A large contingent of Australians will participate in the 2023 Ferrari Driver Academy Asia Pacific and Oceania Selection Program to be held at Sepang, Malaysia in September.

The group of 15 drivers from Australia make up the majority of 25 selected from 100 applications to take on the five-day program, where each participant will undergo rigorous testing both on and off track.

At the end of the five-days, two drivers will be invited to the FDA’s Scouting World Finals in Maranello, Italy, where they will be pitted against the best participants from other regions for a potential place in the FDA in 2023.

Hopefuls from Australia will be joined by others representing New Zealand, China, South Korea, India and the Philippines.

Former Australian Formula Ford Series contender and current British Formula 4 driver Jimmy Piszcyk returns after participating last year.

Motorsport Australia’s Director of Motorsport and Commercial Operations, Michael Smith, believes it will be a great challenge for the young drivers as he welcomed the increased participants from Asian countries.

“We’re looking forward to hosting 25 of the best young drivers from the Asia Pacific region at Sepang and giving them the opportunity to showcase their skills, as well as develop their skills through our rigorous academy program,” Smith said.

“It’s particularly exciting to see more drivers from outside of Australia as part of this year’s FDA selection program, highlighting the ability for this program to develop and find the best young talent from our region.

“We can’t wait to meet all the drivers and their families in Sepang in September and look forward to seeing them all grow their skills both on and off track as part of the highly renowned FDA selection program.”

Run in conjunction with Motorsport Australia and the Ferrari Driver Academy, the program runs between September 23-27.