Official: Giedo Van der Garde will drive the second Caterham
An announcement was due to be made today regarding Giedo Van der Garde, and it's the end of an open secret since the Dutch driver, the first in the discipline since Christijan Albers in 2007, will be teammate to Charles Pic at Caterham next season, where he was a reserve driver in 2012.
Only two left! Two is the number of seats still to be filled to complete the grid for the first Grand Prix of the season in Melbourne. While the names of the future Force India and Marussia drivers are still awaited, the second Caterham driver has now been announced: it will be Giedo Van der Garde. The Dutch driver announced it himself at a press conference held in Amsterdam. It’s a relief for the Netherlands, which hasn’t had a representative in the top discipline since 2007. Van der Garde wins one of the “battles for a seat” that have or will mark this 2012 off-season.
I know I am ready to take the step into F1 and all the work I have done during my career, especially last season with this team, has brought me to my ultimate goal, stated the one who was the reserve driver for the Anglo-Malaysian team last year and was able to participate in several free practice sessions. Throughout 2012, I was able to fully integrate into the team, both during Free Practice 1, where I raced on many circuits that were new to me, and as a reserve driver, fully committed to the team all season. Van der Garde’s 2012 season was also marked by a fifth place in the GP2 standings, where he won two races in Barcelona and Singapore driving a single-seater from the brand’s junior team: Now, I can continue to learn at the highest level of motorsport and show that I am ready for F1. I am eager to start the work.
After aligning a duo of Jarno Trulli – Heikki Kovalainen marked by experience for two seasons, Caterham now trusts two young drivers, with Charles Pic standing as the natural leader of the brand with his… 19 Grand Prix races. A choice driven primarily by financial reasons, justified by an overall very difficult context, although Cyril Abiteboul – as he announced last year – prefers to highlight the bet on youth: “We continue to grow as a team and we are committed to giving young talents […] the chance to progress with us, and it’s the opportunity for Giedo to show that he deserves his place at the highest level of world motor sport.”
The confirmation of Giedo Van der Garde and the very probable upcoming announcement of Luis Razia at Marussia should mean that drivers like Heikki Kovalainen, Bruno Senna, or Vitaly Petrov will not be on the grid on March 17 in Melbourne, unless they secure one of the last two available seats.
