SWINDON youngster Charlie Nesbitt looks all set for a life in the fast lane.

The 13-year-old was racing almost before he could walk and has established himself as one of the hottest prospects on a motorbike in the country in recent years.

Nesbitt’s burgeoning potential has already seen him racing amongst the senior ranks with the Repli-Cast Racing team and last year, he competed in the British Motostar Championships, a support series for the British Superbike Championship.

After getting to grips with his Hondo Moto3 250cc bike at the start of the season, Nesbitt finished 2014 on fire and bagged himself a pair of podium finishes.

And that has given the Swindon Academy pupil the dream of one day taking on his hero Marc Marquez in the sport’s elite MotoGP competition.

“I love racing now more than I ever have done. I’ve just grown up with it and it’s like second nature,” said Nesbitt.

“It’s just fun and when you’re close to crashing and you save it you say ‘yes, I’ve done it.’ When the adrenaline is pumping, it’s a weird sensation.

“When you crash, you learn from it. You just try to do exactly the same but change something very slightly.

“I couldn’t be prouder of what I have done so far and I want to get to MotoGP one day, that’s my main goal.

“To do that, hopefully I can challenge for more podiums next year – that is what I am aiming for.”

Nesbitt may have started to make a name for himself on the national scene this year but his achievements date much further back.

After starting out on mini-motos, Nesbitt clinched his first British championship at the age of six.

Three further crowns followed and in 2012, he contested the Catalan Championship in Spain.

The following year, Nesbitt was back home and racing in the Thundersport Aprilia Superteens series and won every single newcomer race he finished.

His big break at the start of 2014 came courtesy of British MotoGP rider Scott Redding, who helped Nesbitt bag a place in Repli-Cast’s Motostar Moto3 team.

Nesbitt’s dad, Paul, explained: “Each of the championships are very cliquey. They don’t come and look for the new riders coming through, you have to earn your stripes in each paddock.

“We were initially going to start off riding the 125cc class, just because it’s horrendously expensive otherwise. We thought ‘we’ll do a year, learn the tracks and go from that’.

“Scott Redding stepped in and asked why we weren’t we on a Moto 3. The next day he rang me and said he’d bought a bike, had spoken to the team and they were happy to run Charlie on it.

“This year, I wasn’t really expecting anything because there is so much to learn and he is up against adults. It’s not a kids class, it’s a proper national championship.

“He’s done extremely well and the team love him to bits. They can’t believe he’s progressed like he has because he’s come in as a nobody. The team boss, Gary Dawson, has been so supportive and you couldn’t wish to have a better guy in charge.”

The Nesbitts are keen to attract new sponsors to help Charlie continue his progression and anyone interested in offering their support can contact Paul on 07967 813144.

He added: “We’ve got some wonderful people who have helped us this year and hopefully, we’re building on that as we go.

“Without help it doesn’t happen. His ability is there and if he doesn’t make it, it’s because I can’t find the finance for him to do it - that’s the harsh reality of it.”