Despite being a newcomer to Formula1 Nick Heidfeld has already shown much promise. He began Karting in 1986 and progressed through the various motor sport formulae before reaching German Formula 3 in 1996, where he was third. He won the championship the following year and moved on to compete in Formula 3000, coming second in his first season and winning for McLaren's junior team in 1999.

He also performed testing duties for McLaren last year, where it became clear that a fully-fledged Formula1 career would soon follow. Prost offered him the drive towards the end of last season and he has performed well so far. He was quicker than experienced team mate Jean Alesi in early testing and McLaren have always spoken very highly of the young German. Prost will give him time to find his feet in the sport, and as long as he continues to get results his future looks bright.