A former Essex schoolboy will be 'living the dream' when he starts his first ever Formula 1 race this weekend.

Alex Albon, who is a former pupil at Littlegarth School, in Nayland, will start his topflight career with Toro Rosso at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on Friday.

The British-Thai driver, 22, will take part in the three practice sessions and qualifying before lining up on the grid for Sunday's race.

Alex, who races under the Thai flag, said: "I can't wait to get to Melbourne and my first F1 race.

"Before testing began, there were some pre-test nerves and I was keen to know if I would be able to learn about the car quickly enough and be comfortable with it."

After four says of pre-season testing Alex said he felt ready to get racing.

He added: "Your mind can't really understand how quick it is until you actually drive it.

"The cars are just at a different level to anything I've driven before."