KEY POINTS:
The last of a three-part series looking at the next wave of NZ drivers coming through the ranks
Hovering just under the radar are a number of New Zealand drivers ready to make the final step into the big time.
A number of them have been spotted by various European, Australian and American teams in different motor sport classes, and are being guided up through the ranks.
Brendon Hartley
As a result of remarkable form in the 2007 Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 championship, Hartley has been asked to race a Formula 3 car in the annual Masters meeting, on August 4-5. Next weekend the 17-year-old will follow in the footsteps of Formula 1's current star Lewis Hamilton, who won the race two years ago aged 20.
The race is at Zolder, Belgium, where Hartley won both opening races of the Eurocup in April. The Masters is widely regarded as a showcase for talented up-and-coming drivers hoping to step up into F1.
Hartley will drive for the German Mucke Motorsport team, who operate a two-car team for Red Bull Junior Team drivers.
He will have an initial test at Zandvoort before heading to Zolder for the race, which will feature two qualifying sessions for the 28-lap feature event.
Wade Cunningham
Cunningham was in action at the latest round of the 2007 Indy Pro Series at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course last Sunday, finishing second to Italian Richard Antinucci.
Cunningham, the 2005 IPS champion, is this season driving for the Andretti Green Racing-affiliated AFS Racing team.
Andretti Green Racing also run race cars in the IndyCar series with drivers Dario Franchitti (series leader) and Danica Patrick. Cunningham has now finished in the top five in the last five IPS races with two poles, a win and a second at Watkins Glen and seconds at Iowa and now Mid-Ohio.
This year Cunningham planned to move up to the IndyCar series alongside Scott Dixon, but with little movement in the IRL driver ranks he brokered a deal to return to the IPS. Cunningham is fourth on the table, seven points behind third.
Chris Van Der Drift
The 21-year-old was born in Hamilton and has New Zealand and Dutch passports.
He was a multiple-karting champion in his early teens, leaving school at 17 to work as a mechanic for Stig Blomquist's Formula Ford team during the 2003 Nordic championships.
After winning a BMW Motorsport sponsorship, he finished his first season in Formula BMW as rookie of the year and fourth outright.
His talent was recognised by ex-Formula 1 driver Jarno Trulli's manager and he now has a 10-year contract. Last year he competed in the Italian Formula Renault championship and the Renault Eurocup, finishing runner-up in both.
This year van der Drift is competing in the new International Formula Master S2000 championship, a series being run in conjunction with the FIA World Touring Car championship.
Experiencing an up-and-down season with podium finishes, along with mechanical problems, van der Drift has still managed to reach fourth on the table after five of the eight rounds. His next race is this weekend at Anderstorp, Sweden.
Shane Van Gisbergen
Although he started racing all-terrain vehicles, 18-year-old van Gisbergen shot to prominence when he won the annual Speedsport scholarship and with it an all-expenses paid season in the Formula First class.
In his first season, 2004-05, he claimed four wins and seven poles, won rookie of the year and finished third overall.
The next year, aged 16, he won the series and was offered a drive in 2006-07 in the Toyota Racing Series. Despite an emphatic win at the last round of the TRS at Pukekohe, van Gisbergen finished the season second to Daniel Gaunt.
Van Gisbergen has just been signed as the replacement driver at Team Kiwi Racing to race in the Australian V8 Supercar championships. His first drive will be at Oran Park, Sydney, on August 17-19.
