Wanted: The next Lewis Hamilton

The engine in Lewis Hamilton’s Formula 1 World Championship-winning Mercedes has barely cooled, but the search is already on to find Britain’s next motorsport hero.

Hamilton, who will officially receive his second F1 World Championship trophy in Friday night’s FIA Prize-Giving Ceremony in Doha, Qatar, started his career racing a go-kart aged eight with Formula Kart Stars, which is running a competition to put an eight to ten-year old on the road to F1 in 2015.

One lucky youngster will win a funded racing season, including ownership of the £25,000* kart. Formula Kart Stars is the only junior karting series backed by Formula One Management.

The winner will be selected at Europe’s biggest motorsport show, Autosport International, at the Birmingham NEC on 10-11 January by a panel including Lewis’ father Anthony Hamilton and ex-F1 driver Mark Blundell. Inspired by Hamilton’s successful season, which included 11 race wins to secure a new British record of 33 F1 career victories, entries have poured in from across the UK.

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Boys and girls aged at least eight by 3 April 2015 and no older than ten on 1 January 2015 can enter by sending a 200-word story about their desire to be an F1 star to competition@formulakartstars.com before 2 January 2015.

Responses will be reviewed by the official governing body of motorsport, the Motor Sports Association, with 20 finalists invited to test their skills in a timed session on Autosport International’s karting track on Saturday 10 January.

Five finalists will then be shortlisted and following an interview with the expert panel, a winner will be crowned.

“Every year, Formula Kart Stars helps young drivers enter motorsport and hopefully through this unique opportunity we’ll uncover another future World Champion to follow in Lewis’ footsteps,” Blundell said.

Attended by 82,000 people in 2014, Autosport international will celebrate its 25th anniversary on 10-11 January, with 13-time Grand Prix winner and BBC F1’s David Coulthard among the motorsport personalities set to attend, while exclusive collections of cars, including Formula 1 racers, will be on display.

Tickets to Autosport International are available from £32 for adults, with children’s tickets priced from £21 and children under five years admitted for free. For tickets, visit www.autosportinternational.com