By alley - Sep 17, 2016, 11:37 AM ET

INDYCAR: Rossi's full circle from Singapore to Sonoma

A year ago Sunday, Alexander Rossi made his Formula 1 race debut with the Manor team at Singapore. This Sunday, he'll complete his first Verizon IndyCar Series season – a season that materialized out of the blue – with Andretti Herta Autosport.

"Go back 12 months while I was in Singapore and the last thing on my mind was IndyCar," Rossi told RACER. "That was obviously never on my mind at the time. But where we are now, I just feel incredibly lucky to have gotten that phone call and the opportunity to drive for Michael Andretti and Bryan Herta.

"It's amazing how everything kind of fell into place with the teams merging to create a fourth car and talking about coming over here late in 2015. We all know how Formula 1 works and there's a special place in my heart for F1. It is still something I feel like I have partially accomplished – but not fully, obviously."

Rossi's F1 debut was rather impressive after starting 20th and finishing 14th. Mired at the back of the field with the slowest team was always going to limit his output at Singapore (pictured), but after spending a significant portion of his life trying to reach the grand prix grid, taking part in the race – and the four more that followed – achieved a long-held dream.

"I am grateful that I was able to finally make a race debut, and I think I did the best job that I could under the circumstances," he said. "I feel very happy with what we did there. There is no regret or anything I feel I need to prove, other than the fact that I would have loved to been able to do an entire championship in a full season. And be at all the tracks and just do what I dreamed of from a young age."

It's believed Rossi will be back in IndyCar next year, and while he isn't ready to dismiss a return to F1 at some point, it sounds like he's reached a place of personal and professional satisfaction back home in America.

"At the same time, after my Formula 1 drives last year, life has gone in different directions and paths, and a different opportunity came up here and I'm grateful for it," he added. "I have enjoyed IndyCar a lot more than I thought I would, that is for sure. And that's far beyond what we did in the month of May. Plus, we won the Indy 500 in my rookie season...my first time there, so this was always going to be a great year. I think it's an amazing championship and I'm with a high-level team. It has worked out extremely well."

Rossi holds 11th in the championship, sandwiched between James Hinchcliffe and Sebastien Bourdais, is a lock for the Rookie of the Year award, and could move inside the top 10 with a strong finish at the GoPro Grand Prix at Sonoma, which starts Sunday at 3:30 p.m. PT.