Max Verstappen to become youngest ever F1 driver in 2015

Max Verstappen - son of former Dutch Formula 1 driver Jos - will become the youngest ever F1 driver in history next year as it was confirmed early this morning that Scuderia Toro Rosso driver Jean-Eric Vergne will make way for the youngster, who currently is not even old enough to take a driving test in his home country.

Verstappen is currently in contention for this year's FIA European Formula 3 Championship and made his debut as part of defending F1 champions Red Bull Racing's young driver program at the most recent round in Germany at the Nurburgring.

The teenager's potential behind the wheel of a single seat racing has been very apparent as the 2014 season is his first year of racing cars, prior to which he was something of a phenomenon in karting where at just the age of 15, last year, he won the world championship in the highest possible category.

RACING ROOTS

Verstappen's father Jos made a 106 F1 starts over the course of his eight seasons in the sport between 1994 and 2003.

Just like his son, Jos showed great potential behind the wheel of an F1 car at a test session in 1993 despite only having raced as high as Formula 3 until that point.

He was signed as a test driver to the Benetton team for the 1994 season but was drafted to race alongside that season's eventual champion Michael Schumacher after Finland's JJ Lehto injured his back in a pre-season test.

JUNIOR SQUAD

Max Verstappen will be partnered at Toro Rosso - which now acts as a feeder team to F1 champions Red Bull Racing - by Russia's Daniil Kvyat who made his debut with the team this year just a month prior to his 20th birthday this year.

It is unlikely to come as a surprise if Verstappen breaks Kvyat's record of being the youngest points scorer in F1 at some point next season.

The Russian claimed that record at this year's season opening Australian Grand Prix, beating Vettel's mark - set at the 2007 United States GP - by a mere 25 days.