Turvey & Paffett set for McLaren’s young driver test
McLaren are expected to run their test driver Gary Paffett along with McLaren young driver Oliver Turvey at next week’s Abu Dhabi young driver test at the Yas Marina Circuit.
“The main focus will be on giving them a little bit more exposure to Formula One and for people to be aware of them,” said team principal Martin Whitmarsh in a Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Phone-In. “Then on a technical level we will have a programme with Pirelli.”
DTM star Paffett, 30, joined McLaren in 2005 and has carried out numerous tests for the team, but qualifies for the Abu Dhabi session thanks to his lack of Grand Prix experience. Fellow Briton Turvey, 24, tested for McLaren during last year’s young driver test and has spent this season racing in GP2 and GT3.
Tyres will be high on the agenda for Paffett and Turvey in Abu Dhabi, and Whitmarsh was keen to emphasise the role Pirelli - in their first season back in Formula One - have played in making the 2011 championship so exciting.
“They have got to be congratulated for what they have contributed to the sport,” he stated. “They came in fairly late with a big challenge and a lot of question marks over what they were going to do and how they were going to do it.
“I think we owe them quite a lot of time so we can develop the tyres. I think their tyres have contributed significantly to the show. Certainly they have contributed to the engineering challenge - and the driver challenge. We have agreed to run an extensive programme for them.”
The Abu Dhabi young driver test takes place on November 15-17.
Credit: Formula One Administration Ltd (www.formula1.com)
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