Cheng Congfu, the once promising 28-year-old driver from Beijing, is more realistic about his career path. Short on local sponsorships, Cheng, in the past considered a strong contender to be the first Chinese driver in Formula One, knows his chances of making his F1 dream come true are pretty slim.

"When I was young, I always dreamed something about racing in F1 races, but now, I'm more realistic and I know the whole F1 field much better," Cheng said on Wednesday. "Now, I treasure the opportunity to be racing in Europe with team Mercedes."

Currently racing in the German Touring Car Masters, called the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM), Cheng is in Shanghai with team Mercedes. The racing team got him involved in its young drivers development program back in 2003.