkered flag.

A dramatic turn followed during post-race technical inspection: the second-place finisher from the Philippines was disqualified for having a car 200 grams under the minimum weight limit. As a result, Nam Anh was officially promoted to the Top 3, concluding Round 2 with an outstanding achievement.

Rapid Progress Recognized by Coaches

Race coaches praised Nam Anh’s rapid development in physical fitness, situational awareness, and competitive mindset, noting that his performance rivaled that of seasoned professionals. This achievement not only placed his name on the Southeast Asian motorsport map, but also became a strong source of inspiration for Vietnamese youth aspiring to compete internationally.

Discipline and Determination Make the Difference

Currently a Grade 11 student at ISHCMC, Nam Anh maintains a disciplined daily routine. He starts his day at 7 a.m., attends school like any other student, and spends 1–2 hours each afternoon training on professional racing simulators with his teammates—an essential method for sharpening reflexes, race strategy, and track feel.

Instead of leisure activities common among peers, Nam Anh dedicates his free time to studying aerodynamics and refining his driving skills. On weekends, he trains in Go-Karting at Dai Nam or Global City, building real-world racecraft as a foundation for formula racing.

While most professional drivers worldwide begin karting between ages 6 and 10, Nam Anh only discovered his passion and potential in December 2024, shortly after turning 16. This late start forced him into an intensive “fast-track” training process to compete against far more experienced rivals in F4.

Reflecting on his journey, Nam Anh shared:

“My biggest pressure is not wanting to disappoint my parents and the coaching team who believe in me.”

He understands early on that success in motorsport requires not only talent, but also long-term investment of time, effort, and financial resources. From F4 to F3, F2, and eventually F1—where drivers begin earning salaries—the journey is demanding and costly. However, strong results can attract sponsorships, easing the financial burden.

A Team Effort Behind the Success

Before pursuing racing, Nam Anh disliked vegetables and fruit. Determined to chase his dream, he committed to a strict professional athlete’s diet, balanced in fiber, protein, carbohydrates, and vitamins. He also works with a personal fitness coach to improve endurance, flexibility, and tolerance for high G-forces at speeds exceeding 200 km/h.

His early F4 training sessions were extremely challenging. Nervousness and unfamiliarity with high-speed machinery caused difficulties—even starting the car required multiple attempts. Some practice sessions ended with spins and recovery vehicles being called.

“Those were very stressful moments because I knew time was limited and the race was approaching,” Nam Anh recalled.

Through perseverance, continuous learning, and close support from his coaching team, Nam Anh steadily improved and has now begun to reap the rewards—entering the high-speed world where experience, strategy, passion, and relentless training must coexist.

Family: The Strongest Foundation

In conversations with Nguyễn Thu Hương, it becomes clear that Nam Anh’s family provides unwavering financial and emotional support. She shared that motorsport is an expensive discipline, involving race cars, high-tech engineering teams, and overseas training before competitions—making it impossible to pursue without true passion, talent, and determination.

She emphasized:

“Our family didn’t expect Ben to win awards this year. This season was meant to build a foundation. With less than five months in the sport, I only encouraged him to focus on driving safely first, then improving speed. Results come naturally from a disciplined process. Without discipline, there can be no long-term success.”

That mindset, combined with belief and encouragement, helped propel Nam Anh into the Top 3 of the 2025 F4 Southeast Asia Championship.

From the very beginning, his parents made their position clear and supportive:

“As far as your talent can take you, we will support you. But you must also attend university and choose a field you truly love, ensuring a sustainable future.”

Balancing Racing and Education

Beyond motorsport, Nam Anh is encouraged to pursue academics. He plans to study race car design and engineering, aerodynamics, or aerospace engineering—fields aligned with his interests and strengths. His passion for research and technical innovation reassures his parents that knowledge and passion can progress hand in hand.

The family believes that whether Nam Anh continues as a professional driver or transitions into roles such as engineer, designer, or mentor, a strong educational foundation will allow him to contribute meaningfully to the motorsport industry for life.

Their support is not only financial—but also a vision, enabling Nam Anh to confidently push boundaries both on the racetrack and in intellectual pursuit.

Nguyễn Hoài Nam Anh was born in 2009, the son of businessman Nguyễn Hoài Nam and Nguyễn Thu Hương, Sports Beauty Queen 1995 and Mrs. World Runner-up 2011.
Nguyễn Hoài Nam previously served as CEO of Berjaya Vietnam Group and is the largest shareholder of FK Sarajevo (Bosnia & Herzegovina).