Categories: Look backRace and classic pictures

The day that set Wehrlein on the path to F1

40

With the confirmation today that Pascal Wehrlein has been confirmed as Formula One's newest rookie driver with a seat at Manor Racing for 2016, we thought we'd flashback to last year at Hockenheimring, Germany when he clinched the 2015 DTM championship on October 17, the day before his 21st birthday.

Wehrlein only finished eighth in the race on the day, but that was enough to seal the title and allow him to celebrate his title with the assistance of the entire HWA AG team.

Wehrlein began karting aged just nine in 2003 and competed mainly in his native Germany for the majority of his early career, working his way up through the junior ranks to reach the KF2 category by 2009, finishing fifth in that year's ADAC Kart Masters.

The following year he was sixth in the ADAC Formel Masters driving with Mücke Motorsport, a season that included a win at Sachsenring. In his sophomore season he picked up seven more wins (including Sachsenring again) and took the title which in turn opened the doors to the Formula 3 Euro Series and then in 2013 to DTM, sticking all the time with Mücke.

However it took a switch to the Mercedes-affiliated HWA AG team to take him to the next level and the title in 2015. That change also meant an opportunity to test with the Mercedes and Sahara Force India Formula One teams, which in turn has led directly to today's confirmation that he'll be on the grid for the start of the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 20.

Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.