$2.5million scholarship offers novices F1 chance.

Ever wanted to be an F1 driver but didn't have the money to get started? Well now you can - and this is not a joke...

London-based company TrackPosition.com will soon be offering total novices the chance to reach F1 with fully-funded, top drives, as far as British F3, and the opportunity to land a further $1,500,000 worth of sponsorship, support and management to help them get a drive in F1.

The scholarship is the idea of David Fleming, a former member of the Williams F1 team, who is keen to see real talent - rather than that boosted by a wealthy background - make it to the top.

"The best drivers in the world are out there somewhere and I want to find them," Fleming said, "I have no doubt that whoever wins this scholarship will be a truly great driver capable of reaching the top in F1 - and we've got the budget in place to help get them there. It will be really interesting to take money out of the equation and see what sort of talent emerges!"

The competition is open to anyone under 25 on 31 December 2002, of any nationality, provided that they have never raced in an FIA-approved event, but who would qualify for a competition licence in their own country. Entrants are welcome from any country already running FIA-sanctioned events, and there is no upper limit on the number of places available per country. There is a minimum requirement of 100 entries per country. Entries will be accepted on-line at www.trackposition.com and by post until 31 August 2002. A similar scholarship is planned for experienced drivers once the novice scheme is under way.

The scholarship selection process begins with a one-time entry fee of ?300 [$500 or EUR500]. Entrants will undergo an in-depth assessment process in their own country including a medical as well as a fitness assessment, interviews, psychometric and aptitude tests, karting ability and saloon and single-seater driving. The top ten drivers in each country will then undergo a further assessment process, with a single winner chosen to travel to the UK to take part in the finals in November 2002.

There, intensive tuition and training is followed by rigorous and detailed assessment. The winner is the driver judged to be the most likely to be a future F1 world champion, and will receive the biggest scholarship prize in motorsport history.

The rest of 2002 will be taken up with winter testing, driving and race-craft training, technical training, fitness training, before the driver enters the 2003 British Formula Ford Zetec Championship with a fully-funded drive and $50,000 salary.

If the driver wins the 2003 title, they can continue with the scholarship into 2004, where a fully-funded drive, with similar salary, awaits them in the British Formula Renault Championship.

Again, if the driver wins the title, the scholarship will be extended into 2005, via a fully-funded drive the British Formula 3 Championship, again with a $50,000 salary.

Once more, success is the key and, if the driver wins the 2005 F3 title, the scholarship will take them a further step towards Formula One. Instead of promising a drive in a higher category, however, the driver will receive $1,000,000 cash and $500,000 of support and management services to assist them in getting a test contract with an F1 team. After that, they are officially in the F1 business and those behind the scheme will continue to manage their career.

For more information go to www.trackposition.com