A low hum becomes louder as an engine starts to rev.

The smell off of burning tyres is in the air and crowds start to gather.

It's not the practice grid of this weekend's Brazilian Grand Prix, but a school car park where a teenager has his sights firmly on becoming the next karting champion to make it to Formula 1.

As the lunchtime bell rang, most pupils made their way to the canteen.

Thirteen-year-old Charlie Condy strode out of school, racing helmet in hand, towards his trusty go-kart, under the watchful eye of one of his teachers and his father, who is also his lead mechanic.

The Ballygawley teenager has been squeezing in last-minute practice sessions at Aughnacloy College in County Tyrone wherever possible as he prepares for the most important race of his life.

The Rotax World Grand Finals begin this weekend in Portugal and bring together the top go kart racers from across the globe.

After a hugely successful year winning countless domestic competitions, Charlie has been chosen to represent Team Ireland in the Junior event of the grand finals that are often referred to as the Superbowl of karting.

It has previously been won by some of the biggest names in motor sport and has been a launching pad to the prestigious and highly competitive world of Formula 1.

Even though he's still only 13, Charlie says he has been preparing for this race for most of his life.

He said: "My mum use to take me on her knee on our sit on lawnmower when I was about three and she said I was always trying to grab and take control of the steering wheel, so I've always been obsessed with driving.

"I got into karting at the age of five and I've just loved it ever since, there's nothing like the adrenaline and the sheer excitement of racing other people."

Charlie's success has been a team and family effort, with his mother and father taking on the roles of coach and mechanic.

His father, Ivor Condy, said he's extremely proud of Charlie, but watching the races can be nerve racking.

"The first lap or two are the worst when all the karts are bunched together, but once he gets going and they're spaced out, it settles you a little, and then I just hope I've done my part and the kart stays together and nothing falls off."

The Rotax MAX Challenge Grand Finals are an annual global championship. All drivers use similar engines, with a focus on driver skill rather than mechanical advantages.

Competitive go karting, also known as karting, is widely considered as one of the most direct environments in which young drivers can take to make it into elite motor sport.

Karting has been the training ground for many Formula 1 drivers.

The current world champion Kimi Antonelli started racing in go karts and one of the sports most successful drivers, seven times world champion Lewis Hamilton started behind the wheel of a go kart.

Before becoming a household name in Formula 1, The four-time world champion, Max Verstappen, dominated the world of karting early in his career.

In September this year the Dutchman went back to his roots and took part in an exhibition go-kart race at Silverstone.

Closer to home, hugely successful Belfast-born racing driver Charlie Eastwood also began his career in competitive karting.

In 2012 he became Ireland's first Karting World Champion.

At the age of 17 he won the Rotax Max World Championship – the same competition that young Charlie Condy will compete in this weekend.

Since then Eastwood's career has gone from strength to strength.

In 2020 he won the prestigious Le Mans 24-hour race and would go onto work with the Mercedes F1 team as a simulator driver.

These days he competes in the World Endurance Championship and is a factory driver for Corvette.

Eastwood said karting is the best start for any young person who has serious ambitions about competitive motor sport.

"It's such a great platform for young drivers to show what they can do, and for me being 17 and winning the Rotax Max World championship, it is still one of my most special wins, as a lot took off from there," he said.

"A lot of the F1 grade drivers today got their start in karting,

"I remember having a number of pretty hard battles with Max Verstappen on the karting track, and in the last 10 years or so the competitions have been getting such a huge profile."

Eastwood said he'd been keeping a close eye on Charlie Condy's career.

"He'll be competing against the top two or three drivers in his age range from basically every corner of the globe, so to get access to that level of competition at the age of 13 is a huge opportunity."

Charlie has recently been nominated as the Mid Ulster Young Sports Person of the Year and locally some are referring to him as County Tyrone's answer to Lewis Hamilton.

But the Ballygawley teenager is taking it all in his stride and says his focus for now is firmly on the Rotax World Grand Finals.

He added: "Anything can happen in this sport, I'm just thinking about the races ahead and want to make sure I'm up at the front, that's the main thing."