Last weekend, Zachary David made his ADAC Formula 4 debut with US Racing, becoming the first driver from the Philippines to compete in this series. His idol is Sebastian Vettel, who also took his first steps in Formula racing in one of the ADAC junior series.

Vettel’s breakthrough came in the 2004 season: he won 18 of 20 races on his way to the title in the Formula BMW ADAC championship. This proved the springboard to a remarkable career, including four titles in the Formula 1 world championship. A few weeks ago, the 35-year-old from Heppenheim announced his retirement at the end of the season. 17 drivers have made it into the pinnacle of motorsport via one of the ADAC junior series. David is the latest to pursue this goal.

David was just three years old when Vettel became the youngest world champion in history at the time. Nevertheless, he lists the Formula 1 driver as his role model: “Sebastian Vettel is my great idol. I like the way he races and pretty much grew up watching him win world titles.” David also wants to write his own success story. “My goal is to be the first Philippine driver in Formula 1,” says the 15-year-old.

Born in the Southeast Asian country, David now lives in Malta. Motorsport is at a development stage in both countries, as he explains: “Slowly but surely, this sport is growing in popularity. I am pleased to be able to contribute to this development,” says David. He first sat in a kart at the age of six. “Since that moment, motorsport has had a grip on me and it was clear to me that I wanted to be a racing driver,” he says.

David has come through the karting scene with the team of Formula 1 outfit Sauber (Alfa Romeo Racing) and has now made the step up to ADAC Formula 4, making his debut in the 180-hp Formula 4 car on the support programme for the ADAC GT Masters at the Lausitzring. “I really enjoyed the races, but I obviously still have to gain a lot of experience. The difference between a kart and a Formula car is huge, particularly in terms of speed. The field of vision is also different: in a kart, I can see all around me. In the cockpit of a F4 car, you are sat quite low and can only see a limited amount of track. However, you can soon get used to that,” says David, describing the differences. Plans are afoot for more outings with the team run by Ralf Schumacher and Gerhard Ungar.