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So boys, you think you're fast? We know someone's who's probably faster - Britain's top female racer Katherine Legge.

Legge has landed a top drive in the Champ Car World Series - one of the top American racing championships.

Trackside columnist Keith Collantine spoke to the Surrey racer ahead of her debut this weekend.

"It's been a whirlwind twelve months, absolutely incredible. From where I was last year I would never have thought that I'd be about to start my Champ Car career twelve months later," Legge told us.

Her big break follows a very successful apprenticeship in the Atlantic championship - a junior series for aspiring Champ Car drivers. She finished an excellent fourth in her first season, with three wins.

Kevin Kalkhoven is the man who is giving Katherine her chance with his PKV team. Before that, Legge tested a Formula One and an A1 Grand Prix car.

Having secured her dream drive she's realistic about her chances. She said: "I'm probably the least experienced person who's ever driven a Champ Car before. But I'm going to do the best I can and we've had some very successful tests."

Her move to Champ Car presents her with a whole host of new challenges to master: new tracks, longer races, faster and heavier cars, pit stops and the 'push-to-pass' button - which gives drivers a horsepower boost on-demand for overtaking.

Legge is not fazed by the challenge. She said: "It's a daunting task but I've just got to learn as much as I can at each race."

Fortunately at PKV she can learn from some of the best in the business. The team is managed by the ultra-successful Jim McGee, who is responsible for more Champ Car wins than any other team manager.

 Her team mates are two of Champ Cars' most experienced drivers: Jimmy Vasser and Oriol Servia have over 300 starts between them. Legge is full of praise for the duo:

"I've got two of the best team mates in the world. We'll go to Long Beach and see how competitive we are and hopefully improve from there."

California's Long Beach hosts the first race of the season and was the scene of a win for Legge last year: "Long Beach is very close to my heart. It has a great atmosphere and on the Champ Car weekend there's lots of other races and concerts and the fans are really involved. Last year I was living the whole weekend in a daze, it was just incredible."

Legge may be a lone female figure in the Champ Car world - but she can count on the support of fellow Brits to keep her going - such as Justin Wilson, a former Formula One driver who is also in Champ Car. And Dario Franchitti who raced Champ Cars until a few years ago.

"Us Brits have to stick together!" says Legge. "I train with Dario Franchitti, he's a really nice guy. Justin has been awesome. He's a thoroughly decent human being."

Last year fellow female racer Danica Patrick made the headlines in the Indy Racing League - a similar series to Champ Car. And the male drivers complained when her race appearances took the full glare of media attention away from them. Legge says that she is aware some people treat her differently and she understands the reasons:

"No girl has won a major race before - that's a fact. You can't blame some people for being negative about women drivers. The only way to change their minds is to work even harder than all the other guys and hopefully people like me and Danica can prove them wrong."

 Legge tested a Formula One Minardi at the end of last year - the realisation of a life-long dream. She may be committed to Champ Car right now, but is keeping one eye on F1 for any future racing opportunities:

"I've dreamt of driving a Formula One car since I was nine. And it was an amazing experience. I would love to get back in a Formula One car - never say never!"

Champ Car-wise she's setting her sights on a top-ten finish at Long Beach. "Then I want to keep getting better every time I go out. If I can do that, then it will have been a successful year."

She faces some stern competition for the 'Rookie of the Year' prize. Rival team Rocketsport have signed former Formula One driver Antonio Pizzonia and she will also be up against the highly rated young Australian Will Power.

Not that she's worrying about the competition - she's just thrilled to be where she is and raring to get stuck into the season. "I've got a great team behind me and I'm very grateful to Kevin Kalkhoven for his support."

We'll be getting behind Katherine this year - and not just because she admitted to being an Auto Trader user. "I bought my second and third cars through Auto Trader and I've sold one as well." That's good enough for us!

To find out how Katherine fares on her debut along with fellow Britons Justin Wilson and Dan Clarke, don't miss our Long Beach race report in Trackside next week.

Racing round-up

• British hope Jenson Button suffered cruel luck in the Australian Grand Prix. The Frome racer started from pole but was robbed of a points finish when his Honda engine blew spectacularly within sight of the flag. Fernando Alonso took the win in a chaotic Melbourne race. Felipe Massa, Jarno Trulli, Christian Klien and Michael Schumacher all crashed out. Scot David Coulthard claimed his first point of the season for eighth.

• Yorkshireman Darren Manning made his first start for A1 Grand Prix team Great Britain at the final round of the season in Shanghai. A fine second place for Manning in the sprint race confirmed the team's third place finish in the championship. But he could only finish 15th in the feature race after a penalty. Alex Yoong of Malaysia won the sprint race and Tomas Enge of the Czech Republic triumphed in the feature.

• Reigning World Touring Car Champion Andy Priaulx, of Guernsey, had a mixed start to his title defence at Monza. He won the first race from pole in his BMW 320si WTCC. But he collided with team mate Dirk Müller in the second and failed to finish.

• It was a poor showing for British drivers Dario Franchitti and Dan Wheldon in the Indy Racing League round on the street of St Petersburg. Franchitti led from pole but retired with suspension damage after 14 laps. Reigning champion Wheldon started 13th and retired after a controversial collision with rival Sam Hornish Jr.