Not many would have foreseen Kamui Kobayashi to be Japan's next Formula 1 hero. The son of a modest sushi restaurant owner, unflappable and thoroughly composed, Kamui Kobayashi is patiently awaiting his share of the F1 limelight with Team Sauber.

When Toyota flagged off its Driver Development Programme to create future stars for its F1 squad, they saw immense potential in young Kobayashi to fuel their F1 vision. Moving to Italy to further his passion for the sport, he performed quite well by winning both the Eurocup and Italian Formula Renault titles in his second year in the category. But maintaining the momentum was a colossal task, alongside heavy-weight team buddies such as Sebastian Vettel, Paul di Resta, Romain Grosjean and Nico Hulkenberg. Two years in the Euro Series with team ASM/ART brought just one race victory. Toyota was yet to be sold on the idea, whether Kobayashi was ever going to develop into a star racer, and therefore began using him for F1 testing, further placing him in GP2 with DAMS.

Things weren't exactly going his way; but when Toyota called him up to deputise for the injured Timo Glock he performed fantastically. On both his maiden Grand Prix drives - one where he neatly overtake the newly crowned world champion Jenson Button in Abu Dhabi and another where he out-manoeuvered Kimi Raikkonen just after the start - he was simply superb, even outperforming team-mate Jarno Trulli.

Full points to Sauber for recognizing this potential dark horse and taking him under their wing. Although the challenge remained - Kobayashi needs to sustain his amazing form across a full F1 season! The naturally swift Japanese surely has the ability and doesn't take long to adapt to new situations, and he was able to maintain his performance rather consistently. What better proof is there for his achievement than him retaining the seat for 2011 when the more experienced Pedro de la Rosa was replaced?

After finishing a strong 12th, Kamui can only get stronger. 2011 may just be the year the front runners finally start watching their rear view mirrors for a certain Sauber.