Force India has confirmed that Mercedes reserve driver Pascal Wehrlein will drive its 2014-spec VJM07 for two days at the upcoming Barcelona pre-season test, with the 20-year-old DTM race winner scheduled to drive on Thursday and Sunday.
The announcement came after initial reports surfaced last weekend, and described the move as a way for Force India to offset power unit expenditure from engine provider Mercedes amid alleged financial trouble.
Wehrlein’s Force India debut marks the start of a broader partnership between the Mercedes junior driver and the Silverstone-based team as the young German will also take part in both in-season tests programmed in 2015.
Force India has also revealed that regular drivers Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg will drive on Friday and Saturday respectively at Circuit de Catalunya.
"I am very happy that Force India has offered me the opportunity to drive their car for two days at the official test in Barcelona and that Mercedes has supported me to make this happen," Wehrlein said.
"As a young driver, any time you can spend in the car is extremely important and you can learn a lot. I know the simulator already, but I don´t have much experience on the track. My first goal in Spain will be to do a great job together with the team, to learn as much as possible and to give good feedback to the engineers."
Wehrlein’s maiden F1 outing came at last year’s Abu Dhabi post-season test, where he set the fastest time overall aboard the title-winning Mercedes W05 Hybrid.
The second pre-season test will take place at Circuit de Catalunya on February 19-22, while the final session will also be held in Barcelona from February 26 – March 1. Both can be followed live on f1i.com.
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