Pro Mazda: Latif joins WSM team

British-Italian racer Alessandro Latif is transferring to the Pro Mazda Championship for 2015 with World Speed Motorsports (WSM).

A front-running karter, Latif moved up to sports racing, competing in the legendary Le Mans 24 Hours, Rolex 24 at Daytona and Petit Le Mans in addition to becoming the youngest-ever outright winner of a VdeV sports prototype race. The 18-year-old has scored class victories in the Gulf 12 Hours and took the 2014 Blancpain Sprint Series Pro-Am Championship crown. He was also invited to participate in a test outing in Audi's DTM touring car at the end of 2013, and subsequently campaigned one of the German manufacturer's R8 LMS GT3 cars in the  Bathurst 12 Hours earlier this month.

Latif will make his Pro Mazda debut in the Winterfest curtain-raiser at NOLA Motorsports Park in Louisiana, Feb. 19-20.

"Since graduating from karts at the end of 2011, I've been lucky enough to be able to explore a number of different disciplines within the sport, from single-seaters to sports cars and tin-tops," explained Latif, a joint UK and Italian citizen. "I've competed in some of motorsport's biggest races and learned a tremendous amount that has helped to make me a more rounded driver.

"With the benefit of that experience under my belt, I feel the timing is now right to turn my attentions towards forging a long-term career in open-wheel racing, and the Mazda Road to Indy program offers fantastic opportunities for progression."

"There is a very clear path laid out from Pro Mazda through to the pinnacle of the IndyCar Series, which is hugely motivating and you need only look at somebody like Jack Hawksworth – who used to coach me back in my karting days –to see what can be achieved.

"A lot will be new to me this year so I'm not putting any undue pressure on myself to get instant results, but I have a great team behind me in WSM and with their support and a lot of hard work, hopefully one day I can go on to follow in Jack's footsteps by joining the IndyCar grid."

World Speed Inc. president Telo Stewart, whose team claimed last year's Pro Mazda championship Expert title, said, "We are excited to have Alessandro with us in the Pro Mazda Championship in 2015. We have had a solid amount of testing and preparation and feel good about where we are going into the season. He still needs to learn the tracks and the series is very competitive, but we know we will do well this year with him in the No. 14 car."