Daniil Kvyat, the top Russian prospect, has been only competing in Europe for the past three years, but has over 10 first-place finishes under his belt, leading the WSK international series.

Kvyat underlined his class by becoming the only Russian to make it through the qualifying stage, and starting the race from 5th place on the grid.

Five laps away from the finish, Daniil managed to get past Rafaelle Marcello, and he started closing on Carlos Sainz – the son of the legendary Spanish rally driver.

Sainz Jr, racing in front of his home crowd, was counting on the top of the podium, but couldn't take the crown away from Holland's Nik De Vris.

Meanwhile, Kvyat eventually finished third: not a bad result at all, but he's still hungry for more.

“Nik De Vris was much faster in the finals. He definitely had the upper hand. But I could've taken second. Had I not lost so much time early in the race, second place was right there for the taking,” he says.

Daniil's third-place finish this year meant he had made the podium for the second straight year – the kind of foundation that could translate into a successful F1 career several years hence.