Dutchman, Giedo van der Garde, has secured the position as test and reserve driver for the Cateram Formula 1 outfit for the 2012 season.
The 26-year-old has previous testing experience having driven a Force India, Super Aguri and Renault F1 cars. He competed in GP2 in 2011, finishing fifth overall.
Van der Garde has been promised several outings in the new CT01 car during pre-season testing and Friday practice, a similar set-up to when Karun Chandhok held the position in ’11.
Van de Garde is hoping his role will reignite his countries interest in F1.
“The team is fresh, with some fantastic people here,” he said. “Tony Fernandes is extremely ambitious and he has brought in a lot of very good people in to help grow this team for future success. I’m looking forward to learning and moving forward with the team, in and out of the car.
“It’s great for Holland that we again have a Dutch driver who is connected to Formula 1. Being the only Dutch driver now is very good for the sport in Holland, as the interest was perhaps on the decline since the [Jos] Verstappen years, however I hope to generate the same excitement for my country and really bring Formula 1 to them.”
Team boss Fernandes added: “He is a very exciting prospect that we have been monitoring since the early days of our team, and we are all looking forward to seeing how he can help us develop throughout the season as we take our next steps towards the established midfield teams ahead.
“His performances in GP2, particularly in 2011, mark Giedo out as one of motorsport’s brightest prospects, and securing him as reserve driver is a real coup for our team.”
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