9) Jake Dennis
Stepping up from Formula Renault 2.0, Jake Dennis’ season started relatively slowly, especially at Silverstone where he failed to score a point in any of the three races, before gaining momentum and ending with him being a genuine challenger for the podium.
Driving for Carlin, Dennis finished ninth in the championship, and took three podium finishes during the season, the first of which was in race two at Pau, where the Briton was on form all weekend. As well as his third place, he took fourth place in both races one and three, and had by far his best weekend of the season in terms of results.
Further podium finishes followed in Spa-Francorchamps and the Red Bull Ring, but a few other top results went begging through no fault of his own, especially when in a good position in race two in Austria when his car failed with a few laps to go, and at the season closing races at Hockenheim when he was handed a triple ten-place penalty for changing his engine that saw him forced to fight through from the back of the field.
The Briton’s future has already been secured; the Racing Steps Foundation-backed driver has been confirmed with reigning Teams’ champions Prema Powerteam for 2015. With the experience and confidence from his rookie season, he could be one of the drivers that could challenge for the title.