Colton Herta on racing in the AsiaCup Series

The AsiaCup Series is run by Irishman Peter Thompson, who has run Meritus.GP in Malaysia since 1995. The series is for Formula BMW cars, and this weekend's event in Sepang, Malaysia, is the second of the championship's three, with four races each event. Colton Herta, the son of IndyCar team owner Bryan who is now making his way up the racing ladder, is taking part in this weekend's event. Here is what the 14-year-old had to say after two days of testing.

I have been given a great opportunity to gain more experience with a chance to race in Malaysia, at the Sepang International Formula 1 circuit. I'm doing four races this weekend in the AsiaCup Series, run by Peter Thompson, and he has put together this chance for me to come here. It is a huge learning experience – especially as my aim is to become a Formula 1 driver.

Dad and I arrived on Monday, and people had warned us it would be hot. They weren't wrong, it has been 83 deg F at night! It's humid too, and when it rains it really rains. The circuit is amazing with its facilities, and the stands are huge. The track layout is like nothing I've ever been on. I like the fast corners, the quick left-right transitions, like Turns Five and Six. It's a lot of fun.

The car is a Formula BMW, and you sit in it really low compared to the Formula Ford. You can just about see the tires – in the Formula Ford you can see the tops of the brake pads. It's different from anything I've driven before.
There was all sorts I needed to learn. First off, the Hankook tires. I overcooked the fronts on my first run out on a new set, so I learned about that quickly! The Cooper tires that I used in FF2000 were very durable, and these are very different.

At the end of the first runs, I was mad. I've never been that slow compared to other cars! It was an engine problem. I didn't really show it, but I was really mad. I tried to do my best in the car, but it's hard to do that when you're frustrated.

After two sessions, the guys at Meritus were great, and switched me to a different car because of a technical issue. Once we got in the other car, we were quick straight away, which was a good step. We also had some running in the rain on the second day. I've driven in the rain a lot, in USF2000 and Skip Barber. The track is a little different in the wet here, it has a lot of grip, and you can run the regular line, instead of going out wide. Once I got that, it was a lot of fun.

My American career to this career in Asia is different. One thing the AsiaCup Series gives as part of the package is a driver coach who sits with you after each session and runs through the telemetry and data they download from the car. That helped a lot.

I think there'll be good competition over the weekend. There's a German guy, Michael Waldherr, who's fast. Jake Parsons won all four races at the last event, so I know he's fast, and there's a local guy, too, Daniel Woodroof. It's a good group of guys to race. The cars are great, and they draft good. There are two long straights into good brake zones. I think it will be a good race.

I'm also happy and proud to carry the number 98. I like to memorialize Dan Wheldon. I believe he was one of the best, and I think he needs to be remembered as a person, and also the day that we won the Indy 500. I was 11 when he won Indy with Dad. That was a very good day.

Now I want to see what Friday will bring with qualifying, and the races at the weekend.

- Colton