Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: Sauber Driver Academy

  • Sauber announce new F1 reserve driver

    Sauber has expanded their roster of young drivers for 2024 after revealing that Formula 2 racer, Zane Maloney is joining the team’s development programme.

    A former British Formula 4 champion, and FIA Formula 3 runner-up, Maloney makes the move to the Swiss operation after leaving Red Bull’s own junior team, having placed 10th in last year’s F2 standings with four podiums to his name.

    In addition to bolstering Sauber’s talent pool, the 20 year old Barbadian racer will take on the role of reserve driver for the F1 team at several Grands Prix during the upcoming season, where he will share duties with fellow Sauber Academy member and reigning F2 champion Theo Pourchaire.

    Maloney will continue in F2 for a second season this year, sticking with the Rodin Motorsport team which is now supported by the Sauber Academy.

    I am honoured to join the Sauber Academy, and to take on the role of one of [Sauber’s] reserve drivers. The Sauber name resonates with Formula 1, as it has been part of the sport for over 30 years, paving the way for so many drivers who went on to achieve great success. I am pleased to become part of this family, and I am looking forward to working together this season, as I move closer to my goal of becoming a Formula 1 driver.

    Maloney on the news.

    We are delighted to welcome Zane as the latest addition to the Sauber Academy. His path through the junior series has been remarkable so far and, with his speed and potential, he surely makes a great addition to our talented roster. On behalf of the whole team, I give him my warmest welcome onboard, and look forward to working together and achieving great success.

    Beat Zehnder, Sauber Academy Director.

  • Pourchaire sticks with ART GP

    ART Grand Prix have retained 2022 Formula 2 vice champion, Theo Pourchaire for the 2023 season, announcing that the Frenchman will continue his partnership with the team for a third season.

    Pourchaire’s relationship with the French squad began in 2020, the Sauber junior scored two wins and six additional podiums to finish runner-up in Formula 3. Graduating to the second tier in 2021, he went on to become the Championship’s youngest-ever race winner and pole sitter in Monaco.

    A second campaign last year brought a battle with Felipe Drugovich for the title, Pourchaire claimed three victories and a further four podiums, finishing the year as runner-up.

    Alongside competing in F2, Pourchaire will also take on the additional responsibilities with the Alfa Romeo Formula 1 team as one of their reserve drivers. With the 19 year old already having some F1 experience as he made his FP1 debut with the team at the 2022 United States Grand Prix.

    I couldn’t be happier to extend my career in this top-level Formula 2 championship with ART Grand Prix, which has become a family to me. We have had intense moments over the past three years and it’s important to prepare for the 2023 championship with a team that knows me and knows how to put me in the best possible situations. We may have lacked success last year, but we gained experience that makes us even stronger. I will do everything I can to bring the title to ART Grand Prix this season.

    Pourchaire on his seat.

    Théo will still be one of the youngest drivers on the grid, but he has acquired a technical and personal maturity which, combined with his speed and his combativeness, will be a major asset to be consistently at the front of the field and will help the team in its technical focus. Last season showed us how much every detail counts and after two seasons in Formula 2 with Théo, ART Grand Prix’s mission will be to master everything in our power to optimize our chances of winning the title in 2023.

    ART Team Principal, Sebastien Philippe.

  • Teams junior drivers part 1

    Being a team in Formula One they are not just battling it out on track they are also looking for the next best thing to hopefully find the next future world champion.

    Mercedes Juniors-

    Andrea Kimi Antonelli, has been with the German team since 2019 when he was only 12 years old but CEO Toto Wolff had been keeping an eye on him some time before he signed for the team. He is the 2020/2021 OK European Champion, this year already he has took part in F4 UAE, where he scored two wins and two more podiums! He is most definitely one to look out for in the future…

    Paul Aron competed in Formula Regional European Championship last year with Prema he finished 3rd overall. He also tested with Formula 3 at the post-season test with Prema, so could potentially see him in F3 soon!

    Alex Powell, born in Miami in 2007 but is a native of Jamaica. He made his karting debut in 2015 and his managed to make a name for himself already. Looking on the last couple of years, Alex has enjoyed a successful 2019 campaign, driving for Energy Corse, which included winning the ROK Cup Superfinal (Mini ROK) and 24° South Garda Winter Cup (Mini ROK), finishing third in the WSK Super Master Series (60 Mini), third in the Italian Championship (60 Mini), fifth in WSK Euro Series (60 Mini) and ninth in the WSK Champions Cup (60 Mini). 2020 saw Alex take on various OK Junior categories in the karting world, including the WSK Champions Cup and WSK Super Master Series.

    Frederik Vesti, new to the Mercedes junior programme but most definitely causing a scene. In 2016 he competed in both German and Danish F4 Championships. He missed two events in the Danish Championship but still managed to finish 2nd. Vesti competed in the Formula Regional European Championship where he won the championship ahead of Enzo Fittipaldi. Vesti then done two years in Formula 3 with him finishing 4th both year. He is now going to race in Formula 2 for the 2022 season with ART Grand Prix, the team he was with in Formula 3 last year!

    Lastly, Yuanpu Cui. First drove a go-kart at the age of six, and joined the team last year off a positive season in 2020. Yuanpu’s started racing professionally in 2014 and by 2016 he had finished second in the Chinese Rotax series. Over the next few seasons, he began to expand his racing outside of China, competing in events all around the world. This included podium finishes in Italian National events, WSK Open Cup, WSK Final Cup, the ROK Cup Superfinal and WSK Euro Series in the 60 Mini and Mini ROK classes, across the 2018 and 2019 seasons. In 2020, he picked up a P2 position in the 31° Andrea Margutti Trophy in OK Junior, picked up victories and podiums in the WSK Champions Cup in 60 Mini and scored podiums in the WSK Super Master Series in 60 Mini. He also achieved a podium in the 2020 Florida Winter Tour in Mini ROK.

    Sauber Junior Team-

    Théo Pourchaire, they youngest driver ever to win an F2/GP2 race last year with ART GP, he will be returning to Formula 2 this year with ART GP again in hopes to try and fight for the title. Since being with the Sauber academy, he has won the ADAC Formula 4 Championship beating Dennis Haugher by seven points. Could we see these two fighting for the title this year?

    Christian Ho, is a 13 year old go-kart driver, who was born in Singapore. His half Chinese and half Korean but he is living in Italy. His currently competing in the Junior category with Sauber Junior Karting team.

    Miguel Costa, was born in 2009, he first started karting when he was 3 years old, since then he hasn’t looked back. In 2016 he became the Rock Cup Vice Champion, in 2017 he then went on to be FWT Rok, FWT Rotax and Rok Cup USA Vice Champion. This year he is competing in many karting championships!

    Tiziano Monza, was born in Singapore in 2009 but lives in Italy so he can race around the world. In 2020 he became the WSK Open Cup Vice Champion. Again this year, he is set to be competing in karting championships.

    Gustaw Wiśniewski, another karter added to the juniors. Has taken part in WSK series in Italy, as well as Silver medalist of Poland in Rotax Junior Max, Bronze medalist of Poland in Junior Rok as well as 2nd place in Rotax Max Challenge series.

    Juan Manuel Correa, a name most of us know well! He first joined the academy back in 2019 but then re-joined last year again. He made his racing come back last year with ART GP, he is set to do his second year this year returning with ART GP.

    McLaren Young Driver Programme-

    McLaren has had many of drivers through its young drivers program, most successful being 7 time champion, Lewis Hamilton. The most recent driver who graduated from the program was Lando Norris, who now drives for the team this led the British team to be left with no drivers from 2019 to 2021.

    In March 2021, McLaren announced Ugo Ugochukwu as apart of their programme. The American was crowned the FIA European Karting Champion and he has managed to secure many titles in his career already! In December it got announced that Ugo, will be competing in British F4 in 2022 with Carlin- he will be turning 15 on the eve of the championship!

    I will be splitting this in to two posts due to some teams having more drivers than others…

  • Latest F3 Announcements

    Latest F3 Announcements

    A few more Formula 3 seats have been taken up recently, so lets take a look…

    Edgar to Trident-

    The reigning Champs, Trident annoucned that Jonny Edgar will be joining the team for 2022, where he moves from Carlin. The Brit, finished 18th with 23 points in his rookie season- he managed to score five top-10 finishes.

    He drove for the team, in post-season testing and impressed the team to earn a drive, he ended the afternoon session on day 3 in third.

    Jonny is also a member of the Red Bull Junior team, he has 3 years of experience in single seaters, which includes him winning the 2020 ADAC Formula 4 title.

    Trident Team Owner Maurizio Salvadori added: “Jonny Edgar is a driver that we followed very closely last year in the Formula 3 Championship. Although he did not receive particular results, the English driver impressed us thanks to his qualities. I am therefore very happy that Jonny will. be part of the Trident Team lineup in 2022. I am sure that he will compete in a top championship and will be a real protagonist of the season.”

    Correa stays with ART-

    Juan Manuel Correa and Art Grand Prix have signed for another year together in Formula 3. The Sauber junior made his racing return with ART last year, two years on from the tragic accident in Spa.

    He ended 2021, in 21st place where he had five top 10 finishes. When he was racing in Formula 2 he was a double-podium finisher scoring second place at Baku and Le Castellet with Charouz Racing System.

    Correa took part in the Formula 2 post-season test in Abu Dhabi with Charouz so he could get some more mileage underneath him.

    Team Principal Sébastien Philippe added: “Juan Manuel provided positive feedback by fitting in perfectly with the team and making progress after missing a year due to that pivotal event in his career. His strength of character has enabled him to rediscover his joy behind the wheel and to fight regularly in the top 10. In 2022, with the help of ART Grand Prix, he will be keen to take an additional step in his goals, to be even closer to the front and to participate in the team’s ambition to win both championships.”

    MP signs Smolyar-

    The Russian driver, Alex Smolyar will be returning to Formula 3 for his third season, but he is swapping ART Grand Prix for MP Motorsport.

    Last year, Smolyar finished sixth overall, with two wins and four podiums. In his rookie season in 2020, he ended 11th with just one podium to his name.

    The Russian, first made his single seater debut in 2017, where he drove for SMP Racing in Spanish F4 and SMP F4. He finished third in both series. He then went on to spend the next two years in the Formula Renault Eurocup.

    “It’s great news that Alex and SMP Racing have put their faith in MP for this year’s FIA F3 Championship”, said MP Motorsport team principal Sander Dorsman. “Alex is arguably one of the best drivers to stay in the category for another season, and his vast knowledge of the car and the circuits will serve us well as we look forward to a strong season.”

    My Opinion-

    The move for Jonny is the right one, I feel like we will see a different driver this year in him. He will be wanting to help the team fight for the Championship again.

    Correa has a good relationship with ART GP, and its only right that he stays with them I think. I feel like him staying in F3 this year is the right decision, hopefully we will see him make an appearance in the top 10 more consistently this year!

    Smolyar, I feel like ART GP wasn’t the right fit for him. Yes he has done well in his first two years in F3 but I feel like MP will help make that step forward. It will be interesting to see how he does with a new team.

  • Pourchaire sticks with ART

    Pourchaire sticks with ART

    Another seat has gone for the Formula Two 2022 season, and it is Théo Pourchaire who has took up a seat at ART Grand Prix.

    It will be the Frenchman’s second year in Formula 2, and his third season with ART, the 2020 Formula 3 vice-champion made his Formula 2 debut last season, in which he finished 5th overall with 140 points.

    The Sauber junior, became F2’s youngest pole-sitter and youngest race winner in Monaco, where he won the Feature Race from pole, he added two more podiums with one including a win in the first sprint race in Monza.

    Pourchaire has been apart of the French Motor Sport Federation FFSA since 2017, he was then signed by the Sauber Driver Academy in 2019 and made his Formula 1 debut in a private test at the Hungaroring in August last year, where he ran the 2019 Alfa Romeo C38.

    “I am proud to be continuing in F2 with ART Grand in 2022,” said Pourchaire. “It’s an honour for me to work with such a great team. This will be our third year together and it has become like family to me. To continue with them in the pre-cursor to F1 is very exciting. I would like to thank the Sauber Academy for accompanying me once again. It will be a busy year and I want to have fun and gain experience for my future. We are more determined than ever, and we will be aiming for the F2 title.”

    ART Grand Prix Team Manager Sébastien Philippe added: “Continuing our adventure together makes sense! Théo has shown the range of his talents and there are many of them, both in individual terms and athletic ability. His motivation and determination are in tune with that of ART Grand Prix and winter preparation is going well. When you know that you have all the assets on your side, there is only one thing you can aim for, the title!”

    My Opinion-

    I had no doubt that Théo wouldn’t not sign, it cemented things the other day when he took to Twitter to say he signed, but didn’t announce what team until today! Pourchaire is very talented for his age, and I hope this year we can see him as a contender for the Championship.