The Manor Marussia F1 Team have confirmed that their second seat will be filled by 23-year-old Roberto Merhi for the “opening rounds” of the 2015 season.
The Spanish driver, like Stevens, had ties with Caterham before its collapse. Whilst Stevens managed to secure a race seat for the final race in Abu Dhabi, Merhi only took part in practice for the Italian GP.
During 2014, he raced with the Zeta Corse team in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, eventually finishing 3rd overall with three race wins and three places higher than Stevens managed.
“I am incredibly excited to be making my Formula One debut with Manor Marussia F1 Team in Melbourne this weekend,” said Merhi.
“It is a big responsibility but I feel ready to make this step in my career and to show that I can make an important contribution to developing a team.”
Manor also confirmed that GP2 driver Jordan King, son of team interim-chairman Justin King, will be the team’s development driver during the season.
