Photo: Charles Zwolsman led the series in wins, poles and podiums on his way to claiming the 2005 Atlantic title for Condor Motorsports

To say that Zwolsman got off to a rocky start in his Atlantic career would be putting it mildly. His deal with the veteran Condor team came together just a couple of weeks before the start of the season and he spent his first couple of on-track sessions at Long Beach just getting familiar with the car.

In qualifying, however, he would offer a glimpse of what he was capable of, throwing down a fast time that appeared to secure the pole for his very first race. Because Condor hadn’t competed in the series in a couple of years, however, Zwolsman’s #11 car failed to meet new series specifications and he and the team were penalized by losing the pole and going to the back of the grid to start the race. Undeterred, Zwolsman attacked from the back once he saw his first Atlantic green flag, passing cars one after another on the tight street circuit. He wound up third in his first Atlantic race and competitors began to take note of the determined driver from Lelystad, Netherlands.

Things went a little smoother for Zwolsman and the team in Round 2 as he won the pole in Monterrey, Mexico and this time it held up. He also held off a hard-charging Tonis Kasemets on race day for his first Atlantic victory. And while the win gave him the lead in the championship standings, it marked the beginning of a season-long dogfight with Kasemets.

After sweeping both ends of a doubleheader weekend in Portland in Rounds 3 and 4, Kasemets took control off the series title chase, but Zwolsman took the lead right back after he won back-to-back events at Cleveland the following week.

Although Cleveland would turn out to be the final appearance for Zwolsman in Victory Circle in his amazing rookie Atlantic season, the gifted racer would never again surrender the championship lead. With strong qualifying runs and a consistently-solid finishes, he managed to keep the rest of the field at arms length.

Zwolsman led all series drivers with five poles and eight podium finishes to go along with his three wins, which also tied Kasemets and female racing sensation Katherine Legge for top honors in the championship.

Zwolsman still managed to keep Atlantic fans on the edge of their seats as it took him until the final race of the year in Montreal to clinch the title over Kasemets, his closest pursuer. With a 306-point total in the series standings, Zwolsman edged Kasemets by 17 points for the series crown. The championship charge not only proved to be one of the best rags-to-riches stories in racing last season, but it also awarded longtime series competitor Condor Motorsports and team owner, Carlos Bobeda, with their first title in six years of Atlantic racing.

Zwolsman was rewarded with a Champ Car World Series ride at the series season finale in Mexico City for capturing the Atlantic title. Not surprisingly, the Dutchman made the most of his opportunity, finishing 13th in his Champ Car debut for Team Australia.