How Ho-Pin Tung went from F1 star to property consultant: the Chinese-Dutch driver won 24 Hours of Le Mans, joined Jackie Chan DC Racing team, and now heads Knight Frank’s private office in Hong Kong

Aug 17 , 2023

Ho-Pin Tung went from Formula One driver to Knight Frank’s head of private office in Hong Kong. Photos: Two Up Front, Handout

Dutch-born racing car driver, F1 analyst and businessman Ho-Pin Tung now heads Knight Frank’s private office in Hong Kong – he’s come a long way since he started practising go-karting seriously at 14

He has excelled at German Formula Three championships, the A1 GP, Formula Two GP2 Series and the IndyCar Series, and emerged as an endurance star at 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2017

Celebrities and public figures often wear a number of different hats over the years – think pop star to beauty entrepreneur, or athlete to philanthropist. But what about successful racing car driver to high-flying property bigwig?

Dutch-born, Chinese businessman Ho-Pin Tung currently heads up Knight Frank’s private office in Hong Kong, but the multipotentialite also has a thriving racing career, from Formula One to endurance racing.

He sat down with Style at Knight Frank’s Wan Chai office to talk about the various roles he has played over the years and the move to his current position in the business field.

Ho-Pin Tung had humble beginnings

A young Ho-Pin Tung with Olov Mol. Photo: @hopintung/Twitter

Born in Velp, a relatively small town of around 18,000 citizens in the Netherlands, Tung’s family originated from Zhejiang, Wenzhou.

A young Ho-Pin Tung working on his car. Photo: matthewmarsh.net

“My family was one of the only non-Dutch, non-Caucasian families within the environment,” said the 40-year-old, adding that the experience of being different “is an opportunity and also will give you opportunities”.

Ho-Pin Tung, when he was to be a candidate to join Hong Kong’s pioneering Le Mans team. Photo: Two Up Front

As a young boy, Tung loved to play with cars and took an interest in watching car races when they came on the TV. But what really got him in touch with motorsports was go-karting. “The first time I saw them [go-karts] in real life was probably when I was like four or five, but actually when I really started practising and getting more serious into the sport, I was already 14,” said Tung.

Chinese racing-car driver Ho-Pin Tung in 2004. Photo: SCMP Archive

As with any professional sport, Tung explained how 14 was a relatively late age to start, but he was fortunate to have a rapid career progression. Having only done a few years of go-kart racing, Tung was selected and promoted to car racing by the industry’s talent scouting programme, which allowed his potential in the field to blossom into a professional career.