Racing: 2017 is the year the future became the present

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 14: An aerial view of the track including Albert Park Lake during qualifying for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park on March 14, 2015 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 14: An aerial view of the track including Albert Park Lake during qualifying for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park on March 14, 2015 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) /
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MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – MARCH 14: An aerial view of the track including Albert Park Lake during qualifying for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park on March 14, 2015 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – MARCH 14: An aerial view of the track including Albert Park Lake during qualifying for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix at Albert Park on March 14, 2015 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) /

New stars have begun to emerge across racing’s three biggest series. Twenty years from now, we will remember 2017 as the year the future became the present.

Every once in a great while there’s that one season when one of the young and talented athletes in a sport emerges as one of the sport’s best, and that athlete goes on to have an extremely successful career in his or her respective sport. This goes for all sports, including football, baseball, basketball, etc.

That has been the case for racing this season. Yes, racing in general. Why? Because it has not just been the case for only one racing series. In fact, it has been the case for Formula One, IndyCar and the NASCAR Cup Series, the three biggest racing series in the world, and it has been the case all in the same year: 2017.

One star in each series has emerged as the potential “next big thing” this season. Except “now” has effectively replaced “next” in each of those three series. While each of these three drivers have had some success in past seasons, it has been the 2017 season that has revealed just how good they have and may still become throughout their respective racing careers, which appear to have only just begun.

Which three young drivers have emerged this season as those three racing series next superstars? Will those drivers continue to get better over the course of their careers just as they have early on in them? Let’s start off by talking about Formula One’s young star.