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Born in the Argentine city of Río Tercero in 1983, Jose Maria ‘Pechito’ Lopez started karting aged seven. By 2001, he felt ready to make the move across the Atlantic to kick start his single-seater career and initially competed in the Formula Renault 2000 Eurocup. Ending the season 17th in the standings wasn’t what he’d hoped to achieve, but undeterred, Lopez looked elsewhere for another opportunity.

Signing up with the Cram team, he opted to race in the 2002 Italian Formula Renault 2.0 championship. Four wins, five pole positions, three podiums and his first championship proved he’d made the right decision. But he didn’t stop there, additionally driving in the Eurocup again. Clinching 100 points and two wins, Lopez beat Lewis Hamilton to fourth in the standings, despite missing four events.

In just two seasons, he had made a name for himself and moved up to the Formula Renault V6 series in 2003, racing for DAMS. Taking five wins, seven further podiums and eight poles, he dominated the season and won the championship. He made a less successful switch to F3000 for 2004, racking up just two podium finishes, but he still managed to attract the attentions of the Renault Formula One team, who signed him up to their driver development programme. By the end of the year he had made his F1 testing debut. Clocking up almost 200 laps during four days on track, Lopez quickly proved himself to be a handy tester.

The launch of Formula One racing’s new feeder series, GP2, proved a big enough draw for the Argentine and he signed with DAMS for the 2005 season. Although he didn’t make as big a splash as he’d done in Formula Renault, he won once and took two further podiums. During a second season he was unable to clinch another victory and instead took just three podiums with his new team Super Nova.

To Lopez it didn’t matter much, as by that point he was already targeting a Formula One race drive. Still testing regularly for Renault - he’d covered 435 laps over the course of 2006 - he hoped the French team would offer him a seat for the 2007 season. Instead, however, he lost his position and, bitterly disappointed, he decided to pack his bags and return to his native Argentina.

He may have temporarily turned his back on Europe, but Lopez’s ambitions burned as brightly as ever and he focused his attentions on the local racing scene. Opting to compete in the South American touring car championships, Lopez made an almost instant impression and over the next three seasons took three titles, 38 wins and 36 pole positions.

Despite quickly becoming an Argentine hero, he’d never forgotten his Formula One dreams and when the new North Carolina-based US team won their slot on the 2010 grid, Lopez made sure he was at the top of their shopping list for drivers. A few months later the Argentine President, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, officially announced his contract and his long-held hopes finally became reality.

His country’s first Formula One driver since Gaston Mazzacane made 21 race appearances for Minardi and Prost during the 2000/01 seasons, Lopez is now carrying the hopes of a nation on his shoulders. But with legendary Formula One names Juan Manuel Fangio and Froilan ‘Pepe’ Gonzalez both Argentine, he’s got a real challenge on his hands if he’s to live up to everyone’s expectations.