September 2nd, 2008 at 08:55pm
Under Racing
GP2 driver Sebastien Buemi and former Super Aguri racer Takuma Sato are to test for Toro Rosso at a multi-team test session later this month, as the Italian squad continue to ponder their 2009 line-up. Buemi and Sato will be in action behind the wheel of the STR3 at the Spanish circuit of Jerez following the Italian Grand Prix.
“The time has come to try and find a suitable replacement for Sebastian Vettel, who is joining Red Bull Racing next year,” explained Toro Rosso team principal Franz Tost. “The Jerez test, the last one of the season, will give us an opportunity to evaluate Buemi and Sato at the same time, as they are both possible candidates for a 2009 seat.
“Buemi is an obvious candidate, because not only is he already part of the Red Bull family, he is currently performing well in the GP2 series. As for Sato, he has proved worthy of a place in Formula One and would be a good fit with the Red Bull spirit, while his recent F1 experience would be undoubtedly valuable to our team.”
Nineteen year-old Buemi has advanced through the Red Bull junior driver programme and is test and reserve driver for Toro Rosso’s sister team Red Bull Racing. The Swiss driver is currently lying fifth in the GP2 championship and has four GP2 victories to his name.
Sato, meanwhile, is Japan’s most successful racing driver. The 31 year-old has competed in 91 Grands Prix, his best result being a third place finish at the 2004 United States Grand Prix. Sato first made the headlines when he won the hotly contested British Formula Three championship in 2001, before joining the Jordan Formula One team the following year. Three years with BAR Honda followed that, before he joined Super Aguri in 2006. He stayed with the team until it pulled out of the sport after this year’s Spanish race.
“I am delighted to be given this opportunity to get back behind the wheel of a Formula One car, after my season was cut short following the Spanish Grand Prix,” added Sato. “It will be especially interesting working with a team that has made so much progress over the course of the year.”
By admin
August 28th, 2008 at 06:19pm
Under Racing
For the drivers in the 2008 GP2 Series, the immediate goal is this year’s championship. Beyond that, however, they invariably have their sights set on the highest rung of the motorsport ladder, Formula One.
At the European GP2 rounds - they support the Formula One Grands Prix - a 2008 finalist in Bridgestone’s e-reporter competition is bringing us the lowdown on the F1 hopefuls. In Valencia, Tabatha Valls Halling caught up with Andy Soucek…
Andy Soucek. 23 years old. Spanish - even though when you hear his name for the first time, you might think he is from anywhere but Spain. His father is from Austria and his mother is from France. “I was born in Madrid and I consider myself totally Spanish since the beginning,” Soucek affirms.
He is one of the GP2 Super Nova Racing drivers, along with Alvaro Parente. His best race result up until now has been a second place in Hungary (2008), giving Spain its first GP2 podium of the season. But before GP2, Andy gained experience in the Formula Renault World Series, where he ended up in a great fourth position in 2006, and also in Spanish Formula Three, where he won the 2005 championship.
The GP2 Series is clearly a way to eventually get into Formula One racing, and Soucek can already say that at his young age he has tried out a Formula One car with Toyota - a prize for his Toyota-powered F3 title.
He is young, experienced, but eager to learn at the same time. And GP2 is the perfect school. It’s a great opportunity to show what one is capable of, and as GP2 races are on the same circuits during the same weekends as Formula One racing, it is clearly the place to do well, as at any moment drivers can be watched and followed by the Formula One community.
Soucek is a young but talented driver, who knows what he is doing. His way of thinking clearly shows this: “To be a good driver, stability is totally necessary during the season. You can’t be thinking of other things, you can’t let anything distract you, on or off the track. If you are for just two-tenths of a second thinking of something else, the race and all the work put into it is lost.”
The media is placing more and more importance on GP2 and Soucek is very conscious of this. He knows where he stands and what he wants. He is a young Spanish talent.
By admin