Can Kunimoto join Japan's best F3 champions?

Yuji Kunimoto wrapped up the All-Japan Formula 3 title last weekend despite his 10-race winning streak coming to an end at Okayama.

One of the most dominant campaigns of the last decade has put the teenager on the brink of a hugely successful career. Ten victories, nine pole positions and nine fastest laps are all huge achievements, despite the field not being as strong as in previous seasons.

It has also put him 144th in the Castrol Rankings, fifth among the world's F3 drivers.

To put Kunimoto's achievement into perspective and to chart the likelihood of future success, the Castrol Rankings picked its five best series champions and had a look at their careers.

1. Tom Kristensen

The Dane was a late starter and was already 26 when he became champion for TOM's in 1993. But since then he has established himself as one of the best (if not the best) sportscar racers in history. A record eight wins at the Le Mans 24 Hours in Porsche, Audi and Bentley machinery, and five at the Sebring 12 Hours back that up. So does his American Le Mans Series crown in 2002.

A winner in every championship he has raced in, he has also taken victories in International and Japanese F3000, the Le Mans Series, the DTM, the BTCC and the German Super Touring Championship. He also tested several times for the Williams F1 team in 1999.

2. Pedro de la Rosa

The Spaniard is the only winner of the Japanese F3 crown to have achieved a podium finish in Formula 1, having done so at the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix for McLaren.

Another TOM's title-winner in 1995, he did an unusual double two years later as he won both the Japanese GT and Formula Nippon crowns in the same year. That paved the way into F1 as Jordan test driver and then into an 83-race career (so far) with Arrows, Jaguar, McLaren and Sauber.

Despite a mediocre season in 2010, in which he has been out-driven by his Japanese team-mate Kamui Kobayashi, he did manage a seventh place in Hungary recently.

3. Juichi Wakisaka

The only one of our top five never to get anywhere near a Formula 1 seat - because he just didn't have to. Instead the 1996 champion - one of only four men in the last 20 years to win the title for someone other than TOM's - has become one of his country's most successful domestically-based drivers.

He won the Super GT crown in 2002, 2006 and 2009 and is in with a good chance of making it four titles this season. He also holds the record for most wins in the series.

Still a top single-seater racer in his homeland, he has won five Formula Nippon races and finished third in the points on three separate occasions.

4. Adrian Sutil

After finishing second in the F3 Euro Series behind his ASM team-mate Lewis Hamilton, the German joined the all-conquering TOM's squad in 2006 (pictured) and took the title at his first attempt with five wins.

That earned him a move into F1, where he has raced ever since with Spyker and Force India. In 65 grand prix starts he has finished in the points 10 times, with the 2009 Italian Grand Prix proving his high point as he qualified second and finished a career-best fourth.

5. Toshio Suzuki

The inaugural series champion in 1979, Suzuki built a successful career in his homeland, winning the final domestic F3000 title in 1995 and driving successfully in the All-Japan GT Championship for almost a decade. He even made it to F1, starting three grands prix for Larrousse in 1993 and taking a best finish of 12th at Suzuka, despite being 38 by then.

His biggest victory came at the 1992 Daytona 24 Hours when he shared the winning Nissan R91CP, and he added a second place at Le Mans seven years later for Toyota.