Brendon Hartley was hoping for a successful 2017 but what he achieved was even better than his wildest dreams.
The Palmerston North native Hartley had a year to remember, which saw him win the world endurance title with Porsche and also win the legendary Le Mans 24-hour race.
But to top it all off, Hartley achieved his life-long goal of making his Formula 1 debut at the US Grand Prix in October.
In total, the 28-year-old competed in four races and did enough to impress the right people to earn a full-time seat with Toro Rosso in 2018.
Hartley admitted he was hoping to achieve big things in 2017, but he never expected to race in Formula 1.
"I had high hopes I didn't expect to be making a Formula 1 debut," said Hartley.
"Le Mans victory was obviously in the back of my mind - that was the goal for this year.
"That trumps the world championship from two years ago standing up there with Earl [Bamber]. The season started well in Dubai which we won and it went from strength to strength.
"It was one of those seasons where I couldn't have predicted how it would play out and especially with the F1 at the end of the season."
Hartley is currently in New Zealand for Christmas and is excited for what the next year holds.
He believes the four Formula 1 races he competed in at the backend of the 2017 season will make things much easier heading into his first year as a full-time F1 driver.
"Those four races I did in formula one this year were crucial for me to hit the ground running next year on a personal level, and to have those races under my belt, starting the first race in Melbourne 2018, couldn't have had a better opportunity than that."
Despite competing in four races, Hartley failed to complete two of them as engine issues troubled the Toro Rosso cars.
In an attempt to have fewer engine troubles, the Italian team are switching from Renault to Honda engines next year and Hartley believes the signs are good for a strong year.
"I'm hearing a lot of positive things at the factory after spending a couple of days there last week.
"It is a massive opportunity for the team to be the sole supplier from a manufacturer.
"Honda is pushing hard and the team is pushing hard so I'm feeling optimistic. From everyone, I've been chatting to and my general feeling is there is lots of optimism for next year."
Hartley has set himself some personal goals in what he wants to achieve in 2018 with Toro Rosso, and is hopeful of making many more New Zealanders proud.
"It is hard to put a number on expectations for next year because it is a team sport in the end.
"I'm the one who has to sit in the car and get it around the track as quick as possible, but there a huge team of people, more than 400 people involved with Toro Rosso to get these cars operating and get them around the track.
"I will be setting personal goals and a lot of those will be aligned with your teammate because that is your biggest reference.
"Obviously we know the history with Bruce [McLaren], Denny [Hulme], Chris [Amon], Mike [Thackwell] and the list goes on with New Zealand's history in Formula 1 and I'm very proud to be flying the flag again.
"Nothing has changed. I'm the same guy but I drive a different car - but there might be a few more Kiwis following Formula 1 now."
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