Wakeman says yes to Mallala.

Jesse Wakeman will give local fans further reason to cheer when he lines up on the Kumho Tyres Australian F3 Championship grid for the first time at Mallala later this month.

The 19-year old will make his F3 debut in round four of the series, driving his recently-purchased Dallara-Speiss F301 under the JR Motorsport banner, although the experienced R-Tek outfit will provide engineering assistance at the circuit to quicken the ex-Formula Vee racer's learning curve.

Wakeman's car, which will compete in the National Class for 1999-2001 generation machines - has plenty of local pedigree, having won the Australian F3 Championship in 2004 for Adelaide-based Team BRM, with Karl Reindler behind the wheel. The Dallara was then sold to New South Welshman Tim Berryman, before returning to Adelaide earlier this year. The distinctive blue-and-orange car will be based at R-Tek F3's Wingfield base, north of Adelaide.

Whilst it will be his debut in an F3 car, Wakeman has plenty of local experience at the 2.8km Mallala circuit, having contested the South Australian State Formula Vee Championship for the last two years. The teen said that he and his family had targeted the goal of racing in F3 for some time, and jumped at the opportunity to purchase a car with such a strong pedigree.

"It was time for a change and, for quite a while, Dad and I have been looking towards F3 as the next step up in my career," Wakeman explained, "We want to keep the open-wheel dream alive, and F3 seemed the most affordable and ideal place for us to go to follow that goal. This car came up at just the right time and for just the right price, so we jumped on it. It's a sweet car and I think that it will be very good for us."

Wakeman recently completed his first test day behind the wheel of his new ride and said that, despite torrential weather conditions, the outing was a success.

"We got some dry laps in at the start of the day, which gave me a feel for the car and just what it's capable of," he revealed, "After that, I got plenty of wet weather experience. The car was awesome to drive, just fantastic. It's going to be a big step forward for me but, having now driven the car, I just can't wait to get out there and race."

With the R-Tek team supporting Wakeman's campaign to become the state's next biggest thing in racing, championship contender Mat Sofi, from Sydney, will be on hand to support the newcomer through his first step into top level open-wheel racing. Sofi, who drives a Honda-powered Dallara for R-Tek, recently posted his best ever F3 performances at Phillip Island, and is expected to be a contender for outright race wins at Mallala.

"Having Mat there to help us will be great," Wakeman admitted, "It's nice to have someone who has a lot of experience in these cars and this series to draw information from. He has been a big help so far."

The fourth round of the Kumho Tyres series sees Tim Macrow arrive at Mallala leading the table by just eight points over British driver Charlie Hollings, with Leanne Tander - the first ever female race winner of an Australian Drivers' Championship race - a further three points back in third.