Formula One news

Fauzy set for Lotus reserve role

Malaysian Fairuz Fauzy looks to be heading to Lotus F1 as the first of the team's signed drivers ahead of the 2010 season. The 27-year-old, runner-up in this year's World Series by Renault, has been described as '99 percent sure' by team Technical Director Mike Gascoyne.

With the legendary Lotus branding returning to F1 next year for the first time since 1994, the core base of the team will be very different to what it was when Britain's Johnny Herbert was driving for the outfit; funded by Fernandes' Tune Group, the same name behind airline AirAsia, a Malaysian driver always did look to be a likely option.

Mike Gascoyne, Technical Director of Lotus F1

"Fairuz will be in the team, probably as a reserve driver or a test driver," Gascoyne, who is making his own F1 comeback after a year off, is quoted as saying by Malaysian newspaper The Star. "He's got the talent but we don't want him to 'crash and burn' in the race because of his inexperience."

The Englishman believes that the approach should work in a much more effective fashion than throwing the driver, who is inexperienced in F1, in at the deep end. "Take Alonso, for example," Gascoyne continued. "He was signed as a test driver at Renault but didn't get a race seat until after three years, then went on to win trophies; that's exactly what we want with Fairuz - for him to have enough experience - because racing in the Formula One is at a much higher level than he's used to.

"If you ask any young driver if they're ready for Formula One, their answer will always be 'yes' but, at the end of the day, it's the experience that matters."

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