When Pedro Joanir Zonta tore up dirt tracks in the Hot Dodge category around his native Curitiba in Brazil's Paraná province in the early 1980s, there was an interested observer at trackside for every one of his races.

Barely big enough to look over a steering wheel, young Ricardo Zonta was bitten by racing fever before his 10th birthday.

"I was always with my Dad and I learned to appreciate the sport as a child," recalls the newest member of the British American Racing team. "Brazil in the 1980s was a hotbed of racing, what with Formula One World Champions Nelson Piquet, Emerson Fittipaldi and my idol, Ayrton Senna, racing on the circuits in Europe, North America and around the world. I wanted nothing more than to become a racer, and my career began in 1986 when my father gave me a Go-Kart."

Born March 23, 1976 in Curitiba, Zonta began racing karts, en route to more senior racing series. Zonta captured his first victory at the age of 11, and by 15 was karting champion in Brazil. The next challenge was Formula Three, and at age 19, he captured the 1995 Brazilian and South American Formula 3 drivers' championship before moving to Europe to contest the F3000 international series in 1996.

In his first season in F3000 with Italy's Draco Engineering team, he scored two race victories (Mugello and Estoril), a pair of fastest laps and a pole position. A year later he moved over to Britain's Super Nova team and was crowned series champion, edging out Colombia's Juan Pablo Montoya, 39 points to 37.5, on four wins and two second-place finishes.

No matter what level he has raced, Ricardo Zonta has emerged a champion. The latest success is brand new, the 1998 FIA GT1 Championship clinched last Sunday. Paired with Germany's Klaus Ludwig on one of two AMG Mercedes-Benz teams, Zonta finalised the championship at Laguna Seca with a third straight race victory, and a fourth consecutive pole position. The duo finished eight points in front of AMG Mercedes-Benz team-mates, Schneider and Webber.

Zonta also spent 1998 as a test driver for the McLaren Mercedes Formula One team, alongside Nick Heidfeld. That ride was assured after a test for the Jordan Mugen Honda team in August 1997, at Silverstone. Invited to a seven-day test by team owner Eddie Jordan, the Brazilian turned in a time of 1:31.09 seconds on the track in his first drive in a 1998 Jordan prototype, second only to Mika Hakkinen's 1:30.33 in a McLaren prototype.

"Testing with McLaren-Mercedes made me dream of a full-time drive in Formula One and I am ready for the challenge," he says. "As a Brazilian, I am proud to have the opportunity to defend my country's colours. When you talk about sports, Brazil is always there because we have a lot of excellent sportsmen competing in different sports and categories.

"Defending our flag in motor racing will be a hard enough challenge, what with the historical success of Formula One World Champions like Piquet, Fittipaldi and Senna, but I'm looking for my space and time. It will be great to know that I am part of this heritage of successful racers. For me, it's about being the best in everything I do. And I have one goal and dream - to be the Formula One World champion."

                         RICARDO  ZONTA, BIOGRAPHY

Date of birth:           March 23, 1976
Place of birth:          Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
Height:                  1.72 m
Weight:                  64 kg
Nationality:             Brazilian
Current residence:       Monaco
Marital status:          Single
Hobbies/Sports:          Water skiing
Favourite music:         Pop, Brazilian group Paralamas do Sucesso
                         and Savage Garden
Favourite movie:         Braveheart
Favourite superstition:  Getting in and out of car, right leg first
Idol:                    Ayrton Senna
Life philosophy:         To be the best

Career:  1987-91  Karting in Brazil 
                  First race won at 11 years of age (1987)
                  First championship won at 15 (1991)
         1992     Go-kart 
         1993     Formula Chevrolet 
         1994     Begins Formula 3 racing
         1995     Formula 3: South American and Brazilian champion, 6 wins
         1996     FIA F3000; with Draco Engineering team, 4th overall; 
                  two wins, two fastest laps, one pole
         1997     FIA F3000; with Super Nova team of Great Britain 
                  wins Drivers' championship with three wins
         1998     FIA Grand Touring Championship - GT1 -
                  with AMG Mercedes-Benz team
                  clinched GT1 Championship title with 77 points
                  (with Klaus Ludwig)