JOEY Mawson, the 20-year-old Australian who caught the right kind of attention this year when he beat son-of-a-gun Mick Schumacher to the German Formula 4 Championship, is edging closer to securing a seat in the tough European Formula 3 Championship in 2017.

Mawson and his manager Gwenda Searle were back in Australia this past week talking to the consortium of believers (a group known as PODIUM) led by high-profile businessmen: Sydney’s Geoff Morgan, and Melbourne based Tom Warwick.

Mawson and Searle spoke to groups of potential supporters in each city, outlining what it would take to place the Australian in a strong F3 team next season.

Leading European F3 teams ask drivers to bring along a budget of €750,000 ($A1.06 million). Drivers with proven ability such as Mawson, who won 10 races this year, are likely to get a discount.

Joey -Mawson -racing

“All of the top four teams would like to have Joey in their car, but no-one gets a free ride,” said Searle.

Mawson and Schumacher’s intense rivalry is likely to spill into next year, with the German teenager also lining up in Euro F3 with the well-credentialed Prema team.

The fascinating aside to the Mawson-Schumacher track duels is their off-track friendship. They are close mates.

“We race hard – really hard – maybe because we are close friends,” said Mawson. “He is always under lots of pressure because of his name.

“One of the first guys to come and congratulate me after I won the championship was Mick.”

Joey -Mawson -racing -Formula -3

Meanwhile, Mawson is staying race-fit over the European winter by competing in the four-round MRF Challenge across the Middle East and India.

A week ago he scored three podiums and a sixth in the opening round in Bahrain, aboard a Dallara Formula 3 chassis.

Coming up next month is round two in Dubai, then New Delhi on January 27-29 and the final event in Chennai on February 17-19.