Hinchinbrook kart racer Joey Mawson wants to accelerate his career in the under-18 world championship.
The championship, run by world governing body FIA, will take Mawson to Portugal, France and also Bahrain.
Mawson, 16, will be one of the youngest to take part in the championship and will be joined by fellow Sydney-sider Jacob Parsons in the 81-driver field.
“This category is a great stepping-stone to becoming an established motorsport name,” he said.
The thee-time Australian karting champion will look to follow in the footsteps of V8 Supercar champion James Courtney and Indy-Car driver Ryan Briscoe who previously raced in the same category.
He is excited but appreciates it will be a massive step-up in class.
“It’s going to be really hard because it’s the best drivers in the world,” he said.
“I can’t wait to get over there and mix it with the elite racers.”
His ultimate goal is to join the drivers at the pinnacle of motorsport, Formula One.
“That’s definitely where I’d like to end up, I’ve always looked up to drivers like Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher, they were the best,” he said.
