Jamie Chadwick clinched the first ever W Series championship last month, finishing fourth during a thrilling season finale at Brands Hatch.

The British driver, who has led the series since the first race in Germany, secured the title by 10 points as fellow Brit Alice Powell took the chequered flag to win on the day. Chadwick said: “To be the inaugural W Series champion is simply unbelievable. It’ll sink in soon I’m sure, but it hasn’t yet.”

The big question is where does it go from here? Once the gloss and publicity of its debut season wears off, the series will need to continue to impress next year.

And for some a true test of its success will be whether it can launch drivers into higher categories. As Tiff Needell, a critic of the concept in its early days, tweeted after Chadwick’s win: “Big congrats to @JamieChadwick55 for taking the inaugural @WSeriesRacing crown. Hope she can now get a good F3 drive and take on the men as well!”