Auer: Force India test 'incredible' opportunity

DTM racer Lucas Auer says that it's 'crazy' to think he will be testing a Formula 1 car next month.

The 22-year-old Mercedes protégé is the nephew of former Formula 1 driver Gerhard Berger. Force India confirmed this week that Auer will be in their car for the official test session at Budapest in early August.

F3 driver Nikita Mazepin will also get the opportunity to show the team what he can do in the VJM10 at the Hungaroring. Each driver will have half a day of track time on both the Tuesday and the Wednesday.

"To be honest, it is incredible," Auer told Autosport magazine this week.

"It is just crazy this motorsport world, because things can change so quickly," he continued. "In motorsport you go from hero to loser in three months. And you go from loser to hero in three months.

Auer claimed his first DTM race win with Mercedes' satellite Mucke Motorsport team in 2016. It meant he was kept on even when the squad scaled back to a six-car HWA-run line-up this season.

Mazepin and Auer get seat time with Force India

"Last year being with a customer team and winning a race, that was my breakthrough," said Auer.

DTM has been a successful route into Formula 1 for several drivers in recent years. Saber driver Pascal Wehrlein got his Grand Prix chance after clinching the 2015 title with HWA AG.

Esteban Ocon was promoted into the Manor team to replace Rio Haryanto midway through last season. He now drives for Force India full time in 2017.

"Esteban did a great job there, so it was right to sign him up," said Auer. "But for me it is quite early.

"I have to be happy I get a test, and it is also an opportunity to do well," he added. "It is no secret that if you impress in those tests, this is a good plus point for you and your career.

"First you have to do a pretty impressive job in DTM to get somewhere else," he acknowledged. "Let's see what else will happen."

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.