Australia’s Matt Brabham is a step closer to his Indianapolis 500 dream after successfully completing his maiden IndyCar test in Iowa.

The 21-year-old grandson of legendary three-time Formula One world champion Sir Jack Brabham has taken part in a full test run with Andretti Autosport at Iowa Speedway.

He also cycled through an aerodynamic program to assist the outfit’s team ahead of the Iowa 300 at the 1.4km oval circuit, approximately 50km outside the state capital of Des Moines.

Under IndyCar testing rules, each team is allowed to give two drivers per year from the development Indy Lights series a test session in their main championship vehicle.

Brabham is hoping to use the experience as a step towards securing a berth in the field for next year’s iconic Indy 500, celebrating the 55th anniversary of Sir Jack’s first attempt to win the 500-mile race.

“I have wanted to drive an IndyCar for so long now and to finally get a chance was awesome,” Brabham said.

“Driving an IndyCar in anger for the first time was definitely different to what I am used to – the speed, power and downforce were a big jump.

“But it did not take me too long and I was up to speed quickly and started to work through the program the team wanted to do.”

The test rounds off a busy month for the two-time Mazda Road-to-Indy champion, having completed a test session for David Gilliland Racing in an asphalt Late Model stock car and acting as a driver coach in Toronto for a Stadium Super Truck race.