Kamui Kobayashi | Japans next top flight F1 driver

Kamui Kobayashi

Team: BMW Sauber
F1 Debut: 2009 - Brazilian Grand Prix

Kamui Kobayashi exploded onto the F1 scene at the end of last year when he made his Grand Prix debut with Toyota, but the 23 year old is still an unknown quantity. He was arguably the most impressive rookie in 2009 and performed well above expectations, but he will need to prove that his great drive at Abu Dhabi was not just a flash in the pan. Kamui will be hoping to break from the mould of Japanese F1 drivers that fail to deliver on their enormous potential.

Kobayashi signed with Toyota's young driver program in 2004 and was entered into multiple Formula Renault competitions across Europe. He enjoyed success in the Italian and European championships before moving into the Formula Three Euroseries where he spent two seasons. Kamui then moved into GP2 where he has been racing since 2008. He claimed the winter GP2 Asian Championship in 2008-2009 but was never able to repeat that form in the more competitive main series. His performances over the past two years have been erratic, finishing 16th in the championship last year despite managing a race win.

Kobayashi was called into Toyota's F1 team last year when Timo Glock missed the last two races through injury. Kobayashi impressed immediately but he will need more strong showings to prove he can perform more consistently than he did in GP2.

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