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Despite being thrown into the F1 limelight at a very young age - and mid season to boot - Jaime Alguersuari defied his critics and is learning fast.

The Spaniard who's father (also called Jaime) was a successful motorcycle racer started racing in kart at the age of eight, and made his single seater debut in 2005. The following season he won the Italian formula Renault winter series and was runner up in the main championship in 2006.

He moved to the British F3 championship in 2008 with the highly regarded Carlin Motorsport team, and after a season long battle - mostly with his team mates - he became the youngest winner of the championship at 18 years and 203 days. The same year he was called up by Red Bull to deputise for the injured Mark Webber in the Race of Champions but was knocked out in the first round.

He moved on to the World Series by Renault in 2009 and at the time of his call up to the Toro Rosso team he was eighth in the championship with one podium result to his credit. Despite his call up he decided to continue contesting the championship.

He became F1's youngest ever driver at the age of 19 years 125 days when he replaced the sacked Sebastien Bourdais for the Hungarian Grand Prix. Despite his lack of experience Toro Rosso showed their faith in the young driver announcing in October 2009 that he would remain with the squad for 2010.

Strengths and Weaknesses
He has won several big championships at a young age and despite his lack of experience in F1 acquitted himself admirably in his first outings. Plenty of testing over the winter and he should show what he is really capable of in 2010.

Career High
Winning the prestigious British F3 championship in 2008 - former champions include Ayrton Senna (1983), Mika Hakkinen (1990), Rubens Barrichello (1991), and Takuma Sato (2001)

Career Low
Faced tough criticism after he was thrown in at the deep end of F1 - with no real testing he struggled to show pace.

Quotes
"I am aware that I'm facing a very tough challenge, because coming into Formula 1 is never easy, coming into Formula 1 in the middle of a season is even harder and doing so without any testing is really difficult. But already I feel that I am getting great support from the team, who have quite a reputation for looking after rookie drivers."

"If you get a drive in Formula One it's because you deserve it. It's because you're good enough to drive a Formula One car. And he's been given time this year to gain experience; there's no pressure on him and hopefully he can learn step by step. Is he ready? We'll see. I'm sure he'll be fine. I wish him the best." Fernando Alonso

Trivia As a teenager Alguersuari spent a year at a boarding school in Ipswich to improve his English - it was his Dad's idea to help he cope with press conferences after winning races!

Claire Furnell November 2009