Ireland's Thompson joins Japan F3

The 17-year-old won a race and took the Formula BMW Asia Rookie Cup in his first season of car racing last season. Thompson will graduate to the Japanese F3 National Class through a sponsored drive with frontrunning squad KCMG.

Team boss Paul Ip has been following Thompson's progress and is delighted to secure the Dubliner's signature.

"We are very pleased to have signed Gary. I have been watching him since he started testing in Formula BMW and was very impressed with his speed and maturity," said Ip.

"Gary will be a fantastic asset to the team and it's fantastic to have an Irish driver racing in Japan. These are exciting times for KCMG. We have added a third car to our F3 team this season and we are also moving into Formula Nippon with support from Toyota Motorsport, providing a factory supported academy for our drivers to progress through."

Thompson has signed up for a two-year programme with KCMG and will start testing next month.

"I'm thrilled to have signed with KCMG, who have already won many races in Japanese F3 and who have shown an interest in me right from the start of my car career," said Thompson.

"I've done some testing in a German specification F3 car at Valencia recently and they really are fantastic machines. The step up in power and cornering speeds wasn't too daunting, though, and I'm confident I'll be able to make my mark when the season gets going. I can't wait to start testing."