On the back of a superb run of results in the Champ Car World Series, British rookie Dan Clarke has just one thing on his mind as the championship approaches its final two rounds – ending an impressive maiden campaign in the best possible style.

The CTE Racing star has shot up the points table courtesy of a string of top six finishes in the past three rounds, including his long-awaited debut podium in the category at Denver in August from down in 13th on the grid, after misfortune had earlier deprived him of potential rostrum finishes in Portland, Cleveland and San Jose.

He followed this performance up with a fourth place two weeks later in Montreal, and most recently his first Champ Car pole position at Road America last month, becoming the first rookie to start from the top spot since current championship leader Sebastien Bourdais back in 2003, and the only 2006 new boy to achieve either a podium or pole position in the series.

The form driver in the Rookie of the Year class, Clarke now lies just seven points behind leader Will Power, and will be hoping to reverse those positions in the Australian's home race at Surfers Paradise this weekend. He is also a mere 16 points adrift of fourth-placed Paul Tracy in the overall championship chase. Should he beat the seasoned Canadian in the end-of-year standings, that would be some accomplishment for a 23-year-old rookie from the other side of the Pond.

Also in Clarke's favour is his CTE HVM outfit's track record at the Queensland circuit, having scored its first Champ Car victory there in 2002 and another podium finish two years later.

“It's been too long since I've been in the car,” he said. “I've not been 'down under' before, so it's all a new experience for me. I think there are quite a few fun activities lined up for our visit, which will be good experiences, but my focus will be on the race and the team.

“We've had a run of good results and we need to stay strong and add to this, to finish the season on a high. We've been growing as a team and it's a tight unit now, so we have the ability to be a front-runner. There's lots to play for still, so we need to come home top five this weekend in Oz.”